Yn Hyfref 1975, ymgeisiodd rhywun lofruddio Norman Scott ar Exmoor, ond methodd y sbardun a dim ond saethu ci annwyl Scott, Rinka. Ffeindiodd Scott ei hun yng nghanol sgandal gwleidyddol a’n eicon cwiyr annhebygol. Ond nid dyna oedd byth ei fwriad…

Ganwyd yn 1940 mewn i deulu tlawd a sarhaus. Yn 16 oed, dechreudd gyrfa marchogaeth, achos roedd anifeiliaid yn gysur iddo yn ei blentyndod. Erbyn oedd e’n 20 oed, rhedodd mewn i ddyledion a chafodd chwalfa feddyliol.

Yn 1960, dechreuodd Scott perthynas rhywiol gyda Jeremy Thorpe. Pan ceisiodd llofruddio Scott, roedd Thorpe yn briod, yn arweinydd y Plaid Ryddfrydol a’n ffigwr yng nghanol y sefydliad. Roedd yn teimlo embaras am eu perthynas flaenorol a dymunodd i guddio. Ond methodd. Daeth yr ymgais i lofruddio i ben gyda threial syfrdanol yn 1979, lle rhoddwyd Thorpe ar brawf am gynllwynio i lofruddio. Roedd y wasg yn labelu Scott yn gwallgofddyn a’r sefydliad yn amddiffyn Thorpe, a chafoedd yn ddieuog. Dim ond yn ddiweddar mae fersiwn Scott o’r digwyddiadau wedi’i chyfiawnhau.

Mae An Accidental Icon yn yn adrodd stori anghredadwy sy’n ysbrydoli: dyma hanes dewrder a goroesiad un dyn a ymgymerodd â’r sefydliad.

In October 1975, an assassin tried to murder Norman Scott on Exmoor but the trigger failed and he only succeeded in shooting Scott’s beloved dog, Rinka. Scott subsequently found himself at the centre of a major political scandal and became an unlikely queer icon. But this was never his intention…

He was born in 1940 into a poor, dysfunctional and abusive family. Aged sixteen he began an equestrian career, animals having been the one source of comfort in his childhood. By the age of twenty he had run into debts and had suffered a nervous breakdown.

In 1960 Scott began a sexual affair with Jeremy Thorpe. By the time of the attempted assassination of Scott, Thorpe was married, leader of the Liberal Party and a figure at the heart of the establishment. He was embarrassed by their former relationship and wanted to cover it up. But he failed. The assassination attempt culminated in a sensational trial in 1979, where Thorpe was tried for conspiracy to murder. The press labelled Scott a madman and the establishment protected Thorpe, who was acquitted. Only recently has Scott’s version of events been vindicated.

An Accidental Icon tells a story that is inspiring and jaw droppingly unbelievable: it is the tale of the courage and survival of one man who took on the establishment.