Did Queen Victoria and John Brown have a SECRET child?
A clandestine royal marriage and a secret baby smuggled to distant shores: is this the true story of the relationship behind Queen Victoria and her Highland servant, John Brown?
In conversation with HistoryExtra’s Ellie Cawthorne, historian Dr Fern Riddell presents her groundbreaking research into one of the most tantalising royal rumours in British history.
In this video, Riddell explores decades of speculation and overlooked evidence, sharing how she went in pursuit of the truth when writing her new book Victoria’s Secret: The Private Passion of a Queen (Ebury, 2025). The official line has long cast Brown as merely a devoted servant and friend, but new sources – including intimate letters, photographs, and a forgotten family archive – paint a far more romantic (and possibly scandalous) picture.
Even more striking are the signs of a child curiously unmentioned in the royal record but treated with unusual importance by the Queen. Was this child hers?
Riddell weighs up newly uncovered documents and historical context that offers a compelling challenge to the long-held narrative of Queen Victoria’s widowhood – and opens the door to one of the most explosive theories in royal history.
Authors
Ellie Cawthorne is HistoryExtra’s podcast editor. She also contributes to BBC History Magazine, runs the podcast newsletter and hosts several live and virtual BBC History Magazine events.