Angela Rippon’s Nightmare: The Rumor That Shook Her Career

Angela Rippon, a well-known broadcaster and star of Strictly Come Dancing, recently opened up about a distressing chapter in her life that was marred by scandalous rumors.

Back in the early 1980s, while working on a biography of Captain Mark Phillips, the first husband of Princess Anne, she found herself at the center of unfounded gossip suggesting an affair.

This rumor not only tarnished her reputation but also left her feeling mortified.

At 79 years old, Rippon reflected on the turmoil caused by the allegations, which she described as incredibly upsetting.

The rumors gained traction during her visits to Gatcombe Park, the home of Princess Anne and Captain Phillips.

She was simply doing her job, yet the tabloids twisted her professional relationship into something scandalous.

“I was spending a lot of time with him, so these dirty-minded reporters decided we must be having an affair,” she recounted.

The fallout from these baseless claims was devastating for Rippon.

Married at the time, she suddenly found herself facing relentless media scrutiny.

“Suddenly the papers were full of these stories that I was having an affair with Captain Phillips.

I went through the most dreadful time,” she stated, clearly still affected by the experience decades later.

In a candid interview with the Scotsman, Rippon labeled the speculation as sexist.

She expressed her frustration with the journalists who perpetuated the rumors, calling them “dirty-minded.” The emotional toll was significant, leading her to consider legal action.

However, she ultimately felt she lacked sufficient grounds to pursue it, leaving her feeling powerless against the onslaught of falsehoods.

Describing that period as one of the most awful times of her life, she recalled how deeply embarrassing and upsetting it was to navigate such a public ordeal.

“It caused a lot of hurt,” she said, questioning why such damaging stories were ever published in the first place.

Rippon's experience is a stark reminder of the impact that sensational journalism can have on individuals' lives.

While Princess Anne and Captain Phillips' marriage was already rife with rumors of infidelity, the press's decision to target Rippon added another layer of distress.

The couple, who married at Westminster Abbey in 1973, were once the focus of global attention, watched by an estimated 500 million viewers.

Their union produced two children, Peter and Zara, but after the birth of their daughter in 1981, the marriage began to unravel.

Both Anne and Mark were rumored to have extramarital affairs, with Anne famously linked to her bodyguard, Sergeant Peter Cross.

Meanwhile, Mark fathered a love child with New Zealand art teacher Heather Tonkin in 1985.