John Profumo its defeat by Labour at the 1964 election. Macmillan had already gone by then, having resigned in October 1963 to be succeeded by Alec Douglas-Home. Profumo maintained complete public silence about the matter for the rest of his life, even when the 1989 film "Scandal" - in which he was played by Ian McKellen - and the publication of Keeler's memoirs revived public interest in the affair. Profumo was portrayed by Daniel Flynn in Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage musical "Stephen Ward", which opened at the Aldwych Theatre on 19 December 2013. Shortly after his resignation, Profumo was invited to work
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