6 Girls’ Evidence Against Ward

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30171, 1 July 1963, Page 11

6 Girls’ Evidence Against Ward

(N.Z.PA.-Reuter—Copyright)

LONDON, June 29.

Dr. Stephen Ward sat quietly in the dock of the Marylebone Court today,, drawing beautiful young women who filed through the witness box giving evidence against him on vice charges. As the witnesses told stories of a suicide bid, two-way bedroom mirrors and love-making, Ward, at times, took copious notes on what was being said.

Ward, aged 50, is charged with living on prostitution,, keeping a brothel and being an accessory to procuring an abortion. The tense atmosphere of the courtroom was relieved once or twice by laughter at remarks by 18-year-old Marilyn Rice-Davies, who followed her friend Christine Keeler into the witness box yesterday and resumed her evidence this morning.

Yesterday, Miss Rice-Davies told the Court that she had had sexual intercourse with Viscount Astor, and Miss Keeler said that Lord Astor had paid the rent of a West End flat the two girls had shared.

Yesterday, Miss Keeler insisted her relations with Dr. Ward had been '‘like brother and sister" and that they had not had intercourse. She said Ward had told her Lord Astor paid money directly to the landlord for the rent of tlie flat. "There was no ulterior motive behind the cheque that was handed to the landlord,” she added. She said she had gone to live with a Persian boy for about three months. Then she had gone with Ward to Wimpole Mews in the West End That was the beginning of June, 1961 She said she had received some hundreds of pounds from the Persian. She had given Ward "more than half” the money handed to her by men friends. ‘Liked Girls' While living at Wimpole Mews she had introduced girls to Dr. Ward "because he liked girls.” She had taken up modelling so she could meet some girls for Dr. Ward.

She thought Ward had made love to about four girls she took to his flat. She named them as Sally Norie.

"a girl called Grundy, another . called Jane, and another called Christine." Asked if she bad had intercourse with anyone while living at Wimpole Mews, Miss Keelej said she had had a boy friend—one boy friend at a time. There was a loud

“Ho-ho-ho” in a man's voice from the public seats. The Magistrate looked over shakily and quiet was restored.

She agreed she had had intercourse with Mr Profumo and that he had given her money—but it was for her mother not for herself. Mr Profumo and other men had also given her presents Ivanov At Flat She also admitted she had known and had intercourse with Captain Ivanov. It emerged from her answers that she had met Captain Ivanov while she w-as at her flat with Mr Profumo. A friend, Mr Eylan. had given her altogether "some hundreds of pounds,” of which she gave some to Dr. Ward. She said she had met Mr Eylan “under bad circumstances and it was a question of liking each other and as he had money he used to help me out." Another man with whom she had intercourse at the flat also had given her money.

Once when she was broke Ward had suggested she go to see a man. She had had intercourse with this man and he had paid her about £5O.

She said another girl, called Vivian, had had an abortion in Ward's flat while she was |here. Miss Keeler said Ward “had complete control of me ” ‘.Verer Prostitute' Ask el if Dr. Ward had ever anything about the mentality of a girl, she replied. "He said I would never be a prostitute or a call girl, and I know this myself. He used to say it was the frame of mind I was in. I had never considered myself a call girl or prostitute.

"Dr. Ward said you had to have the mentality of a prostitute which I did not have, and it was not quite so wrong once or twice sleeping with a man for money, a man whom I knew quite well and whom I liked.” Asked why she finally had gone away from Ward, Miss Keeler said: “I knew he was bad for me in one way.” This was "because I knew I could never stand on my feet unless he was there to support me mentally.” Marriage Offer Miss Rice-Davies said she nad come to London on her sixteenth birthday and Miss Keeler had introduced her to Ward, who had suggested marriage to her. She had not said that she would marry him "After I had married him he would not have minded my having love affairs with other men. I did not agree to this proposition." she said. Asked about Ward's shorta e of money. Miss RiceDavies said he had mentioned Lord Astor, saying: •We have always got Bill who can help us.” Ward had said he did not have any money just "lots of

friends.” including Lord Astor and Douglas Fairbanks, jun. While living with Ward she had had intercourse with Lord Astor, she said. Mr Griffith-Jones said he did not want names included in the depositions. The evidence was then written down without reference to Lord Astor. Miss Rice-Davies said that at Ward's suggestion she had gone to bed with an Indian. This had happened about four times with the Indian and although she had never asked for money he had left between £l5 and £25 each time.

Whenever she had the money Ward used to ask for money for the rent, and ask if he could borrow money. When she had received

money she gave or lent some to Ward —£2 or £3 at a time. She said that in one flat she occupied had been a twoway mirror—which she broke —permitting a view into the bedroom without anyone in the bedroom knowing. Miss Rice-Davies said Ward had invited her out, including visits to his rented cottage at Cliveden (Lord Astor’s estate). They had had intercourse and she also had had intercourse with a man Ward took to the flat she and Miss Keeler were sharing. Today, appearing as unflustered as she did yesterday. Miss Rice-Davies told the Court she had lived as “man and wife” before she moved in with Ward last year. She named the man as Peter Rachman, who died recently and was named in Court yesterday as a close friend of Ward.

Ward hardly glanced at her as she took the stand. His eyes were down and he scribbled notes. Lover's Estate Mr Janies Burge (for Ward) asked Miss RiceDavies his morning. if she had expected to benefit from Rachman’s will. “I did not expect it,” she replied. “I got nothing. His estate went to his wife.”. Mr Burge asked about the see-through mirror in Rachman's flat, which permitted persons in the living room to see unobserved into the bedroom. Miss Rice-Davies said she had destroyed the mirror six months after she went to live with Rachman. Mr Burge accused her of lying about her relations with the American film star, Douglas Fairbanks, jun. “You never had any meeting with Mr Fairbanks at all, did you? Mr Burge said. “Yes, I did,” she answered. "Twice I had a meeting with him. not in connexion with films, and twice with Christine Keeler.”

Mr Burge suggested her statement about Lord Astor was untrue. “Of course it is not untrue. I am not going

to perjure myself in Court,” she said. Mr Burge: Do you know that Lord Astor has in fact made a statement to the police saying that these allegations of yours are absolutely untrue? Miss Rice-Davies: He would, wouldn't he? Suicide Attempt Miss Rice-Davies said she had tried to kill herself shortly after the death of the man who had kept her for two years. Mr Burge asked her if she knew Ward had told her parents she tried to commit suicide last November because her lover. Peter Rachman, left her nothing in his will. Miss Rice-Davies said it was foolish of Ward to say this because Rachman had given her enough in jewellery and mink to keep her for years. He had also given her a Jaguar car. The model would not admit she was out to get as much publicity she could by her evidence. “It is not the best publicity,” she said. She agreed she knew that her friend Christine Keeler had sold her life story to the “News of the World,” a Sunday newspaper, for £23,000. She also agreed than the more well known the personalities and the more sensational she could make the story, the greater value it would have. Value Of Story

She said She was under contract to several newspapers. “Every person in this case is under contract to some paper and I don’t see why I should not be,” she said. The newspapers had communicated with her, not the other way round. At the end of her two-day testimony. Miss Rice-Davies got permission to leave Britain for the present. She told the Court that she had been brought from a holiday in Majorca to testify for the prosecution and in granting her permission to go abroad again, the Magistrate told her that she had to be back for the formal trial of Ward. He increased the usual £4O surety for her attendance to £5OO. He promised that she would get her passport back frpm the police. Miss ‘X’ In Box

Miss Riee-Davies was followed in the witness box by a tall, dark-haired girl identified only as Miss ‘X.” The girl said she had been introduced to Ward at a party. During a conversation on one occasion Ward had mentioned that he had moved into a flat with a twoway mirror. “He said he could sit and watch people, I imagine making love, in the bedroom. He made a little joke. He said he could make a little money if people sat around and watched,” said Miss “X.” She had told Ward: “Quite honestly, anything like that would not interest me. I wouldn’t want to watch.” To that, she said Ward had replied: “My darling, I don’t want you to watch. I want you to perform.” Miss “X” said: “I told him it was definitely out of the question." Miss “X” was asked by Mr Griffith-Jones if Wand had said anythong about introductions. ‘‘He said to me that if I ever wanted to meet anybody in particular in society he could arrange it,” she replied. Ward had telephoned her once more and she had told him she did not want to see him any more. Offer Of 'Help' Asked if he had ever mentioned abortion, she replied: “He did not use that word He said if 1 ever got into trouble or was in need of help he would help me.” Replying to further questions from Mr Griffith-Jones. Miss ‘‘X” said this conversation had taken place at her home and she supposed that they were talking about boy friends. Mr Griffith-Jones: Had there been any previous conversation about abortion? Miss “X”: Not to me.

In your presence"—There was a mention of it in Miss Keeler s flat, but I suppose they were talking about it to themselves and I was not supposed to hear. Miss “X" said she had heard Miss Keeler say someone had rung up and asked her what she would like as a Christmas present and she had replied, ''An abortion." The Magistrate: This was a most unsuitable joke Do you think it was meant in that way? Miss “X”: Yes. Two-Way Mirror Another witness, Margaret Ricardo, was also questioned about the mirror. When she had gone to see Ward in his flat, she had seen a hole in th? wall, she said. Ward had her he was hoping to re-

place a two-way mirror which used to be there. Miss Ricardo said: “I knew what it was.” She had had one herself in her previous flat. On some occasions when she visited the flat, she had been asked to stay behind to meet somebody. On each occasion men had arrived.

The prosecutor: What took place? Miss Ricardo: "I went to bed with him.” The next witness was Sally Joan Norie. who said she had been with Ward to Cliveden and had had intercourse with him.

Mr Burge: At this . stage you were over 20 years old?

Miss Norie: No. You met the accused and went about with him and other people and after a certain time you quite voluntarily had an affair with him? —Yes. And that is all there is to it?—Yes, as far as I am concerned. Austrian Miss ‘R’

A tall white-faced, honey blonde with a beehive hairdo, Miss "R” wrote her name and address down. She spoke confidently, telling Mr Griffith-Jones that she was bom on May 18. 1941, and was Austrian by birth. Mr Griffith-Jones explained she was a witness in connexion with charge No. 2, which deals with an incitement to procure Miss “R,” a girl then under 21, to have unlawful sexual intercourse with a third person—Ward.

Miss ”R” told of becoming employed in a shop in Marylebone High street. London, where she had first met Miss Keeler as a customer in May or June, 1961. She had seen Miss Keeler on severa<l occasions and once Miss Keeler had said to her: "My brother would like to meet you.” She had agreed and was later introduced to Ward by Miss Keeler as her brother. “I drove with them back to Wimpole Mews.” Miss *‘R” said. "There it was immediately cleared up that he was not her brother.” Ward had invited her to Cliveden the first day she met him. but she had refused.

Miss "R” said that once after a party she had gone with Ward and some other people to his cottage. She had later wanted to leave, but had no way of getting back to London. There were only two bedrooms and she had to sleep in the same room as Ward and intercourse took place. Miss "R” said Wand had also told her about “very strange parties” that went on at a place belonging to a woman called Marie Ella. "He said they whipped girls and so on,” she said. Ward had said it would be very interesting for her to see what happened, but she had not gone. Hostile Witness The first man to give evidence, John Hamilton Marshall, a London salesman and antique dealer, said he had first met Ward 18 months ago. He denied Ward had asked him to do something about a girl. Marshall had said he had been questioned by police for five or six hours about Captain Eugene Ivanov (a former Russian naval attache in London) and a number of other men.

Marshall agreed with the Magistrate that in a statement to the police he had said he knew of an abortion and that Ward also knew of an abort iort.

Ip reply to Mr Burge, Marshall said there was no truth in a paragraph of the statement which said Ward had asked him to go and see a girl who had just had an abortion. Asked by the Magistrate why he had signed the statement, Marshall said: “I was there (with the police) for six hours. I skimmed through because I was glad to get out.” Mr Griffith-Jones applied for permission—which was granted—to regard Marshall as a hostile witness on the ground that he was departing from a statement he had made to the police. Marshall left the witness box, completing the evidence for today. Mr Griffith-Jones told the Court: “I think I can promise you we shall finish in another day and possibly very much less.” The Magistrate announced that the hearing would be resumed next Wednesday.