Spencer frowned. ‘I don’t understand.’

‘The American company had invested in it, and although it never really became much of a big deal in England, I was replaced. As it turned out, the film bombed and I know Charles lost a bundle. It was a while before he got another independent film rolling as the money men were pissed off at losing a fortune.’

Spencer was still confused as he tried to recall the scandal surrounding Rock Hudson. He suddenly caught sight of a poster on the opposite wall promoting a television series. It had a younger-looking Francis next to Justine Harris.

‘That’s Justine Harris, isn’t it?’

‘Correct,’ Francis said. ‘But it was a long time ago. It was a big Granada television production at the very beginning of my career.’

‘Did you know her well?’ Spencer asked.

‘Yes, I knew her. She was also quite young.’ He laughed. ‘She was very promiscuous, even in those days. I’ll tell you a very funny story. We were on location in Cornwall, because the series was a poor man’s version of a Daphne du Maurier novel. I wouldn’t suggest that it was plagiarizing Rebecca but it had a very similar theme. Anyway, we were all on location and living in various hotels. Justine was in a rather upmarket B&B that had an elaborate terrace with an abundance of roses climbing up to a small balcony.’ He chuckled. ‘It was all quite sad, I suppose. Charles was desperate to find out if she was shagging one of the actors – not me, I hasten to add! -– so he started climbing up the terrace and got caught on the thorns and fell down, screaming his head off. Justine was furious and said he was stalking her. He later claimed that he was just doing it for a joke and was even seen drinking in the local pub with the offending actor. I have a feeling he soon after represented him, which is typical. Even though Charles had made a fool of himself, he still managed to get a new client out of it.’

Spencer laughed politely. ‘Thanks for your time, Mr. Francis. It’s been very interesting – and helpful.’

The truth was, he was keen to leave. The glamour of the film business was definitely starting to wear off.

*

Jane briefed Tyler on Justine Harris’s visit before they sat down to go over her notes on Foxley’s diary and notebook entries.