A Secret Madness: The Story of a Marriage

In post-war London two girls are relieved to find husbands. One lands the 1950s dream of wealth and security. The other, Elaine, endures 14 years married to a man with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. At first Elaine finds Geralds activities curious but manageable. But he grows increasingly withdrawn, his mania grows and his actions obscure, he even becomes violent. The birth of their daughter heralds a complete breakdown and five years of silence, fear and despair. Elaine Basss true story reads like a novel: with startling honesty she describes their poverty, her loneliness, her fears for her child, finding comfort in an affair with the village doctor and how the relationship finally ends.