Sara Keays
Encyclopedia
Sara Keays is the former mistress and personal secretary of British Conservative
politician Cecil Parkinson
. Keays' public revelation of her pregnancy
and of their twelve-year long affair, when she realised that Parkinson would neither marry her nor help her become an MP
, led to his resignation as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
in the government of Margaret Thatcher
.
in 1993, forbidding the British media from making any reference to their daughter.
At the time of the revelation of Parkinson's relationship with Sara Keays in 1983, Parkinson made much of what he described as the volume of supportive letters which he had received. Keays was attacked by many in the Tory party, such as Edwina Currie
branding her a cow for destroying his ministerial career. By 2001, however, the media focused more upon Flora and her difficulties than in protecting Parkinson's reputation, so more voices were raised in criticism of Parkinson.
, Greater London) has learning disabilities and Asperger syndrome
, and had an operation to remove a brain tumour when she was four, which is thought to have caused her problems.
The court order
was the subject of some controversy until its expiry when Flora Keays reached her majority at the end of 2001. When Flora turned 18, it was noted in the press that Parkinson had never met her and presumably had no intention of doing so. While he had financially assisted with Flora's education and upkeep, it was publicly pointed out that he had never sent her a birthday card and that her mother assumed that Flora could never expect to receive one.
In January 2002, Channel 4
broadcast a documentary film on Sara and Flora Keays. In it Flora said: "I would like to meet my 'Daddy'... because I haven't been given the chance to see him yet. If he was part of our lives I'd be seeing him all the time, every day." Sara Keays is shown telling her daughter that her father has never seen her because "he didn't want anything to do with us."
Sara Keays, who was forced to educate her daughter at home, and encouraged her in ballet, gymnastics, horse riding and trampolining, said Lord Parkinson's reappointment by William Hague
as Tory party chairman caused the youngster problems when she finally secured a place at a secondary school: "It was torture for her. She was bullied, just because somebody thought it was necessary for him to have his job back, basically", she said.
Speaking ahead of the film, Sara Keays angrily denied that she fell pregnant to trap her lover and attacked Downing Street
and Conservative Central Office for conducting a "very powerful and all pervasive disinformation campaign" to discredit her at the time.
in October 1983. There she did more than put her side of the story of her relationship with MP Cecil Parkinson: she challenged the hypocrisy of newspapers like the Daily Telegraph, which felt that a discreet abortion was ‘greatly to be preferred’ to a scandal. ‘I was not aware’, she wrote then, ‘that political expediency was sufficient grounds for an abortion under the 1967 Act
’ (The Times, 14 October 1983). The Times leader column, for its part, acknowledged that Keays had squarely faced the issue of the double standard in matters of sexual morality, especially in political life."
A customer reviewed 'The Black Book' as follows: "Liking this type of book I bought it but on reading it I realised that it wasn't Ms Keays' writing skills that got her this book published. The idea is a good one - Secretary to the Chief Whip
unwittingly finds the infamous Black Book of gossip and sleaze about MPs' private lives. The CIA and MI5
get involved to discredit her and all turns out well in the end. The story takes a good half of the book to get going before anything really happens. The characters are not very well developed, the story doesn't flow at all and the end is dreadfully anticlimactic. The book just stops before half of the loose ends have been cleared up."
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician Cecil Parkinson
Cecil Parkinson
Cecil Parkinson, Baron Parkinson, PC , is a British Conservative politician and former Cabinet Minister.-Early life:...
. Keays' public revelation of her pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
and of their twelve-year long affair, when she realised that Parkinson would neither marry her nor help her become an MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, led to his resignation as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills is a cabinet position in the United Kingdom government. Its secondary title is the President of the Board of Trade...
in the government of Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
.
Parkinson's resignation
Parkinson was forced to resign on 14 October 1983 after it was revealed that Sara was bearing his child, Flora Keays. Subsequently, as a result of a dispute over child maintenance payments, Parkinson (with Keays' initial consent) was able to gain an injunctionInjunction
An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order that requires a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. A party that fails to comply with an injunction faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
in 1993, forbidding the British media from making any reference to their daughter.
At the time of the revelation of Parkinson's relationship with Sara Keays in 1983, Parkinson made much of what he described as the volume of supportive letters which he had received. Keays was attacked by many in the Tory party, such as Edwina Currie
Edwina Currie
Edwina Jonesnée Cohen is a former British Member of Parliament. First elected as a Conservative Party MP in 1983, she was a Junior Health Minister for two years, before resigning in 1988 over the controversy over salmonella in eggs...
branding her a cow for destroying his ministerial career. By 2001, however, the media focused more upon Flora and her difficulties than in protecting Parkinson's reputation, so more voices were raised in criticism of Parkinson.
Daughter
Flora Keays (born MertonLondon Borough of Merton
The London Borough of Merton is a borough in southwest London, England.The borough was formed under the London Government Act in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton and Morden Urban District, all formerly within Surrey...
, Greater London) has learning disabilities and Asperger syndrome
Asperger syndrome
Asperger's syndrome that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. It differs from other autism spectrum disorders by its relative preservation of linguistic and cognitive development...
, and had an operation to remove a brain tumour when she was four, which is thought to have caused her problems.
The court order
Court order
A court order is an official proclamation by a judge that defines the legal relationships between the parties to a hearing, a trial, an appeal or other court proceedings. Such ruling requires or authorizes the carrying out of certain steps by one or more parties to a case...
was the subject of some controversy until its expiry when Flora Keays reached her majority at the end of 2001. When Flora turned 18, it was noted in the press that Parkinson had never met her and presumably had no intention of doing so. While he had financially assisted with Flora's education and upkeep, it was publicly pointed out that he had never sent her a birthday card and that her mother assumed that Flora could never expect to receive one.
In January 2002, Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
broadcast a documentary film on Sara and Flora Keays. In it Flora said: "I would like to meet my 'Daddy'... because I haven't been given the chance to see him yet. If he was part of our lives I'd be seeing him all the time, every day." Sara Keays is shown telling her daughter that her father has never seen her because "he didn't want anything to do with us."
Sara Keays, who was forced to educate her daughter at home, and encouraged her in ballet, gymnastics, horse riding and trampolining, said Lord Parkinson's reappointment by William Hague
William Hague
William Jefferson Hague is the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State. He served as Leader of the Conservative Party from June 1997 to September 2001...
as Tory party chairman caused the youngster problems when she finally secured a place at a secondary school: "It was torture for her. She was bullied, just because somebody thought it was necessary for him to have his job back, basically", she said.
Speaking ahead of the film, Sara Keays angrily denied that she fell pregnant to trap her lover and attacked Downing Street
Downing Street
Downing Street in London, England has for over two hundred years housed the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now synonymous with that of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the Treasury, an...
and Conservative Central Office for conducting a "very powerful and all pervasive disinformation campaign" to discredit her at the time.
Publications
Book reviewer, Ann Scott, commented: "I have had an interest in Sara Keays and her significance for public debates around power and sexuality ever since her statement to The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
in October 1983. There she did more than put her side of the story of her relationship with MP Cecil Parkinson: she challenged the hypocrisy of newspapers like the Daily Telegraph, which felt that a discreet abortion was ‘greatly to be preferred’ to a scandal. ‘I was not aware’, she wrote then, ‘that political expediency was sufficient grounds for an abortion under the 1967 Act
Abortion Act 1967
The Abortion Act 1967 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom legalising abortions by registered practitioners, and regulating the free provision of such medical practices through the National Health Service ....
’ (The Times, 14 October 1983). The Times leader column, for its part, acknowledged that Keays had squarely faced the issue of the double standard in matters of sexual morality, especially in political life."
A customer reviewed 'The Black Book' as follows: "Liking this type of book I bought it but on reading it I realised that it wasn't Ms Keays' writing skills that got her this book published. The idea is a good one - Secretary to the Chief Whip
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
unwittingly finds the infamous Black Book of gossip and sleaze about MPs' private lives. The CIA and MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
get involved to discredit her and all turns out well in the end. The story takes a good half of the book to get going before anything really happens. The characters are not very well developed, the story doesn't flow at all and the end is dreadfully anticlimactic. The book just stops before half of the loose ends have been cleared up."
External links
- Karen McVeigh 'A Tale of Two Daughters' The Scotsman, 10 January 2002. Article about Flora Keays and her half-sister, Mary Parkinson.
- Angela Levin "The brutal sex attack that nearly destroyed Cecil Parkinson's child" Daily Mail, 14 November 2008. Article about Flora and Sara today, still focusing on Flora's medical condition.