A Very British Sex Scandal S01E03 - The Dirty Duchess

The shocking true story of an extraordinary royal sex scandal that rocked 1960s Britain.

The Duchess of Argyll, Margaret Campbell, a former society beauty found herself at the centre of a toxic divorce case in 1963 after it emerged that both she and her husband, the Duke, had had multiple extra-marital affairs. The trial which involved illicit Polaroid pictures created a storm of newspaper headlines that changed the way society viewed both the royals and the upper classes.

During the trial, when the Duke successfully filed for divorce, Margaret faced accusations of adultery on a monumental scale. At the heart of the trial were sexually explicit Polaroid photos of the Duchess and an unidentified man. The mystery of his identity captured the imagination of a nation, and was shortlisted to a Hollywood star, a senior politician at the heart of government and a prince.

The documentary with new archive, contributors who knew her, and with resurfaced interviews of Margaret Campbell herself, questions whether she deserved her maligned reputation or if she was, as her friends and family maintain, a victim of misogynistic attitudes of the time, simply because she was a sexually liberated woman. In-person commentary from journalists, historians, and a lawyer help put context and perspective on this incredible story.

This film delves deep into the story of Margaret's extraordinary life and how key moments and experiences led her to this shocking and yet, it's argued, inevitable trial. She was born into unimaginable wealth and privilege into the highest echelons of society but a society that ultimately rejected her when scandal hit.

This gripping documentary unravels one of the most extraordinary and brutal legal cases of the 20th century and raises serious and disturbing questions about privacy, respect and the role of women in society.