Anne Williams - Infamous Scandals. Real Life Stories From the Sleazy Side of Celebrity

For the majority of people a minor indiscretion would go unnoticed, but just imagine what the repercussions would be like if you were a major public figure. Over the years pop stars, sportsmen, celebrities, politicians, members of the clergy and members of the royal family have made the headlines by being involved in a wide variety of scandals and controversial issues.

A scandal, put simply, is an incident that becomes widely publicized because it involves allegations of a wrongdoing, a disgrace or something which causes moral outrage. Of course the country in which the incident occurs can have strong implications as to the seriousness of the said moral outrage. A prime example is when a scandal broke after Richard Gere planted a seemingly innocuous kiss on the cheek of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty. The couple were appearing together at an AIDS awareness event in India, when Gere embraced Shetty, bent her back in a sort of exaggerated dance and then kissed her on the cheek. Had this happened in Europe, no one would have turned a hair, but because they were in Indias, and the countrys Hindu nationalists believed that the act went far beyond anything that is acceptable to their beliefs, it was blown out of all proportion.

Of course a scandal is not always based on fact. Sometimes it is the product of a false allegation which becomes grossly exaggerated. Very often the attempt to cover up the said scandal creates an even greater scandal, when the cover-up fails to do its job and makes the situation even worse.

Years ago a scandal would probably have meant the end of a very prosperous career, but in the 21st century it appears it is easier to ride the storm, but of course this is by no means always the case. A prime example was the scandal surrounding TV presenter and comedian Michael Barrymore, whose madcap personality made him one of the most popular entertainers on British television. However, when a friend was found dead floating in Barrymores swimming pool after a party in March 2001, it not only tarnished the presenters reputation, it also ruined his career.

One of the most famous scandals in the 20th century was that of actor Roscoe Fatty Arbuckle, who was accused of rape and murder in 1921. Although he was apparently innocent of the charges, the scandal still managed to break him. Arbuckle was banned from making films and, although the ban was lifted the same year, his career had already been destroyed.

Sports personalities, who are always in the limelight, only need to stray slightly from the straight and narrow and the media jump on it. For example, in 1994 Argentinas footballing hero, Diego Maradona, scored a magnificent goal in the World Cup final in the United States against Greece. However, the thrill of the goal was soon quashed when Maradona was sent home after testing positive for the stimulant ephedrene. Although he claimed it must have been in his sports drink, he was not allowed to play any further matches and his team was knocked out of the competition.

Another footballer, Stan Collymore, still bears the scars of an endless string of scandals. In 2004 he once again became the subject of ridicule when he was stopped by undercover reporters for dogging cruising for anonymous sex stupidly using a car that bore his own personalized number plates!

The royal family are not immune from scandal in fact far from it and if we look back in the annals of time we will see plenty of evidence of naughty behaviour. When kings and queens, princes and princesses play around, everyone wants to know about it and whispers of their indiscretions reverberate around the world. In 1891 the Duke of Clarence, who was son of the future Edward VII, offered two prostitutes money if they would return two letters he had written to them. Details of this indiscretion did not come to light until the year 2002, when the incriminating letters were auctioned for the sum of 8,220.

In October 2007 two men were charged with attempted blackmail when they demanded 50,000 from an unnamed member of the royal family in exchange for an explicit sex tape.

However, probably the most intriguing scandal to come out about the royal family is that surrounding the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. When Andrew Morton released his book Her True Story , the spell surrounding the fairytale marriage was broken. In the book Morton quotes Diana as saying, My wedding day, I think that was the worst day of my life and she frequently refers to the Princes other woman. The woman of course was Camilla Parker-Bowles, who has since become the Princes consort. The scandal surrounding the death of Princess Diana in a high-speed car crash in August 1997 in Paris is still ongoing and various theories continue to emerge regarding the cause of the accident.

Politicians have seen their fair share of scandals whether they have been involved in illegal, corrupt or unethical practices, or once again the subject of an immoral sexual practice as in the case of John Profumo. At the height of the cold war in the early part of the 1960s, Profumo allegedly had a sordid affair which involved a showgirl named Christine Keeler and a Soviet naval attache.

In September 2006 a respected congressman from Florida Mark Foley rocked the Capitol when he resigned over allegations that he sent sexually explicit emails to underage boys working as congressional pages. Further repercussions echoed around Congress when it was believed that several of his fellow House leaders had been aware of his indiscretions for quite some time.

A major political sex scandal broke in 1998 when US president Bill Clinton was accused of having an extramarital affair with a 22-year-old White House intern called Monica Lewinsky. The story made headlines for several days despite denials by Clinton, but the White House were not happy and demanded some answers.

Religious leaders should set a shining example for society on moral issues, or so one would think. However, for decades the sexual misbehaviour of Catholic priests has been shrouded in secrecy.

Jimmy Swaggart, one of the United States leading television evangelists was forced to resign from his ministry after it was revealed that he had been consorting with a prostitute. In a tearful confession in front of a large congregation he said I have sinned against you and I beg your forgiveness. Ironically, his confession was all the more scandalous because he had already openly criticized a rival TV evangelist Rev Jim Bakker for committing adultery!