Blunkett's affair started weeks after Quinn's marriage

David Blunkett

LONDON - They made an unlikely couple.

He a 57-year-old, life-long socialist and conviction politician; she the publisher of the right-wing Spectator magazine, newly wed, and 13 years his junior.

Yet, when David Blunkett met Kimberly Quinn at a dinner party in August 2001, something clicked between them.

Despite being married for just nine weeks, Quinn, better known by her professional name Fortier, embarked on a three-year secret affair with the British Home Secretary.

It was not until August this year that details of the relationship were leaked to the press and the News of the World splashed the story across its front page under the headline "His love for mum-of-one", but without disclosing Blunkett's lover's name.

It took the Sun newspaper 24 hours to fill in the missing part of the puzzle, when it identified Quinn. The story gathered pace and within 48 hours it also emerged that the American-born publisher was expecting her second child.

The media feasted on further revelations - made by "friends" and "sources" close to the couple - including details of their acrimonious break-up and claims that Blunkett was the father of Quinn's 2-year-old boy and of a second child due in February.

Some publications, including the Independent, have until now largely ignored the affair, which they regarded as a private matter with no significant political implications.

But the personal has now spilled over into the professional with the allegation on Sunday that Blunkett has abused his position as Home Secretary to fast-track a visa for his then lover's Filipina nanny.

As a result the Home Secretary has announced that an independent inquiry will investigate the claim.

The accusation, which is thought to have been leaked by Quinn, 44, is seen by some as an act of revenge in what has become a bitter and messy end to the affair. Others believe Quinn is attempting to frighten off her former lover.

The two principal characters in this extraordinary affair come from very different backgrounds.

Los Angeles-born Kimberly had a privileged childhood. Her father, Marvin Solomon, made a fortune in radiation detection equipment, and mother Lugene Sanders was a highly paid television actress.

Kimberly won a place at Vassar College in New York state to study political history, followed by a masters degree at Oxford University.

From there she worked as a secretary to Helen Gurley Brown, founding editor of Cosmopolitan, and moved to Woman's Day in 1983 before becoming editor of Gifts and Decorative Accessories, a trade magazine, a year later.

Ambitious and attractive, it was at around this time that she met investment banker Michael Fortier, and they married in 1987, setting up home in Mayfair.

She then joined GQ magazine before being poached by Conde Nast in 1994 and moving to the Spectator in 1996. While her career was taking off her first marriage was falling apart. Her husband claimed it was largely because she was unfaithful and said, according to one report, that she "collected" powerful men.

It was while she was still married - she divorced in 2000 - that she met Stephen Quinn, GQ's publishing director. A relationship between the couple blossomed and in May 2001 they became engaged, celebrating at a party at the West London home of Stephen's boss and close friend Nicholas Coleridge, managing director of Conde Nast. They were married the following month at Westminster Registry Office and held a wedding party at London's Groucho Club.

Both continue to flourish in their respective publishing careers - Stephen Quinn is best known as the current publisher of Vogue.

But one thing that was missing in the relationship was children. In order to start a new family at their Mayfair home, Quinn, who has three children from a previous marriage, agreed to have a vasectomy reversed.

Quinn, now 60, was therefore delighted when his wife became pregnant and in September 2002 gave birth to a baby they named William.

The marriage, however, was a charade. It looks increasingly likely that the boy was fathered by Blunkett.

The couple were in the middle of their affair and during that time Quinn would take her son away for the weekend alone, telling her husband she needed quality time with the toddler. In fact, she was secretly meeting the Home Secretary.

She visited Blunkett at his official London residence and they went for weekends to his Peak District cottage.

This year, when William was 18 months, Blunkett took him and Kimberly on holiday for two weeks to the Greek island of Corfu.

Blunkett also gave his lover and her son the use of a spouse's rail ticket, and allowed them to be driven to Derbyshire in his official car, but only when the vehicle was already travelling on official business.

The affair appeared to be carrying on unnoticed when a few months ago the Quinns announced that Kimberly was pregnant a second time.

It was about the same time that the News of World story first broke. And it emerged that the secret relationship was coming to an end.

Quinn is said to have wanted to finish things and to try to save her marriage.

She believed that Blunkett, who is said to have been deeply distressed, indeed "heartbroken", at the affair ending, leaked details of their relationship in a desperate attempt to bring about a break-up with her husband and to keep them together.

The truth of this allegation, and others, is difficult to uncover with both sides refusing to speak publicly.

What is clear is that the soured relationship turned to open conflict when it was reported that Blunkett wanted contact rights and had written to Kimberly Quinn's lawyers demanding a DNA test on her 2-year-old and on the unborn baby.

According to "friends" of Blunkett, the tests are only a formality, because he and his former lover already know the children are a result of their affair.

According to the sources the couple had a DNA test carried out that used samples from young William and Blunkett last year. The sample was sent to a private laboratory and the results, which confirmed a match, were sent to Quinn, who read them out to Blunkett, who is blind.

Sources described as "friends of the Quinn family" have also apparently conceded that both of the children are "almost certainly" Blunkett's.

The strength of Blunkett's reaction has taken many by surprise. Observers have speculated that the politician's harsh personal experiences may provide some insight into his desire to continue the relationship and for access to the children.

Born blind, he grew up in a poor family and was sent to a special school at the age of four. His father died after falling into a vat of boiling water at work when David was 12.

At the age of 23 he married a teacher and they had three sons, but the couple separated 14 years ago.

Blunkett has maintained a close relationship with his three grown-up sons and has thrown himself into his work, apparently at the expense of a new relationship - until he met Quinn.

While some people believe that Blunkett merely wants the rights of a father, "friends" of Quinn suggest he is using the issue to try to get back at his estranged lover.

Quinn's motivation for apparently allowing a private email that includes details of the alleged political interference to be leaked to the Sunday Telegraph - whose company also owns her own publication, the Spectator - is being viewed as revenge.

Others interpret the leak as a method of forcing Blunkett to back away from the paternity challenge.

The email, which was sent from Quinn's private Hotmail account, alleges that Blunkett "fast-tracked" a visa application for her former nanny - something the Home Secretary has strongly denied.

The email ends with the comment: "He's so paranoid he'll think it's me and try and nail me."

The new political dimension to the story, and the threat to Blunkett's political future, prompted the Home Secretary to make his first public response about the affair. He said: "I am very saddened that someone I cared so deeply for should seek, quite erroneously, to damage my public position.

"This cannot be in the interests of any of us. I shall continue to keep my private life private and separate from my public duties."

Quinn, 60, the long-suffering husband, has also spoken out for the first time and revealed that he had forgiven his wife. He told the Sunday Times: "I adore my wife and I love William more than I can say.

"I'll take a bet with you: I won't win the lottery but Kimberly Quinn, William Quinn and his brother - we will all be together for a very long time."

- INDEPENDENT