‘Any publicity is good publicity, and we always need publicity, you should know that,’ said Iona sharply, the South-London accent quite clear again and for a moment her mouth shut tightly, like a trap.

‘Jesus I don’t know why there’s all this fuss,’ said Anthony crossly, ‘it’s only a rape.’

‘What do you mean it’s only a rape?’ said Viola angrily. ‘Don’t talk like that Dad.’

Madonna suddenly sang loudly like a virgin from the sitting room and Benedict sauntered through the French windows.

‘I only meant darling,’ said Anthony to Viola, ‘it’s not murder, nobody’s died, nobody in the profession knows Simone Taylor except us who were in the same class and know what a hopeless actress she always was, I’m surprised at all the fuss.’

‘You mean it doesn’t matter if she was raped because she can’t act?’

‘No Viola, I don’t mean that. I just mean it seems to be dominating the newspapers out of all proportion to its importance.’

‘It’s a crime, for God’s sake, and he’s famous!’ said Viola. ‘He’s one of the most famous men in the world, his films are known everywhere. It’s as if – Prince Charles raped somebody.’

‘My God, I wouldn’t put it like that,’ said Anthony, exceedingly put out. As long as Terence stayed in Hollywood and didn’t move in on his English patch, Anthony could feel he was the Star of the class of ’59. ‘One of the most famous men in the world, bloody old Terence?’

‘Bloody old Terence.’

‘Who can’t act, we all know he can’t act really, we were at drama school with him!’

‘He can act on film,’ said Iona yawning prettily in the sunshine. ‘Oh my darlings they love him in Hollywood, his agent’s going spare, the producers of the movie he’s supposed to be starting are going spare. I was very careful what I said to the press, I’m not –’ and for a second she looked up at Pauline shrewdly through her large sunglasses ‘– a fool you know. On the other hand I don’t want my career to go down the drain even if his does, I gave them lots of tits and bum stuff but I said I had loved him dearly and I couldn’t imagine him raping anybody but I left him because I wanted to have children. And, as Elvira knows too, he didn’t.’

‘And are you having them now?’ enquired Pauline.