Top left – John Stonehouse, Lord Lucan, Right – Matthew Macfadyen as Stonehouse, Below Left – Keeley Hawes and Macfadyen, married onscreen and off.
Back in the 1970’s eccentric British MP John Stonehouse, Lord Lucan, faced his difficulties by staging his own death across an ocean from London, his job, his wife and children. He was the tiebreaker in the House of Lords under Prime Minister Harold Wilson in a heavily polarised period, during which his vote could make or break the party, so there was much riding on him. He disappeared, was declared dead, drowned off the Florida coast, home free to pursue a new life with his mistress in Australia. But it wasn’t to be. Interesting fact. What She Said’ Anne Brodie learned from Matthew Macfadyen who plays Stonehouse in the BritBox three-parter that these days, there are companies to do the heavy lifting of staging one’s death. Meet Macfadyen and Kevin R. McNally who plays Wilson.
Stonehouse on BritBox TV Jan 17.