Faking It
from bookie's son to baron: the incredible life of Brian Leese
Published on 17. August 2022
Book
Hardback
120 pages
978-1-914913-91-4 (ISBN)
Description
He changed his name many times, deceived everyone he met, distanced himself from his parents and reinvented himself as an Irish baron. This is 'Faking It', the astonishing true story of author Mandy Moore's relative Brian Leese.
Brian began as an ordinary schoolboy from London, became a Mormon in Salt Lake City, married an Indian princess in Ischia, Italy, had bisexual affairs and partied in Rome with European royalty and famous writers. After divorcing, he married a Finnish heiress, living a life of luxury in an Irish mansion, all the while lying about his education, upbringing and parentage, and portraying himself as an Irish baron. He wrote books on Irish genealogy, architecture and history but his life was funded by horseracing crime, Nazis in the Bahamas, and American mobsters.
Brian began as an ordinary schoolboy from London, became a Mormon in Salt Lake City, married an Indian princess in Ischia, Italy, had bisexual affairs and partied in Rome with European royalty and famous writers. After divorcing, he married a Finnish heiress, living a life of luxury in an Irish mansion, all the while lying about his education, upbringing and parentage, and portraying himself as an Irish baron. He wrote books on Irish genealogy, architecture and history but his life was funded by horseracing crime, Nazis in the Bahamas, and American mobsters.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Canterbury
United Kingdom
Illustrations
47
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 153 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-914913-91-4 (9781914913914)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Mandy Moore was born in Brixton, South London, in the home of her Jewish grandfather and cockney grandmother. She lived with them for the first two years of her life, while her jazz singer mother and father toured Britain with Harry Gold and his Pieces of Eight, a leading jazz band of the time. Her interest in family history led to the discovery of her mother's astonishing cousin, Brian Leese, and her decision to write this book about his life.
Content
Picture and documents credits 11
Preface 15
1. Two lucky escapes - out of Amsterdam and the East End 17
East End squalor 18
Follow the money - A move to Twickenham 19
The dangerous world of bookmaking 20
2. The Leese family in the thirties 23
3. The war years 25
Means, motive, opportunity 26
Going to America 27
4. A new life in Salt Lake City 29
Moses and Marguerite with the Mormons 30
Brian breaks away 31
5. The O'Rourke barony and viscountcy of Breffny 33
What are the chances? 33
A brief history of the O'Rourkes 34
6. The celebrity playground of Ischia 37
7. A secret marriage to an Indian princess 41
8. The glamour of life in Rome 45
Deception and falsehood 47
A dalliance with Muriel Spark 48
9. A Finnish heiress, the Nazis and the Mafia 51
The scandal of Sir Stafford Lofthouse Sands and his millions 51
The Nazi connection 53
The Mafia take control 54
How much did Ulli know? 56
Brian meets Ulli - and her fortune 57
10. A lavish life in a Palladian mansion 59
Castletown Cox reborn 60
11. Sita-Maria and a royal connection 63
Goodbye to Abbeyleix 64
12. A charmed life of literature and the arts 67
13. A tangled web 71
The family left behind in London 73
14. Written in stone 77
15. Why did he do it? 79
References 81
Preface 15
1. Two lucky escapes - out of Amsterdam and the East End 17
East End squalor 18
Follow the money - A move to Twickenham 19
The dangerous world of bookmaking 20
2. The Leese family in the thirties 23
3. The war years 25
Means, motive, opportunity 26
Going to America 27
4. A new life in Salt Lake City 29
Moses and Marguerite with the Mormons 30
Brian breaks away 31
5. The O'Rourke barony and viscountcy of Breffny 33
What are the chances? 33
A brief history of the O'Rourkes 34
6. The celebrity playground of Ischia 37
7. A secret marriage to an Indian princess 41
8. The glamour of life in Rome 45
Deception and falsehood 47
A dalliance with Muriel Spark 48
9. A Finnish heiress, the Nazis and the Mafia 51
The scandal of Sir Stafford Lofthouse Sands and his millions 51
The Nazi connection 53
The Mafia take control 54
How much did Ulli know? 56
Brian meets Ulli - and her fortune 57
10. A lavish life in a Palladian mansion 59
Castletown Cox reborn 60
11. Sita-Maria and a royal connection 63
Goodbye to Abbeyleix 64
12. A charmed life of literature and the arts 67
13. A tangled web 71
The family left behind in London 73
14. Written in stone 77
15. Why did he do it? 79
References 81