He said that an open-handed slap is justified if a woman you hit is a bitch, hysterical,
or bloody-minded. The rockin' '60s: neither beating a woman nor using LSD
is a crime. Experimenting with substances, playing games with love.
Welcome to Rumour Juice! Today, we're telling the scandalous story of Sean Connery’s love life.
In October 2020, the world lost one of the most iconic actors of his generation.
Sir Sean Connery, the Scottish actor, known for playing James Bond and his
Oscar-winning role in The Untouchables, passed away after a struggle with dementia. He was 90.
But Connery’s love life was probably even more impressive than his acting career.
As he suddenly became a worldwide known star, the legendary actor learned how to come to terms with
the popularity. Connery even risked it all and ventured into uncharted territories of the mind,
using the psychedelic drug to cope with mental health problems.
It reportedly had a tremendous impact on his relationships with women,
revealing the dark side of the legendary actor.
Yes, Sean Connery was a man in turmoil when fame came into his life. Unable to cope with
superstardom, Connery had become a prisoner at his home, a converted London nunnery.
His house was encircled by a mob of female fans, who thought of climbing in through
windows in the hope of getting close to their hero or wanted to burgle the house
to steal mementos of the screen secret agent. No wonder Connery's first wife, Diane Cilento, was
concerned about her husband's anxiety. She read some works by a well-known Scottish psychiatrist
R. D. Laing and arranged a meeting between the two men. Cilento hoped that the doctor could help her
husband come to terms with his troubling fame. During their first appointment, Laing gave
34-year-old Connery a tab of pure LSD and took about a tenth of that amount himself.
At the time, the drug was legal. Cilento described the session,
“I believe with his enormous reserves and physical armoring, Sean resisted the drug.” So traumatized
and drained was Connery by the experience that he laid in his bed for several days.
It seems as if deeply buried bitterness started to grow strong in Connery.
The fallout from the drug episode opened up aggression in the actor, which manifested
itself in the most shocking manner the following summer when the actor was filming The Hill.
Finally, it was the end of an arduous and unhappy shoot. And Connery knew a
wedding would take place at the hotel where the actor and his wife lived during the shooting.
After they entered the party, Diane was in the center of attention as she was twirled
around the dance floor by eager partners. And Connery didn’t like that at all.
After returning to their room, Diane got beaten to a pulp by Connery.
Just months after the alleged attack on his wife, which Connery has always denied,
he sparked controversy during the interview with Playboy magazine, “I don't think there
is anything particularly wrong about hitting a woman - although I don't recommend doing
it in the same way that you'd hit a man.” He shared, “An open-handed slap is justified,
if all other alternatives fail, and there has been plenty of warning. If a woman is a bitch,
or hysterical, or bloody-minded continually, then I'd do it.”
The actor tried to explain his views. In a 1993 interview with Vanity Fair, he said,
“There are women who take it to the wire. That's what they are looking for,
the ultimate confrontation. They want a smack.” Later, Connery backtracked, adding he was
not advocating violence against women, but the damage was done.
Scottish writer Meg Henderson, a friend of Connery who fell out with him after he
sacked her as his ghostwriter for a previously planned autobiography, opened up that discussing
a relationship with the first wife was taboo for him. It was as if he could just ignore Cilento.
She revealed, “The most important thing for him has been protecting his image, and he
doesn't feel he can risk dealing with what she has accused him of, for fear of damaging his legacy.”
Then, in 2006, Connery appeared to claim his previous remarks were taken out of context.
“My view is I don't believe that any level of abuse against women
is ever justified under any circumstances. Full stop,” he told The Times of London.
But his first marriage was already falling apart. In truth, the omens for that relationship were
inauspicious from the start. The couple met when Diane was married to the Italian. She was already
pregnant with Volpe's child, while the chemistry between her and Connery started to grow stronger.
As the marriage began to crumble following his alleged attack on Cilento,
the movie world started buzzing with gossip about Connery's eye for the ladies.
Crucially, he had already met the woman who would become wife number two.
It was back in the 1970s when Sean met his second wife in Morocco.
Their story began at a golf tournament dinner. They felt a connection, but it was
nothing like the movies told us it would be like. Micheline Roquebrune had been previously divorced,
while Sean was getting out of his first marriage. The night they met, she dreamt about him, and
when she woke up from her dream, she thought “at last, peace” because he made her feel peaceful.
Then, since she knew he was someone special, she went back to the golf tournament the following
day. There he was, waiting for Roquebrune. Unable to get his mind off her, he asked her to
meet with him in Spain. Roquebrune was hesitant at first, but she eventually met up with him.
Their story is very different from a fairytale and, at this point, they were still pretty far
away from their happy ending. It was hard for them to see each other since they were living in
different places. As Sean opened up, “In the early days it was difficult for us to see each other.
She was still living in North Africa with her children”.
The language barrier was no problem, even though he didn’t speak French,
and she could barely speak English. But they learned to communicate in their own way,
especially through body language. At the time, they couldn’t see each other much, she was living
in North Africa while Sean was in Hollywood. That didn’t stop them from trying to be together.
In 1975, they got married and never lost the spark that first drew them together. They were together
for over 40 years and shared the same passions in life. “Micheline is an amazing woman. She
is the love of my life”, Sean confessed. The couple moved to the Bahamas full-time
in the '90s, where they enjoyed their time in a large villa and
planned date nights, just the two of them. And when it came to growing older, Connery
was untroubled, at one point noting, "Micheline sometimes says to me 'the time is rushing past,'
but I don't worry about getting older. There's always a new challenge to keep you motivated.".
Could we say that Connery and Roquebrune shared an enviable love, one that time never faded?
It seems that the story is more complicated than that.
Connery was known for his affairs despite calling his second wife the love of his life.
In the early ‘90s, singer Lynsey de Paul claimed she had a fling with Connery.
de Paul revealed that she had met Connery at a cocktail party while she sat next to his wife.
Connery gave her his phone number and was relentless in pursuing her.
After they had met up for a weekend of romance, Connery called de Paul again and again.
The affair ended abruptly a few months later, and the singer never heard from Connery.
Years later when she reflected on the story, de Paul said she had deeply regretted it.
She added that she felt like "a stupid girl" to have been involved with him.
But despite scandalous stories associated with Connery, his wife knew what to expect.
While another alleged affair, this time with a Danish-born designer called Helle Byrn,
came to light, Roquebrune revealed that she'd been prepared for such scenarios all along.
She said, “When I met Sean, I knew I was taking on the whole package.
Everyone wants him and I have to accept and understand that.”
The legendary actor battled dementia in his final months. Roquebrune stayed with Connery until his
last breath. She shared that the actor wasn’t able to express himself during that period.
“It was no life for him,” Roquebrune confessed. She also said, “At least he died in his sleep
and it was just so peaceful. He got his final wish to slip away without any fuss.”
Could we say that the second marriage calmed down Connery’s volatile nature?
Or did he simply change over time? And could the drug therapy have triggered him?
Unfortunately, we’d never know the truth. But one thing’s sure – his decades-long second marriage
survived numerous cheating allegations as the couple stayed together till death did them part.
We’ve been wondering, what do you think about the legendary James Bond actor?
Please let us know. And stay tuned for more stories about your beloved celebrities!