Vera Jane Siddons Beadon, formerly Jarvis and Wigham, (née Corby; 4 December 1913 – 30 June 1999) was a Scottish socialite, heiress, and actress. She was known as the leading witness in the internationally publicized 1963 divorce case between her stepdaughter and stepson-in-law,
Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll
Ethel Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll (''née'' Whigham, formerly Sweeny; 1 December 1912 – 25 July 1993) was a Scottish heiress, socialite, and aristocrat who was most famous for her 1951 marriage and much-publicised 1963 divorce fro ...
and
Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll
Ian Douglas Campbell, 11th and 4th Duke of Argyll (18 June 1903 – 7 April 1973), was a Scottish peer and the Chief of Clan Campbell ( gd, MacCailein Mòr). He is chiefly remembered for his unhappy marriage to, and scandalous 1963 divorce fro ...
. Beadon, who was accused of having an affair with the Duke of Argyll by her stepdaughter, successfully sued the duchess for libel, slander, and conspiracy to suborn perjury. Beadon testified in court on behalf of the duke, presenting evidence supporting the duke's claim that the duchess had engaged in extramarital affairs. At the time of her death in 1999, she was the last surviving participant in the Argyll divorce case.
Biography
Beadon was born Vera ''Jane'' Siddons Corby in
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
on 4 December 1913, the daughter of John Siddons Corby, who invented the Corby gentleman's trouser press.
[ Her brother, ]Peter Corby
Peter John Siddons Corby (8 July 1924 – 5 August 2021) was a British inventor. He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve after leaving school and served as a flight engineer with No. 78 Squadron RAF in the last weeks of the Second World W ...
, was a veteran of the Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
and the inventor of the modern trouser press
''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...
. She was a descendant of the Welsh actress Sarah Siddons
Sarah Siddons (''née'' Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified".
She was the elder sister of John ...
and a relative of the Kemble family
Kemble is the name of a family of English actors, who reigned over the English stage for many decades. The most famous were Sarah Siddons (1755–1831) and her brother John Philip Kemble (1757–1823), the two eldest of the twelve children of Ro ...
.[
In 1934 she married Edgar Jarvis, a master tailor, but the marriage ended in 1939.][ She had one daughter, Shirley Jarvis Hamilton, from this marriage.][ During ]World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, she shared a flat in West End of London
The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...
with the actress Phyllis Stanley
Phyllis Stanley (30 October 1914 – 12 March 1992) was a British actress.
Personal life
During World War II, she shared a flat in West End of London with the Scottish heiress Jane Corby.
Partial filmography
* ''Leave It to Blanche'' (1934) ...
.[ During this time, Beadon appeared in several films.][ She later moved to the United States to market her father's trouser press and, while there, had an affair with a married American Army colonel.][
In 1948, while seated at the captain's table aboard the '']RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' was an ocean liner operated by Cunard Line. With ' she provided weekly luxury liner service between Southampton in the United Kingdom and New York City in the United States, via Cherbourg in France.
While being constr ...
'', she was introduced to Scottish millionaire George Hay Wigham, the founder and chairman of the British Celanese Fibre Corporation.[ Wigham, the father of ]Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll
Ethel Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll (''née'' Whigham, formerly Sweeny; 1 December 1912 – 25 July 1993) was a Scottish heiress, socialite, and aristocrat who was most famous for her 1951 marriage and much-publicised 1963 divorce fro ...
, was still married to his first wife, Helen Mann Hannay, when the two began an affair.[ Wigham was thirty-four years her senior, and his daughter was older than Beadon.] On 31 October 1956, twenty months after the death of Wigham's wife, they married at Caxton Hall
Caxton Hall is a building on the corner of Caxton Street and Palmer Street, in Westminster, London, England. It is a Grade II listed building primarily noted for its historical associations. It hosted many mainstream and fringe political and art ...
in London.[ In December 1959 the Wigham's marriage reached a crisis point, when she was called to give evidence in proceedings to commit her stepdaughter to prison for breaching a ]High Court of Justiciary
The High Court of Justiciary is the supreme criminal court in Scotland. The High Court is both a trial court and a court of appeal. As a trial court, the High Court sits on circuit at Parliament House or in the adjacent former Sheriff Cou ...
undertaking not to "impugn the legitmacy" of the duke's sons, Ian Campbell, Marquess of Lorne and Lord Colin Campbell.[ She appeared in public with a black eye, and claimed that her husband was responsible for the injury.][ She and Wigham were legally separated in 1960 and, when he died that same year, she was excluded from his will.][ She contested the will and won a dower right for life to one third of the income from his estate in the ]Bahamas
The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...
.[
Beadon was one of the leading witnesses in the highly publicized divorce case of her stepdaughter and ]Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll
Ian Douglas Campbell, 11th and 4th Duke of Argyll (18 June 1903 – 7 April 1973), was a Scottish peer and the Chief of Clan Campbell ( gd, MacCailein Mòr). He is chiefly remembered for his unhappy marriage to, and scandalous 1963 divorce fro ...
. She presented evidence in court against her stepdaughter on behalf of the duke.[ The duchess counter-petitioned the divorce, accusing Beadon of committing adultery with the duke.][ The duchess dropped her case the day of the hearing due to lack of a witness, and later had to pay a judgment of £25,000 to Beadon, who sued her for libel, slander, and conspiracy to suborn perjury.] She was the last surviving figure of the divorce case.
In February 1965, she married Wing Commander Clive Beadon
Wing Commander Clive Vernon Beadon (15 April 1919 – 14 September 1996) was a British dowser, diplomat, and officer in the Royal Air Force.
Biography
Clive Vernon Beadon was born on 15 April 1919 in Coonoor, British India, the son of a Briti ...
, an officer in the Royal Air Force who was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his service as a bomber pilot in World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.[ The ceremony took place at Carlton Hall in London. The couple honeymooned at her late husband's mansion in ]Cable Beach
Cable Beach is a stretch of white sand beach on the eastern Indian Ocean and the name of the surrounding suburb in Broome, Western Australia. Cable Beach was named after the telegraph cable laid between Broome and Java in 1889. Low cliffs of ...
, Nassau
Nassau may refer to:
Places Bahamas
*Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence
Canada
*Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792
*Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
.[ Commander Beadon died in 1996.][
On 30 June 1999, Beadon was found dead by a maid at her home in ]Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...
, Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
.[ She had been in poor health, confined to a wheelchair due to ]multiple sclerosis
Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...
.[
]
In popular culture
Beadon was portrayed by Katherine Manners
Katherine Manners is an English actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She is best known for her lead role as Vera Brittain in the 2008 BBC One teleivison documentary '' A Woman in Love and War: Vera Brittain'' and for portraying Jane Corby Wigh ...
in the 2021 historical drama series ''A Very British Scandal
''A Very British Scandal'' is a 2021 historical drama television miniseries, starring Claire Foy as Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll and Paul Bettany as Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll. Its production company, Blueprint Pictures, previou ...
''.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beadon, Jane
1913 births
1999 deaths
20th-century Scottish women
Deaths from multiple sclerosis
Kemble family
Mistresses
People from Aberdeen
Scottish film actresses
Scottish people of English descent
Scottish people of Welsh descent
Scottish socialites