Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Mandy Rice-Davies in Penarth


This photo, from 1965, is of Mandy Rice-Davies paddling in Penarth. She was appearing in cabaret at the Marina Club, there. To drum up a bit of publicity she put on her bathing costume and took to the waters.

This was just a couple of years after the Profumo affair. Trading on her notoriety she had taken up a singing career and even released a couple of records. Trouble was a moral minority were still upset at her role in the scandal. In fact, her Christmas tour in 1964 had to be cancelled because of protests by housewives and church leaders.

By the time she arrived in Penarth, however, things had cooled down considerably. She told reporters: "I do hope I'm not going to encounter good old Welsh hypocrisy this time." Well, she would know all about that - after all, Mandy was born into a Welsh family herself. The gig went ahead as planned and there was no trouble whatsoever from the liberal-minded folk of Penarth.