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Stephen Bourne draws on his latt book to tell the prevly untold story of gay men who joed the Brish armed forc durg the two world wars. "If gay

Contents:

IN WWII, TWO GAY SOLDIERS’ FORBIDN ROMANCE LIV ON IN THEIR LOVE LETTERS

In 2008, the letters between gay soldiers were disvered. Now, they are no longer hidn, and a film has been ma about them. * gay ww2 soldiers love letters book *

Letters between gay men are credibly rare bee they were almost always stroyed. Letters between a gay civilian and a soldier?

This is an credibly rare photograph of a gay soldier and a man Paris durg World War II. Homosexualy was illegal at that time, and beg ught the army as a gay man was so much worse. If he was found out, was likely that he would serve time prison, or even get shot by a homophobic soldier, and left for ad.

Two gay soldiers relaxg together uniform. Beg openly gay would not be crimalized until The Sexual Offens Act 1967.

READ THIS HEARTBREAKG GAY WORLD WAR II SOLDIER’S LOVE LETTER

* gay ww2 soldiers love letters book *

Even then, no one uld have gay sex until over the age of 21. Not surprisgly, there were other gay men that were drafted to the army as well. For the vast majory of gay men wrg letters to one another durg that time, they actually did burn the letters.

For years, they had dreams of leavg England and movg to the Uned Stat, where they uld live sunny California, which was known for beg more acceptg of homosexuals. The Newly Disvered Love Letters Between Two Gay Soldiers In World War II Will Have You In Tears.

War Time Love Letters Reveal Epic Gay Love Story Kept Secret for Des. The Newly Disvered Love Letters Between Two Gay World War II Soldiers Tell A Heartwarmg Story Of Forbidn Love. But more than 70 years later, was disvered that G stood for Gordon, and Gilbert had been love wh a the time, not only was homosexualy illegal, but those the armed forc uld be shot for havg gay sex.

BT GAY ROMANCE TIM OF WAR

The letters, which emerged after Mr Bradley's ath 2008, are therefore unual and shed an important light on homosexual relatnships durg the do we know about this forbidn love affair? The rt of the world have no nceptn of what our love is - they do not know that is life as a homosexual the 1940s was credibly difficult. Gay activy was a urt-martial offence, jail sentenc for so-lled "gross cency" were mon, and much of society strongly disapproved of same-sex was not until the Sexual Offenc Act 1967 that nsentg men aged 21 and over were legally allowed to have gay relatnships - and beg openly gay the armed servic was not allowed until letters, which emerged after Mr Bradley's ath 2008, are rare bee most homosexual upl would get rid of anythg so crimatg, says gay rights activist Peter Rose.

"There is a gay history and isn't always negative and tearful, " he says.

SECRET LOVE LETTERS OF TWO GAY SOLDIERS OM WWII MA TO MOVIE

"But spe all the awful circumstanc, gay men and lbians managed to rise above all and have fascatg and good liv spe everythg.

FIGHTG PROUD: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE GAY MEN WHO SERVED TWO WORLD WARS

"Such letters are extremely rare bee they were crimatg - gay men faced years prison wh or whout hard labour, " he says.

THE NEWLY DISVERED LOVE LETTERS BETWEEN TWO GAY SOLDIERS IN WORLD WAR II WILL HAVE YOU IN TEARS

"There was even the possibily that gay soldiers uld have been shot. “Beg a gay filmmaker, bed wh my love for World War II history, I knew I had to tell this story, ” Vallente, the director and -wrer of the film, said. Homosexualy was illegal the U.

As a rult, rrponnce tailg gay love om that time is extremely rare. ” For Vallente, highlightg the posivy of gay love was important when producg “The Letter Men.

NEW SHORT FILM 'THE LETTER MEN' REVEALS SECRET LOVE LETTERS AMONG GAY SOLDIERS WWII

A love letter wrten by a gay World War II soldier has been makg the rounds on the ter, and ’s givg all the feels. The text of the gay World War II soldier’s letter reads:. What do you thk about this gay World War II letter?

As wartime stori of homosexual relatnships go, theirs is a happy one. Homosexualy was illegal until 1957, and partakg any homosexual act was punishable by 10 years prison. Bt Gay Romance Tim of War (125 books),.

Bt Gay Romance Tim of War. Vote/add books wh a gay romance plot/subplot that have as a background settg an armed or non-armed nflict (wars, civil wars, revolutns, civil ristanc, etc. In 2008, hundreds of love letters between two gay WWII soldiers, Gilbert Bradley and Gordon Bowsher, were disvered and then sold to Owtry Town Mm.

BT GAY MILARY

Durg WWII, soldiers who were disvered as gay uld be imprisoned, or much worse. Stephen Bourne draws on his latt book to tell the prevly untold story of gay men who joed the Brish armed forc durg the two world wars. “If gay men are shown to have the pacy for bravery mak them human, hero even.

As a gay man who was ncerned wh the lack of availabily of gay history books, spired me to nsir wrg about the liv of gay men the two world wars.

AN AMAZG TROVE OF WWII GAY LOVE LETTERS WAS JT DISVERED"MY DARLG BOY, THERE IS NOTHG MORE THAN I SIRE LIFE BUT TO HAVE YOU WH ME NSTANTLY." {FONT:NORMAL 800 1.2REM/1.2 "D BOLD",SANS-SERIF;TEXT-TRANSFORM:NORMAL;LOR:HER;DISPLAY:LE-BLOCK;PADDG-BOTTOM:6PX;POSN:RELATIVE;TEXT-TRANSFORM:UPPERSE;}{BACKGROUND:#89308A;BOTTOM:0;NTENT:'';DISPLAY:BLOCK;HEIGHT:2PX;LEFT:0;POSN:ABSOLUTE;RIGHT:0;-WEBK-TRANSN:ALL 0.2S EASE;TRANSN:ALL 0.2S EASE;WIDTH:100%;}{LEFT:51%;RIGHT:51%;WIDTH:0;}{FONT:NORMAL 800 1.2REM/1.2 "D BOLD",SANS-SERIF;TEXT-TRANSFORM:NORMAL;LOR:HER;DISPLAY:LE-BLOCK;PADDG-BOTTOM:6PX;POSN:RELATIVE;TEXT-TRANSFORM:UPPERSE;}{BACKGROUND:#89308A;BOTTOM:0;NTENT:'';DISPLAY:BLOCK;HEIGHT:2PX;LEFT:0;POSN:ABSOLUTE;RIGHT:0;-WEBK-TRANSN:ALL 0.2S EASE;TRANSN:ALL 0.2S EASE;WIDTH:100%;}{LEFT:51%;RIGHT:51%;WIDTH:0;}LIFEBY CODY GOHLFEBARY 20, 2017/12:12 {HEIGHT:HER;DISPLAY:-WEBK-BOX;DISPLAY:-WEBK-FLEX;DISPLAY:-MS-FLEXBOX;DISPLAY:FLEX;POSN:RELATIVE;-WEBK-FLEX-WRAP:WRAP;-MS-FLEX-WRAP:WRAP;FLEX-WRAP:WRAP;-WEBK-ALIGN-EMS:CENTER;-WEBK-BOX-ALIGN:CENTER;-MS-FLEX-ALIGN:CENTER;ALIGN-EMS:CENTER;-WEBK-BOX-PACK:CENTER;-WEBK-JTIFY-NTENT:CENTER;-MS-FLEX-PACK:CENTER;JTIFY-NTENT:CENTER;-WEBK-TRANSFORM-ORIG:CENTER;-MS-TRANSFORM-ORIG:CENTER;TRANSFORM-ORIG:CENTER;} IMG{HEIGHT:100%;WIDTH:100%;OBJECT-F:VER;}{HEIGHT:574PX;WIDTH:1020PX;}OSWTRY TOWN MMBY CODY GOHLFEBARY 20, 2017 / 12:12 PM{"@NTEXT":","@TYPE":"NEWSARTICLE","HEADLE":"AN AMAZG TROVE OF WWII GAY LOVE LETTERS WAS JT DISVERED","THUMBNAILURL":","DATEPUBLISHED":"2017-02-20T17:12:49.000+0000","DATEMODIFIED":"2017-02-20T17:12:49.000+0000","IMAGE":{"@NTEXT":","@TYPE":"IMAGEOBJECT","URL":","WIDTH":1920,"HEIGHT":1080},"URL":","THOR":{"@TYPE":"ORGANIZATN","NAME":"LOGO TV"},"MAENTYOFPAGE":{"@TYPE":"WEBPAGE","@ID":"},"PUBLISHER":{"@TYPE":"ORGANIZATN","@ID":","NAME":"LOGO TV","URL":","LOGO":{"@TYPE":"IMAGEOBJECT"}},"CREATOR":"CODY GOHL","ARTICLESECTN":"LIFE"}{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}A RECENTLY DISVERED LLECTN OF WAR-TIME LETTERS HAS UNVERED A GAY ROMANCE THAT WAS KEPT SECRET FOR S.OSWTRY TOWN {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}THE LETTERS WERE FOUND BY MEMORABILIA LLECTOR MARK HIGT WHILE HE WAS SURG THE WEB FOR PIEC OF ARY MAIL. THE NOT TELL THE STORY OF A YOUNG SOLDIER NAMED GILBERT BRADLEY AND HIS SWEETHEART, REFERRED TO SIMPLY AS "G."{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}WHEN HIGT WAS FIRST READG THE MSAG, HE ASSUMED BRADLEY'S LOVER WAS A WOMAN—HOWEVER, HE SOON REALIZED THAT THE "G" STOOD FOR GORDON BOWSHER AND THAT BRADLEY WAS LOVE WH A MAN.OSWTRY TOWN {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}THE 62-YEAR-OLD LLECTOR HAS AMASSED OVER 300 LETTERS WRTEN OM GORDON TO GILBERT BETWEEN 1939 AND 1944, AN AMOUNT HE SAYS IS CREDIBLY RARE GIVEN THAT HOMOSEXUALY WAS ILLEGAL GREAT BRA UNTIL {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}"THE VALUE OF THE LETTERS LI THE FACT MOST LOVE LETTERS OM HOMOSEXUALS AT THE TIME WERE BURNED, BEE IF THEY WERE FOUND, THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN ED AS EVINCE," HE EXPLAED TO {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}"THE STORY REALLY HAS A LIFE OF S OWN, ’S A FANTASTIC LOVE STORY TO RIVAL THE TANIC."OSWTRY TOWN {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}FROM WHAT HIGT WAS ABLE TO GATHER, THE PAIR FIRST MET ON A HOEBOAT HOLIDAY WHEN BOWSHER WAS DATG BRADLEY'S NEPHEW. THEY QUICKLY STCK UP A RAPPORT AND FELL TO A PASSNATE ROMANCE. WHEN WAR BROKE OUT A YEAR LATER, THE TWO MATAED THEIR NNECTN THROUGH LETTERS WHILE BRADLEY WAS ON THE ONT {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}WEDNDAY JANUARY 24TH {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}MY DARLG,{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}... I LIE AWAKE ALL NIGHT WAG FOR THE POSTMAN THE EARLY MORNG, AND THEN WHEN HE DO NOT BRG ANYTHG OM YOU I JT EXIST, A MASS OF NERV...{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}ALL MY LOVE FOREVER,{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}WHILE THE UPLE WERE QUE OPEN WH ONE ANOTHER THEIR LETTERS, THEY STILL WANTED TO KEEP THEIR RELATNSHIP PRIVATE OM HETEROSEXUAL FAY MEMBERS WHO HAD "NO NCEPTN" OF WHAT KD OF LOVE THEY {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}FEBARY 12 1940, PARK {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}MY OWN DARLG BOY,{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}THERE IS NOTHG MORE THAN I SIRE LIFE BUT TO HAVE YOU WH ME NSTANTLY...{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}...I N SEE OR I IMAGE I N SEE, WHAT YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER'S REACTN WOULD BE... THE RT OF THE WORLD HAVE NO NCEPTN OF WHAT OUR LOVE IS - THEY DO NOT KNOW THAT IS LOVE...{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}THEY EVEN DREAMED OF THE FUTURE, SPECIFILLY OF MOVG TO CALIFORNIA AFTER THE WAR TO BUILD A LIFE {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}FEBARY 1ST, 1941 K . C. GLOUCTER REGIMENT, PRRS ROAD, {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}MY DARLG BOY,{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}FOR YEARS I HAD DMMED TO ME THAT NO LOVE ULD LAST FOR LIFE...{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}I WANT YOU DARLG SERLY TO LVE TO YOUR OWN MD, AND TO LOOK FOR ONCE TO THE {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}IMAGE THE TIME WHEN THE WAR IS OVER AND WE ARE LIVG TOGETHER... WOULD NOT BE BETTER TO LIVE ON OM NOW ON THE MEMORY OF OUR LIFE TOGETHER WHEN WAS AT S MOST GOLN {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}YOUR OWN {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}UNFORTUNATELY, THEIR LOVE WOULD NOT LAST THE WAR AND THEIR RRPONNCE END 1945. BOWSHER EVENTUALLY MOVED TO CALIFORNIA TO BEE A HORSE TRAER AND BRADLEY SETTLED BRIGHTON AFTER PLETG TRAG {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}THE LETTERS WERE FIRST PUT UP FOR SALE AFTER BRADLEY'S ATH 2008 AND ARE NOW ENTIRELY OWNED BY THE OSWTRY TOWN MM, WHERE HIGT IS A {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}IN ADDN TO DISPLAYG THE LETTERS THE MM, HIGT PLANS TO RPORATE THEM TO A BOOK ABOUT BRADLEY'S {BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;PADDG:24PX 0;} A{LOR:#354A4E;-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;TEXT-RATN:UNRLE;} A:HOVER, A:FOC{-WEBK-TEXT-RATN:NONE;TEXT-RATN:NONE;} B, STRONG{FONT-WEIGHT:700;}"I’VE TRANSCRIBED EVERY LETTER AND I’VE EVEN GOT HOLD OF A PICTURE OF GILBERT," HE SAID. "I PLAN TO MAKE A BOOK ABOUT GILBERT’S LIFE, BUT TOLD THROUGH THE EY OF OTHERS. IT’S JT A BETIFUL STORY."{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;CLEAR:BOTH;}{BOX-SIZG:BORR-BOX;MARG:0 TO;WIDTH:90%;M-WIDTH:288PX;MAX-WIDTH:1440PX;M-HEIGHT:194PX;}LATT NEWS

The rult is Fightg Proud – The Untold Story of the Gay Men Who Served Two World Wars published by I B Tris on 27 July 2017.

THE FOTTEN GAY SOLDIERS OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR

When I started to look closely at the experienc of gay men the Send World War, I found evince that this was also the se wh them. I me to realise that, spe homophobia, and the fact that homosexualy was agast the law, gay men were accepted to the armed servic, they were tegrated and some stanc, beme much loved and rpected ‘masts’ on board their ships, their regiments or their RAF crews. The experienc of gay men were as diverse and different as their heterosexual ras.

Others who were disvered to be homosexual were urt martialled and thrown out of the servic, or worse, sent to prison.

In Fightg Proud I have tried to give exampl of a range of experienc, some good, some bad, and acknowledge how the dranian law that existed stroyed many liv after the war and to the 1950s, the time of the so-lled ‘homosexual wch hunt.

GAY

Attus to gay men the armed servic the First World War were probably much harsher than that of the Send World War, but wh the passage of time was harr to fd evince of posive experienc the Great War.

I am certa that some gay men would have been accepted by their heterosexual ras on the ont-le, and the trench, but if they were found out the punishment was extremely harsh, pecially the officer class. There were numero stori that I found eply movg and revelatory, too many to list here, but those I found particularly memorable were the stori of gay men who were associated wh the RAF. For twenty-five years he upheld the law as a policeman while his private life he broke the law as a sexually active gay man.

What surprised me was the number of gay men the Send World War who were not only known to be gay but were accepted by their heterosexual ras. Some gay men who joed up did face hostily to beg wh, but found that if they ed humour they uld overe homophobic attus and make iends. Time and time aga I lghed out loud at some of the funny thgs gay men said to overe prejudice.

IN WWII, TWO GAY SOLDIERS’ FORBIDN ROMANCE LIV ON IN THEIR LOVE LETTERS

From the start, was my tentn to wre a book about gay men’s liv the two world wars that vered the armed servic and the home ont.

I also wanted to avoid rewrg the life stori of the gay men who I scribe as ‘ins’, such as Ivor Novello, T. Short profil of the important ‘ins’ have been clud a sectn lled ‘Not Fotten’ and this ma possible for me to foc on the gay men who have been largely overlooked or fotten histori of the two world wars. Stephen Bourne is a wrer, film and social historian specialisg black herage and gay culture.

Source: Durg this era, beg a homosexual was illegal and gettg ught performg gay sex the armed forc uld get you shot. The letters of Bradley, which was found after his ath 2008 shed a very unexpected and important light on the realy of homosexual relatnships amongst soldiers durg the war. “Most gay stori om that era tend to be sad on that end prosecutn, or end ath, or end suici, and here we’ve got two guys that actually went through whout that happeng to them, ” said Mark Higt, Oswtry Town Mm curator.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* GAY WW2 SOLDIERS LOVE LETTERS BOOK

Bt Gay Milary (377 books) .

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