Profumo affair Party was marked by the scandal, which may have contributed to its defeat by the Labour Party in the 1964 general election. When the Profumo–Keeler affair was first revealed, public interest was heightened by reports that Keeler may have been simultaneously involved with Captain Yevgeny Ivanov, a Soviet naval attaché, thereby creating a possible security risk. Keeler knew both Profumo and Ivanov through her friendship with Stephen Ward, an osteopath and socialite who had taken her under his wing. The exposure of the affair generated rumours of other scandals, and drew official attention to the activities of Ward, who was
Profumo affair story to the national newspapers. The Radcliffe tribunal's ongoing inquiry into press behaviour during the Vassall case was making newspapers nervous, and only two showed interest in Keeler's story: the "Sunday Pictorial" and the "News of the World". As the latter would not join an auction, Keeler accepted the "Pictorial"s offer of a £200 down payment and a further £800 when the story was published. The paper retained a copy of the "Darling" letter. The "News of the World" then alerted Ward and Astor—whose names had been mentioned by Keeler—and they in turn informed Profumo. When Profumo's lawyers tried to