PRINCESS Diana’s brother Charles has announced he will be divorcing for the third time.
Earl Spencer didn’t give the reasons (there’s rarely just one) behind his split from Canadian philanthropist Karen Gordon, but it’s fair to assume that writing a memoir about the physical and sexual abuse he suffered at boarding school may have played a part.
7
7
Mainly because it led to him undergoing residential treatment for psychological trauma late last year.
In his book, A Very Private School, he reveals that he was regularly beaten by male teachers at Maidwell Hall prep school in Northamptonshire and sexually abused by a predatory assistant who he did not identify.
He was 11, she was about 20, and, he said, she routinely groomed and abused him and other boys after the lights went out.
Now, another man who attended the school has come forward to corroborate Charles’ memories and says he was also abused by her.
“She used to sleep with some boys and then do, I think, sexual favors to others,” he says.
He reveals that he had previously made light of what happened, but after reading the memoirs, he now realizes that what she did was “clearly wrong”.
I will say.
However, there is still a tendency for people to view the older woman/young boy sexual experience from a “lucky him” perspective.
In fact, when I raised the subject at dinner with friends the other night, that was the exact response.
“And how would you feel if you were a teacher routinely abusing 11-year-old girls in their beds at night?” I asked.
“Disgusting,” was the general response.
Even Charles himself didn’t think it was abuse at the time.
He says he craved her sexual attention because it made him feel special.
But it was an imbalance of power that destabilized him emotionally, leading to episodes of self-harm “with the prospect of losing her” and wanting “full sex from a very early age”.
The other man, a Midlands businessman, named her a 67-year-old grandmother called Sally Jane Carr, who retrained and became an experienced mental health professional.
So what happens now?
Northamptonshire Police have launched an investigation into the school and urged “anyone who may have suffered abuse” to come forward.
Devastating breach of trust
So will this result in prosecution?
It remains to be seen, especially since Ms. Carr’s lawyer says there are “very clear factual discrepancies” that “unequivocally confirm that our client is not the perpetrator of the alleged abuse against Earl Spencer.”
But whatever the outcome in this case, any sexual abuse of a minor by someone in authority who is supposed to protect them is a potentially devastating breach of trust that can have psychological repercussions long into adulthood.
And if it is a woman committing this crime, there is no reason to view it any less harshly.
7
Bonkers Toyah will put the pogo on Strictly
IF you haven’t seen Toyah And Robert’s Sunday Lunch on YouTube, I highly recommend it.
Just make sure you’re seated.
7
For while the title might suggest that former punk Toyah Willcox, 66, is teaching her trick for crispy baked goods, she’s actually singing rock songs in a barely there outfit while husband Robert Fripp plays guitar.
It’s crazy and brilliant.
Now we’ve learned that Toyah has signed up for this year’s Strictly.
Buckle up, Britain: it’s going to be a gloriously bonkers ride.
Such a ‘Lotte to say
ANTONIA BANCE has been selected to represent the Labor Party in the newly formed Tipton and Wednesbury constituency in the West Midlands.
The problem is that it seems like she forgot to tell the other half.
In response, Charlotte Dawkins raged at to have, then decides to tell you that they are standing for Parliament without any discussion with you.
“Just when you think you know someone and know what’s important in this life – they say you and your beloved daughter [don’t] matters as much as her need to be a Labor MP!
“So yes, please consider voting for Antonia Bance if you are in Tipton and Wednesbury – she is the kind of person who will look out for you in your time of need! A shining example of the best the Labor Party has to offer us!”
There. Charlotte is clearly distressed and hastily attacked before deleting the post.
But one can’t imagine there’s a lot of happy “joking” going on in the Bance household right now.
Living La Vida Linda
MACKEREL horse Vida was last seen covered in blood, running through the streets of London after becoming spooked during a routine training exercise.
So it’s lovely to see her and her companion Trojan, gently cuddling in the idyllic setting of a field, where they are both recovering under the care of The Horse Trust.
7
“We hope to see them back in service in due course,” said a Household Cavalry spokesman.
One suspects that these majestic animals would like to stay right where they are.
‘Turning over your grave’
IN THE early 80s I worked as a waitress at The Ship in Wandsworth, south-west London.
Once a local pub, it was recently discovered by the braying “Yuppies” (Young Urban Professionals) who took over the spacious front bar, facing the river, while long-time regulars crowded into the spit and sawdust confines of the cozy back bar, next door. for cement plants.
Actor Oliver Reed showed up a few times and sat sullenly with the seniors, grumbling about how loud and clumsy the others were.
This week I read that the new reformist leader, Nigel Farage, allegedly plotted his shock return while enjoying a beer there.
Oliver will be turning over in his grave
Traitors by nature
FILMING is about to begin on the next season of the US version of The Traitors – filmed in the same Scottish castle as the UK.
One of the participants is King Charles’ second cousin, Lord Ivar Mountbatten.
7
Surely Harry and Meghan could have been more appropriate?
Bye bye dear…
TENNIS star Emma Raducanu has reportedly split from boyfriend Carlo Agostinelli.
How do we know? Because they “stopped following each other on Instagram”.
7
For those of us who dated in the “olden days,” as Gen Z might call it, what was our version of this?
Sending back the Bay City Rollers vinyl was all I could think of.
Office language is boring
“Blue sky thinking”, “contact base” and “low hanging fruit” were voted by workers as the three most hated office phrases.
As a freelancer, I haven’t worked in an office in decades, but I travel on enough subways and trains to hear nonsensical corporate jargon produced by loud, smug types.
So I have my own list.
“Deep dive”, “move the needle”, “bandwidth”, “let’s get this on the table” and my absolute favorite. . . by which I mean most hated. . . “core competencies”.
Oh, get bored.
As an antidote, I discovered an online corporate bulls**t generator (atrixnet.com/bs-generator) that uses an adverb, verb, adjective, and noun to randomly produce phrases like “synergistically merge superior information” and “grow with authority low-risk, high-yield and quality vectors.”
It’s a tonic.
Or, in corporate speak, an absolute game changer that will empower you to think outside the box.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
