Max Clifford: downfall of Grub Street’s ultimate sleazeball

More than the story of one man’s hypocrisy: it’s another dagger-blow to Britain’s tabloid culture

PR Guru Max Clifford
(Image credit: 2014 Getty Images)

FOR AS LONG as most Britons can remember, publicist Max Clifford – now convicted of eight counts of indecent assault – has been part of the national furniture. Celebrities in need of image refurbishment turned to him as surely as the ill rich hasten to Harley Street.

Within hours of a media storm breaking, there would be Clifford – immaculate suit, not a silver hair out of place, honeyed tones – alongside his client. The following Sunday one of the red-top papers would run a large, sympathetic spread about the client. The puppet master had once again pulled the right strings.

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Robert Chesshyre writes regularly on police culture and is a former US correspondent of The Observer. His books include ‘The Force: Inside the Police’ and 'When the Iron Lady Ruled Britain''.