Biography

February 12, 1900 · Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

July 16, 1986 · London, England, UK (heart attack)

Robert John Graham Boothby

Member of Parliament for East Aberdeenshire from 1924 who was also a broadcaster.

MP for East Aberdeenshire 1928-1954, and Baron of Buchan and Rattray Head after that. He won £40,000 in a libel case against the Sunday Mirror and German magazine Stern when they accused him of having a homosexual affair with gangster Ronald Kray. The claim was later found to be true after his death. A bisexual, he also allegedly had a daughter by Harold Macmillan's wife.

Was impersonated by Benny Hill on The Benny Hill Show (1969).

He was portrayed by Robert Glenister in the original production of the play "Never So Good", by Howard Brenton , which premiered at the National Theatre, London, UK in March 2008.

Despite a vigorous secret life as a homosexual, he was married twice. His first marriage was in 1935, to Diana Cavendish, and ended just two years later - it should be remembered that, in those days, it usually took a minimum of two years to obtain a divorce in the UK. His second marriage was to Wanda Sanna, a Sardinian woman some 33 years his junior. This was not until 1967, after a great many whispers concerning his homosexuality had begun appearing in the press; however, the marriage lasted until his death, although he and his second wife were hardly ever seen together in public.