Hunting Ghislaine

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Hunting Ghislaine is an investigation into the story of Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who is currently in jail, awaiting trial for helping Jeffrey Epstein and others exploit underage girls. Sweeney raises the question of whether she has been left to carry the can for these two men who, the evidence suggests, killed themselves (Maxwell herself never believed her father’s death was suicide). As he writes: “The vast majority of Epstein’s Palm Beach victims never meet Ghislaine, never hear her name.”

If Maxwell was like that to his staff, how did he treat Ghislaine, the apple of his eye? Monstrously says an old enemy, Richard Ingrams, former editor of Private Eye who was sued so many times by Maxwell that he can’t remember. But this is no fairy tale. Hunting Ghislaine sets out the other side of the story, and it's one of the darkest you will ever come across. Following the huge success of LBC podcast Hunting Ghislaine in 2020, investigative reporter and host John Sweeney has returned with Hunting Ghislaine: The Trial. Each week John will dissect the key moments and talking points from the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell. As the trial progresses in New York, John will offer a weekly analysis of this grimly fascinating case, in his inimitable style. He looked at me as if I was an enormous cowpat’ … John Sweeney. Photograph: Antonio Olmos/The Observer By making his podcast for LBC, Sweeney has been able to tell a story that had been niggling away at him for decades. “I’d always wanted to investigate Robert Maxwell,” he says. After his death, he suggested as much to Donald Trelford, then the editor of the Observer, where Sweeney worked until 2001. “He looked at me as if I was an enormous cowpat.”Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who suffered a tragedy, the death of her father, a war hero, a philanthropist, a good man, in suspicious circumstances. She fled to New York where she made a new life with a brilliant mathematician. Her name is Ghislaine Maxwell and her lover was Jeffrey Epstein. Through Jeffrey, and her family name, Ghislaine became friends with some of the most powerful people on earth, ex-President Bill Clinton and President-to-be Donald Trump and the second son of the Queen of England, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York. Launched in November 2020, written and presented by award-winning investigative journalist and author, John Sweeney the six-part podcast tells the story of Ghislaine Maxwell, the daughter of disgraced billionaire media tycoon Robert Maxwell and former partner of notorious convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Paula Cuddy, Eve Gutierrez and Jill Green will executive produce for EHF alongside Chris Baughen for Global and Robbie Ashcroft for The Story Lab. John Sweeney will act as series consultant and executive producer. Maxwell refused to take the stand in her defence, telling the judge that the case against her had not been proved beyond reasonable doubt. The truth, Sweeney writes, is she knew she would be ripped to shreds. Alongside a host of experts and fellow journalists, Sweeney delves into Ghislaine’s past and her role in the Epstein scandal. Only she can answer how Epstein used his fabulous fortune to blind the eyes of American justice.

Shawn said of Carolyn, one of three girlfriends he says he pimped out to Maxwell and Epstein: “She was a child”, one who, “only had two jobs ever. She worked at Arby’s [a US fast food combine] and she worked for Jeffrey” [Epstein]. Carolyn’s grandfather raped her when she was four years old. Ten years later, she said she was sexually abused by Epstein and Maxwell. Hunting Ghislaine with John Sweeney sets out to tell the strange story of Maxwell and her role in the Epstein scandal. His girlfriend, his alleged pimp and partner in a series of sex crimes against a series of underage women, some as young as 14, Ghislaine has remained in the shadows. Ingrams said: “I believe that Ghislaine’s behaviour in regard to Epstein and everything is partly due to the fact that she had this very peculiar upbringing with this monster man as her father. People need to connect the Ghislaine story with this nasty man who is her father.” Robbie Ashcroft, Managing Partner, Entertainment Development of The Story Lab said: “As soon as The Story Lab heard John Sweeney’s vision for the Hunting Ghislaine podcast we saw its potential to evolve from sound to screen. We’re thrilled to continue on this collaborative journey with our wonderful partners John and Global, and we are delighted to connect with Paula, Eve, Jill and the passionate team at Eleventh Hour Films to develop this story into a television drama.”The story of Jeffrey Epstein has been told in many ways over the past two years, but none have given more than a few cursory moments to Ghislaine Maxwell. Change the plan you will roll onto at any time during your trial by visiting the “Settings & Account” section. What happens at the end of my trial?

Chris Baughen, Managing Editor for Global Player said: “As her story continues to unfold almost daily, John Sweeney’s brilliant dissection of Ghislaine Maxwell’s life so far has gripped listeners. As the podcast industry continues to thrive and experience incredible growth, it’s fantastic to see a Global original podcast adapted into visual content.”

Hunting Ghislaine, a Global Original podcast, begins on November 19th. On Global Player or wherever you find your podcasts. UPDATE: From December 10th you can hear exclusive updates of Ghislaine Maxwell's trial in New York with our brand new podcast Hunting Ghislaine: The Trial, exclusively on Global Player - https://www.globalplayer.com/podcasts/42Ktor/

Sweeney comes to a weary conclusion. “Power and money can help blind justice around the world,” he says. “But in America it’s normal.”John Sweeney said, “ The grim shadow Robert Maxwell cast over people, above all his favourite child, Ghislaine, has long fascinated me. It was a privilege to be able to tell that story to listeners for Global and The Story Lab, working with Chalk & Blade. I could not be more thrilled that a company with the profile, expertise and stellar slate of Eleventh Hour Films now want to make a TV series based on our podcast.” Just so you know, this is fiction: but Heawood and his compadre Kennedy Fisher are played so brilliantly by Barnaby Kay and Jana Carpenter that they’ve started to feel like real people. I find myself rooting for the cynical, intrepid Fisher in particular, despite this series’ dark questions around who she is and what she’s really been up to. This is a new element, and means that our two heroes are not working together as closely as before; Fisher is in a small coastal town in the US, Heawood in Mosul, though there might be a sinister connection between both places… John Sweeny, what a guy. I wish I had a fraction of his ability to not give a crap! His guests are always fascinating and John gets some great answers out of them