All language subtitles for VeryBritishSexScandal

The 1950s, and a contented post -war
Britain was in the grip of a brutal

backlash.

It was against homosexuals when they
were labelled pansies and queers. I

homosexuality as a cancer eating into
the roots of ordinary, decent human

relations. I'm sentencing you to seven
years.

Every year, a thousand men were sent to
jail for homosexual offences.

The maximum sentence for buggery was
life imprisonment.

A great many people that I know of
committed suicide when they were caught.

was such a stigma, such a terrible thing
to be gay.

Then, a sensational trial involving a
leading Fleet Street journalist and Lord

Montague of Bewley electrified the
nation.

Its outcome so shook the establishment
that life and the law for homosexuals.

would never be the same again.

In the wake of a scandal, Churchill's
government set about thinking the

unthinkable, reforming the law on
homosexuality and prostitution.

The forum would become celebrated as the
Walforden Committee, after its

chairman, John Walforden.

I'm dreadfully sorry, Mr. Walton. Mrs.
Cohen, I was just saying that the aim of

this committee is to determine whether
the law should be changed for

and prostitutes and to find out why
there's been an increase.

The increase has been down to police
arrest.

Karen, at this rate, will have an
overcrowding crisis in the prisons.

Thank you, Mr. Rees.

Perhaps we could...

examine the facts and the evidence
before we draw any conclusions.

It's a fascinating subject, albeit a
rather distasteful one.

Bearing in mind the presence of the
ladies, can I suggest we call the

homosexuals Huntleys and the prostitutes
Palmers?

Would you be so kind as to tell me what
a Huntley does? Or rather, what is the

crime?

It was announced from Sandringham at 10
.45 today that the king passed

peacefully away in his feet earlier this
morning.

In 1952, Peter Wildblood, a 28 -year
-old high -flying journalist for the

Mail, was waiting by a London
underground station.

What followed would change the life of
every gay man in Britain.

Have you got a light?

Sure.

Thanks.

You want to leave?

How am I that obvious?

Where are you stationed?

At Ely Hospital.

Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?

Well, I was thinking of trying the Union
Jack Club.

I have a flat.

It's not too far from here.

Sounds perfect.

What are you doing?

Just checking we didn't wake the
neighbours.

Wouldn't it be funny if your neighbour
added you to the wall?

Exactly the same place.

Not particularly.

I'll phone the police, by the way.

Surely the law is a deterrent to such
unnatural practices.

An interesting point, Mrs Killam.

If there was a law... against men and
women having sex.

Do you think that would stop anyone?

In the 1950s, you knew the police were
there, you knew the law, and you knew

they were getting tough.

But I suppose, probably being young, one
just said, OK, we can go on

living, it'll never happen to us.

No gay man dared to come out publicly in
the 1950s.

But London held the promise of an
exciting gay underground with its

pubs and illicit clubs in the West End.

For gay men encountering it for the
first time, it was a passport into a

world.

George Montague was convinced that he
had some rare affliction until he

into this underworld for the first time
at the age of 21.

I shall never forget the very first time
I walked into a gay club in London

called the Festival Club.

I was 25, and I'd been fighting this
thing for about four or five years, and,

well, what the hell is wrong with me?
Why am I like this? I must be the only

one. I walked into this room, large room
with about 50 men in there. We were all

criminals. We could be raided at any
time.

And immediately, the most wonderful two
or three hours of my life.

You were pretty certain you were going
to meet somebody you knew.

And it was...

I think the word to use, it was sort of
a little sort of Freemason world.

We had secret ways of communicating.

Illy Vicka, you know, about our face.
Oh, look at the Illy Vicka on that, you

know. I loved the idea of a secret
society, an underground thing, which we

shared.

West End newsreel cinemas were another
place for chance encounters in the dark.

When Michael Brown...

A 20 -year -old dental student first
went to one in 1952. There was no

of opportunity.

There was someone on my right who pushed
his knee against my right knee, and

then it happened on the left side, and
then a hand came from behind, and then,

lo and behold, a hand came from in front
onto my knee.

I was quite startled.

Fear of arrest and jail prevented many
from taking someone home, and fear of

blackmail made sure the sex stayed
anonymous.

I met a man, took him back, sex went
quite well, and he was in my situation.

He didn't want to give his name, or real
name anyway, but the

back of my mind was, could this be Mr
Wright?

which was very important to me. That's
what I was really after.

It was an agonising dilemma.

Risk exchanging names or lose Mr Wright.

Can I get you some coffee?

No, thanks. Better get going.

If you're in London and need a place to
stay.

Thanks.

Um... Here.

Here. That's my work number.

Thanks. Make sure the landlord doesn't
see you.

Okay, Pierre.

I'm Eddie.

Eddie McNally.

Yes, of course, Mr Scarpel.

The editor requests the pleasure of your
company in his office.

Did he say what?

Been a naughty boy, have you?

In 1952, the Daily Mail was a serious
establishment newspaper.

Its opinions were highly respectable.

Its leading journalists, too, were
public figures.

expected to have impeccable private
lives.

Ladies and gentlemen, please raise your
glasses to Peter

Wildblood, our new royal correspondent.

Well done, Peter.

Congratulations.

When I got up, it's three o 'clock in
the morning.

The wife's still up. She's waiting for
me.

I'm thinking this is it, Stan. Your
number's up.

Good night, love. Good night, Oliver.
Thank you.

So she came over. She said, you reek of
perfume.

You're having an affair, aren't you?

I said, no, I told her.

I'm doing this secret undercover job,
and I have to pretend to be a pansy.

And I have to put perfume on so I smell
like one of them.

She only bloody believed it.

No, not for me. I've got to go. One more
for the ropey. No, really, I can't.

You've got a date, haven't you?

Maybe.

That's got its nerve, hasn't it?

No.

Someone else.

With nowhere else to go, many men went
for the risk of cottaging for anonymous

sex.

The cottage, of course, is a public
toilet used for pick -ups and sometimes

for having sex on the premises.

And they were everywhere in the 50s.

It is very simple, this lying in state.

of a dead king and of incomparable
beauty.

The slow flicker of the candles touches
gently the gems of the imperial crown.

Even that ruby that King Henry wore at
Agincourt.

It touches the deep purple of the velvet
cushion and the cool white flowers of

the only... I'm romantic.

I don't really like sleaze, but the
situation forced me into sleazy things

fear of, well, for personal safety.

Cup of tea, Mother?

Yes, please.

Father? Yes, please, Peter.

My first front page.

Oh, thank you.

Oh.

Can I keep this?

Yes, it's for you.

Elizabeth, only 25.

Oh, that responsibility and so young.

He's always got Philip to turn to for
support.

You could do with someone supporting
you.

Behind every successful man, there's a
supportive wife.

There are many successful men who are
not married.

Besides, I don't really see the point.

I don't want to be deceiving myself if I
lived with a woman.

The trouble with you, Peter, is you've
spent too long living on your own.

It's not natural.

My parents never knew.

I didn't come out at all to anyone until
my mother had died, and then I did.

And that was 1982.

The thing was unspeakable.

It didn't get talked about at all.

Everyone was in the closet except
Quentin Crisp, as far as I know. You

You just live... ..a lie.

That's what you're living, a lie.

You act.

You have to learn to act and not give
yourself away.

May I first of all say, Lord Hailsham,
how very grateful we are to you for

finding time to come here and help us in
this extremely complex and difficult

matter. May I ask members of the
committee if they have any points to

the paper?

I have one or two points I'd like to
ask.

The first one of which is how you
reached the conclusion on page one that

homosexuals are made and not born.

Well, from 1938...

to 1954, there has been an increase of
the order of a multiple of four, which

actually a conservative estimate.

This increase must be down to something
more than congenital factors.

Lord Hilsham, do you think that the
increase in court appearances

an increase in behaviour?

Undoubtedly so.

Quite obviously, the war created...

A situation in which many people who had
not been homosexual before, in peace

time, found it happening.

They were away from their family and
their homes for a long time.

I'm sorry, Lord Harrison, I'm not sure I
follow you.

Well, in the Middle East, for instance,
of which I have had personal experience,

there were a number of cases.

You see, troops catch it.

then spread it on when they return home.

Do you think that it's like a disease?

Indeed it is, an incurable disease.

Contagious, incurable and self
-perpetuating.

Interesting, very interesting.

As well as politicians, many doctors
thought that homosexuality was

The BMA saw it as an illness and that it
should be treated like a public health

problem.

Philip Bean was 18 when he was sent to
the doctor by his mother.

We talked about me and my sex life.

And he prescribed some pills, which made
my tits sore.

That was all they did for me as well.

I never did find out what they were.

Their ideas of curing you were scarcely
bear thinking about.

They used drugs.

They used...

electric shock treatment, many of the
sort of things that you'd use on the

insane, indeed.

Well, in the one case I do know is this
guy who went to

a psychiatrist and given aversion
therapy.

He was shown photographs or a photograph
of a nude male and then given an

electric shock.

Well, but... Hello, Pete.

It's Eddie.

Pete, can you hear me?

Yes, sorry.

It's not a very good line.

I've got leave this weekend.

I was going to come to London.

Well, that's marvellous.

Should I meet you in the usual place?

OK. I'll be there at seven o 'clock.

I look forward to seeing you.

Me too.

When Edward McNally met up again with
Peter Wildblood, it was the start of an

affair that would change their lives and
change history.

I hear it's a very good play.

Well, stranger.

Mr. Kent.

Do you normally go for men like me?

Am I your type?

I'm not sure if I have a type.

What about you?

What's your type?

Someone like you.

And what type am I then?

Clever.

Well educated.

Ambitious.

Dear Pete, arrive back okay, safe and
sound.

Thanks for a wonderful weekend.

I've got it bad, sweetheart.

In fact, I haven't felt so happy for a
long time.

This is being written in bed.

Wish you were here, but the RAF have
definite views on that.

I'm enclosing a photo.

My dearest darling Eddie.

I was so relieved to hear from you at
last.

I can't tell you how worried I was about
you.

Alan Horsfall would become a gay rights
campaigner.

But in the early 1950s, he was
scrupulous about keeping his affairs

He never wrote affectionate letters to
anybody.

He never kept diaries. He never kept
address books.

He never told anybody where you worked
or gave them your telephone number. He

never took anybody home unless you knew
them very well.

And a whole string of things.

Do you fancy going on holiday together?

Yeah. A friend has offered me the use of
his beach hut in August.

I'm really sorry, Pete.

I could have promised my friend Johnny
I'd go on holiday with him.

You should tell me.

He's a good friend from work.

There's nothing going on between us.

He's my confidant.

You haven't told him about us, have you?

Yeah.

About Tristan.

Honestly, he won't tell us all.

Why don't you bring him along?

Why? I don't see why not. A hut sleeps
four people.

What is it, Monty?

Lord Montague.

You know a lord? Yes, but it's not quite
how you'd imagine it to be.

I found Peter Wildblood a rather amusing
person.

He had a good sense of humour.

He'd been all over the place. He'd
been...

sent by his editor to have some very
interesting stories to cover. And I

him entertaining and very worthwhile to
meet with.

At 25, Lord Montague, the third Baron of
Bewley, was a socialite and one of the

youngest peers in the House of Lords.

At his stately home in Hampshire, he was
setting up Britain's first motor

museum. They run as well now as 50 years
ago.

However... He was about to become a
household name for the weekend he spent

Bewley on August 21st, 1952.

Lord Montagu had invited Wild Blood
McNally and his RAF friend Johnny

to stay in his beach hut, a safe haven
on the edge of his estate.

Shall I try, Lord Montagu? I seem to
have an awkward look.

Well, thank you, Johnny. But please,
call me Edward.

Well done.

All a bit primitive, I'm afraid.

Luxury compared to the RAF.

Oh, God, for that matter.

Come on!

Come on, Johnny!

A

little

bit more.

Yep. No, Johnny.

Yeah.

That's it.

Yes.

There you go.

There's plenty of food inside, so you
shouldn't go hungry.

Thanks, Edward.

Are you going to stay and have a drink
with us? I'd love to, but I've left my

cousin Michael and some friends up at
the house.

Why don't you bring them over there?

We can have a party.

I might just do that.

Peter Whiteblood was a bit shy in a way.
In other words, he wouldn't be in the

middle of a conversation with other
people. He'd be more likely leaning

the wall.

There you are.

That night, wild -blood McNally and
Reynolds slept in the beach hut.

Lord Montague and his cousin, Pitt
Rivers, returned to Pallet House.

What exactly happened that evening would
become the talk of the nation.

I knew Michael Pitt Rivers, who was very
much top bracket.

He and I were great friends.

But it didn't bother him at all that my
father was a country butcher and he was

an Arab.

We were just friends.

I think that was a great example of it
all.

He said, I'll take you to all the places
that no decent young man should go to.

1950s Britain was a class -ridden
society, but homosexuality transcended

boundaries.

Aristocrats happily mixed and had sex
with East End dockers.

It was a threat to the social order, and
time for a clampdown.

My dear Eddie, I'm so sorry. I've been
trying to write to you for weeks, but

never seem to make it.

I'm up to my eyes in work.

There seems to be so much coronation
stuff happening.

I'm getting a lot into the paper, and
the editor is very pleased, so I'm

stinging them heavily for expenses.

The editor has mentioned that the
diplomatic correspondence job might be

up, which will mean far more money.

The last man who had the job got £4 ,500
a year.

I'll be able to buy a house and even get
my own country retreat.

Edward is back from his tour of New
York.

He brought back a lot of records,
including a very sexy one of Marlena

singing in German.

By the way, Edward sends love to you and
Johnny.

Take care of yourself.

And come down here soon.

All my love, P.

What's up? You been fired?

No.

I've just got the diplomatic job.

You chummy bugger.

You've hit the jackpot.

Big responsibility, that job.

They'll be watching your every move.

Wild Blood's promotion propelled him
into a world of intelligence briefings

foreign office secrets.

Cheers.

It would also launch him into the heart
of the Cold War.

Yes, indeed, May Day in Moscow is the
most important occasion.

Its aim being to emphasise the power and
solidarity of the Soviet Union.

Cold War paranoia was at its peak.

Two senior foreign office diplomats, Guy
Burgess and Donald Maclean, had just

defected to Moscow.

They were traitors, and they were gay.

Maclean was bisexual, Burgess
homosexual.

Not content with hunting for reds under
the bed, Churchill's government began a

hunt for reds in the bed, in a crusade
to flush out homosexuals from the

government, the armed forces.

and every influential sphere of society.

If I may speak frankly, Mr. Wolfenden.

Please do.

I am worried about what is happening to
this nation. The number of homosexual

cases is terrifying.

If this evil is allowed to continue, it
will corrupt the nation.

My apologies to the ladies present.

Don't worry, Chief Constable. I think
we've moved on from Huntlett and Palmer.

I'm extremely pleased that this
committee has been set up to warn the

this danger.

Yes.

Well, our main focus is to determine the
relevance of this law.

Could the law be changed?

I see there was an increase in arrests
related to homosexual offences in 1953

after you became chief constable.

There was an increase in homosexual
activity.

And the Home Secretary was keen to stem
the tide.

I see.

You were quoted in the newspaper as
saying that you planned to rip the

off all England's filth spots.

Can you explain exactly what you meant
by that?

I'm arresting you in gross indecency.

With

full hearts,

we salute.

Perfect.

This young, gracious lady upon whom the
royal obligation rests.

In 1953, the purge against homosexuals
intensified.

One tactic was the use of undercover
police as argent provocateurs.

Jimmy Jacks was one of many trapped by
this method.

There was a toilet at the beginning of
the cemetery and an agent provocateur,

which I found out later it was, came
next to me in the toilet.

He'd be standing there and, what they
used to say, exposing himself.

Sometimes he'd be wanking.

Not supposed to, I believe.

He said, I'm arresting you for
importuning.

But he was an agent provocateur and I
told the magistrate this when I was

arrested and he just didn't believe me.

At the very moment the policeman looked
over the top of the wall, he put his

penis through the hole and I was charged
with gross indecency. I never touched

him, I wasn't interested in the
slightest.

But ironically, I was charged and
convicted of gross indecency.

which I had done dozens and dozens of
times.

But on that particular occasion, I was
innocent.

It didn't make any difference. Get off
me!

Get off me!

Leave him alone and I'll call the
police. We are the police.

The Home Secretary said he was going to
rid England of the plague of

homosexuality, and he meant it too.

So we were scared.

Oh, honey.

What if the landlord heard you?

Not then.

Don't go out.

Did he see you?

No.

Calm down, will you?

Here.

A little something to celebrate your
promotion.

Very kind of you, but you didn't have...

Put it on.

Come and have a drink.

I can't. I have to prepare for this
night out conference.

You're always working.

It's getting so boring.

I'm thinking about what you said in your
letter.

What letter?

The one before last.

Said you were going to buy a house.

And? I could come live with you.

I could be your manservant.

Are you mad?

If someone saw us out together, that
would be it. My life would be over.

Have you been keeping my letters?

Yes, of course.

So when do you keep mine?

No.

When you get back to Ely, make sure you
burn them.

All of them.

In 1953, the government were making
every attempt to stem the tide of filth.

But while the police could hardly arrest
every gay man in Britain, a high

-profile trial would stand as a salutary
example to the nation.

There's no room, get off! Oh, don't be
like that.

Move over, I'll sit on your left.

Get your boot off me joystick, do you
mind?

it's a lovely, sunny day.

And these two nancy boys have gone for a
walk in the park.

One turns to the other, he says, it's
nice out.

Yeah, says the other, I think I'll get
mine out.

Dearest Eddie, I would hate to hurt you
and really never meant to.

Please believe me when I say that
nothing has changed.

I love you as much now as I did when we
spent that wonderful holiday together,

which I honestly think was the happiest
time I ever had.

This is the kind of letter I never
write.

Dearest, you mean such a terrible lot to
me that I can't put it into words.

To find out how very, very much I love
you, please come back to me.

And we'll have the most wonderful time
we've ever spent together.

All the love I've ever known.

P.

Who's P?

A girlfriend, Sergeant.

The military police's next arrest was
McNally's friend, Johnny Reynolds.

It's Lord Montagu.

Liar!

He is.

It's Lord Montagu.

The police now had their perfect, high
-profile name.

In the turbulence of this anxious and
active world, many people are leading

uneventful, lonely lives.

The upward course of a nation's history
is due, in the long run, to the

soundness of hearts of its average men
and women.

And so it is that this Christmas Day, I
want to send a special message of

encouragement and good cheer.

To those of you whose lot is cast in
dull and uninvited surroundings.

To those whose names will never be
household words, but to whose work and

loyalty we owe so much.

How long have you got off for Christmas?

I'm back on the 2nd of January and then
I fly out to Berlin on the 9th for the

Fall Powers Conference.

Berlin?

It'll be dangerous, will it?

My love, the war's over. It's probably
safer there than it is in London.

Oh,

no, no, no, no. Please, sit down.

Thank you, Sergeant McCready.

OK, sir, I'll go and see if you need me.

My name's Superintendent Jones. I'm with
the Hampshire Constabulary.

Do I understand?

Well, the matter's been passed over to
us.

Now, I want you to tell me about the
times you spent with Wildblood.

Well, they told them everything I knew.

You know, in a civilian court, the
maximum term for buggery is life

imprisonment.

If a judge takes pity on you, well,
you'll get seven years.

In prison, your cell door will be marked
with the term pervert, and every day

for seven years, you'll face abuse from
the other prisoners.

You have no evidence. We have your
letters.

And we have evidence from two of your
previous boyfriends. You remember George

and Jerry?

Well, they're prepared to testify
against you in court.

Did you know Wildblood's going to move
out soon?

His new boyfriend's moving in with him.

I don't believe you. Oh, his name is
Charles.

Wilder calls him his manservant.

I didn't help you, McNary.

You just need to turn Queen's evidence.

You make a brief statement in court that
you and Wildblood had a relationship

and you'll be immune from prosecution.

What all happened to Wildblood?

Well, he'll get off with a fine.

He can afford a good lawyer.

Now, you should be aware that your
friend Reynolds has already agreed to

Queen's evidence.

How old are you, Reynolds?

21.

You'll be nearly 30 by the time you get
out of jail.

I know your friend McNally won't be
going to prison.

He's agreed to testify in court against
Montague and Wildblood.

You can do the same.

If you testify against Montague, you'll
be free.

All the charges will be dropped.

Don't spend any time worrying about Lord
Montague.

You don't think they put a peer of the
realm in jail, do you?

Making gay men name names leading to
chain prosecutions was a favourite

tactic.

Anthony was working in Manchester when
he was caught by it.

When I said to the policeman, I can't
give you that name, they said to me, but

you're not leaving here till you do.

The police would bully a young,
vulnerable guy and get the names from

threaten him. If he didn't give them the
names of everyone he knew that was gay,

they would take him home to his parents
and tell his parents and his friends.

He took my shoelaces off my tie.

I was in the cell for about nine to ten
hours.

And there was no depth that they
wouldn't crawl in the effort to get...

to get a conviction.

I told the addressers that.

And I went to put them down the loo that
they had in this cell.

But I saw there was no chain.

So I ate the pieces of paper.

I actually mentioned that because I was
so scared that they would find them.

Wildblood, unaware that McNally was in a
cell, was preparing to travel to the

Four Powers Conference in Berlin.

Peter Wildblood? Yes.

I'm Superintendent Jones from the
Hampshire Constabulary. This is

Smith from New Scotland Yard.

We have a warrant for your arrest,
charging you with conspiracy and buggery

arising from your association with Lord
Montague and two airmen. We need to

search your flat.

Where's your search warrant? It's back
at the station.

Look, I have to fly to Berlin today.

Is this your handwriting?

I need to phone my solicitor.

He won't be in his office yet.

So, Mr. Wildblood, where do you hide all
your love letters?

I don't keep letters.

No?

Where is this from, then?

Someone in the Navy?

No, it's from my mother.

I suppose these are not queer, are they?

My dear Peter, I have a week to go
before night duty, then into seclusion.

Will you miss me?

I hope so, because I am missing you
something awful.

Are these from Edward McNally?

Yes.

Simultaneously. There were dawn raids at
two of England's most distinguished

addresses, Pitt Rivers Estate in Dorset
and Palace House in Bewley.

Police pushed their way past

the butler, burst into the bedroom and
arrested Lord Montague.

The press had been tipped off.

and were waiting to turn Lord Montague's
arrival at the police station into

banner headlines.

Of course, my arrest did have quite a
dramatic effect on a whole lot of

people. It said that the skies of
Georgia were black with smoke. People

loved it.

Can you still travel to Berlin?

No. They've taken my passport.

Can't be too serious if they've released
you.

I'm on bail until the trial Yeah

He's

going to be in the papers tomorrow

You should know that I'm being charged
over offences arising out of my

friendship with another man.

It doesn't matter what they say you've
done. You're still my son.

And I will always stand by you.

I'm going to need a lawyer.

Your father and I have them saving.

We were keeping them until you got
married.

Perhaps this is more important.

There are 17 charges.

The prosecution's case is built on the
evidence from McNally and Reynolds.

However, there's a good chance that we
can prove that they're an unreliable

source. Sorry, what is the evidence from
McNally and Reynolds?

They've turned Queen's evidence against
you, Montague, and Pitt Rivers in

exchange for immunity from prosecution.

We need to point out that McNally and
Reynolds are two men who would be facing

criminal charges themselves.

The scene was set for the most
sensational court case of its kind since

Wilde. Homosexuality was suddenly center
stage in British life.

Montague, Wildblood, Pitt Rivers...

Wildblood and Pitt

Rivers were charged with gross indecency
and, most seriously, buggery.

Montague with gross indecency and
attempted buggery.

All three with conspiring to enable
homosexual offences to take place.

Despite Wildblood's request for women to
be present, an all -male jury would

decide their fate.

The case against Peter Wildblood and
Lord Montague was entirely dependent on

credibility of the evidence from McNally
and Reynolds.

The cross -examination would centre
around the Bewley Beach Hut Party of

1952.

The prosecuting counsel was Cocky
Roberts, who was a well -known

was a rather return figure, a rather
bullying sort of person.

What did you do at the Beach Hut?

They were drinking music from a portable
radio.

Now, in this beach hut, there are two
rooms, are there not?

Yes.

And did you stay all the time in one
room or not?

No.

I thought Montague and I went into the
bedroom.

And what happened in the bedroom?

We laid in bed.

And then?

Mutual masturbation.

And on this occasion, did anything occur
prior to masturbation?

I think he wanted me to commit buggery.

But you told him you did not want to.

Yes.

Lord

Montague,

you heard Reynolds say that on three
occasions various intimate acts took

between you.

I did.

You're telling the jury there's no truth
in that whatever.

I am? A complete invention.

It is.

Yes. Would you take letter number 16,
please?

Yes, I have it.

Hmm.

Dear Johnny.

Well, I understand that Christian names
aren't anybody's currency, but...

You did get to know him rather quickly,
didn't you?

When I first met him, I was introduced
to him as Johnny Rannell.

So I called him Johnny.

He did call me Lord Montague once or
twice.

And I told him to call me Edward.

How many people did you have staying
with you on the weekend of August 23rd,

1952?

Five guests staying with me, I think.
And my sister.

Yes, that'll be five men and your sister
at the house.

Yes, that's correct.

And did the five men go down to the
beach hut on the Sunday night?

Yes. Had you arranged for a party to
take place there that night?

I had not.

Peter Wildblood had asked us to come
down there for a drink.

Reynolds was told that dancing occurred.

Between men.

Do you deny this?

I do.

Was anyone the worse for the drink?

I noticed that McNally and Reynolds were
a little merry towards the end of the

party.

A little out of the usual atmosphere,
were they? I'm not sure I know what the

usual atmosphere is.

Oh, Lord Montague, you are all their
social superiors.

I should imagine that's a matter of
opinion, Mr. Roberts.

Reynolds has said that at some time in
the proceedings you led him through to

inner room in the hut.

There you went on to the bed and you
behaved indecently together.

Is that untrue? It is quite untrue. And
that after you tried to commit buggery

with him, is that also untrue? Yes. Not
a word of truth in it at all? None

whatsoever.

The trial was front -page news.

A scandal that sparked a public debate
and unprecedented public interest in

homosexuality.

It was the first big case of its kind
and being who it was.

Yeah, it was a big story. It was not
only in the British press, it was in the

American press and a lot of European
press as well.

And it was one of the things, only one
of the things, that made people more

fearful of an oncoming clampdown.

You read every word several times.

You buy all the paper, you don't only
buy one paper, you buy several and read

every bit.

Do you know the accused?

Wild Blood?

Yes.

When did you first meet him?

February 1952.

How did you come to meet Wild Blood?

Well, I was just standing outside near
Piccadilly Tube Station when

I noticed this gentleman.

And I spoke to him and he spoke to me.

What did he say?

Back with him to where he lived.

And did you?

Yes. And did you stay the night?

Yes.

Where did you sleep?

In the bedroom in his flat.

And did anything occur between you?

We committed buggery with each other.

Please speak up, Mr McNally.

We committed buggery with each other.
Now, look, let's be quite clear of your

meaning. When you say we committed
buggery with each other, what exactly

do to him?

I put my penis up his anus, and he put
his up mine.

Would you look at exhibit number

14, please?

Did you write this letter to wild blood?

Yes. In it you write, thanks again for a
wonderful weekend.

I've really got it bad, sweetheart.

In fact, haven't felt so happy for a
long time. This is written in bed.

Wish you were here, but the RAF have
definite views on these matters.

You're right. I really got it bad,
sweetheart.

What did you mean?

I was in love with Peter Wildblood.

Mr. McNally, during 1952 and 1953,

were you what you would describe as in
love with Peter Wildblood?

Yes, sir.

And when you wrote him these letters, of
which we've heard, did you mean those

expressions of sentiment?

Yes, sir.

These acts.

You say were committed by you and by
him.

Would you have permitted these acts if
you had not been in love with him?

No, sir.

You knew, of course, that Reynolds was a
homosexual.

A pervert.

Did you know?

Yes, sir.

Did you ever commit any acts of
indecency or buggery with him?

No, sir.

Was the reason that you did not commit
acts of buggery with him...

Because you are not in love with him?

Yes, sir.

So it comes to this, that it is only if
you are in love that you commit these

acts?

Yes, sir.

When Sergeant found letters from
Wildblood in your kit bag, how were they

signed?

By the letter P.

Well, then did they know that the
letters were indeed from Peter

I told them.

Told them.

There were other letters in your kit
that were found, were there not?

Yes, sir. Were they from people with
whom you'd committed acts of gross

indecency or buggery?

There was one other person that I
committed an act of gross indecency.

Not buggery.

And his name was George?

Yes, sir.

Had you been in love with that man?

No, sir.

Ah, but you permitted an act of gross
indecency even though you were not in

love.

Yes.

You were examined by Dr. Mant on the
14th of January, 1954.

Yes. You reported that the findings were
consistent with anal intercourse having

taken place on many occasions. Did you
know about this report?

No. You are, are you not?

An habitual bugger.

No. With how many men have you
committed, let's say, first of all, acts

indecency?

I do not remember. How many is that?

Oh, I... I just do not remember.

During 1952 and 1953, you worked as male
nurse at RAF Ely.

Yes. Did you bugger any of the patients?

No. You didn't think it would be good
for their health?

No.

I was there to look after the patients.

Perhaps you could enlighten the jury as
to how many men have buggered you.

Four. And did you give their names to
the police?

I do not know the names of the men that
buggered me.

So you do not know their names?

The one.

Peter Wildblood.

Peter Wildblood was the name, I suppose,
the police and the RAF were most

interested in, was it not?

Yes, sir. Mr. McNally, I want you to
understand quite clearly what I'm

to you.

I suggest to you that you never had any
kind of indecent relationship whatsoever

with Peter Wildblood. I did, sir. I
suggest to you that you're making up

story in order to avoid punishment for
other offences that you've committed

other men. No, sir.

I suggest you are, by your own statement
in this court, a sodomite and a

pervert, and I further suggest that
you've been telling lies to save your

skin. No, sir!

No further, Your Honour.

It was now Wildblood's turn to take the
stand.

All that stood between prison and
freedom was his ability to lie on oath

front of the judge and jury.

Between the end of the holiday on August
31st and... Christmas of 1952, did you

correspond with McNally?

Yes, I wrote to him once or twice. In
what kind of terms did you write to him?

In affectionate terms, but nothing more
at that point.

What kind of letters was he writing to
you?

Um, they were extremely sentimental.

Emotional, I should say. And they
contained endearments of an unusual kind

two men to exchange.

He has told us that for many years he's
been a homosexual.

Did you know that in 1952?

No, I didn't know that.

What were your feelings for him at the
end of January 1953?

I was fond of him.

I was grateful to him for his affection.

It helped me with my loneliness.

I was extremely lonely at the time.

Was there any buggery or gross indecency
that took place between you and McNally

when he stayed with you? No, none at
all.

No further questions?

McNally was infinitely your social
inferior, was he not?

That is absolute nonsense.

Now, with regard to intellect, would you
agree that McNally and you didn't even

meet on the same plane at all?

I think he was quite an intelligent
person.

He was not educated, but he was
intelligent.

Yes, what I'm after is what was the
common link that bound together you, a

highly intelligent journalist, with
Corporal McNally, who started in the pit

in Glasgow.

As a journalist, I meet with all kinds
of people. Yes, you don't invite them

to stay for the weekend.

I don't see why not.

Nor write them letters, dearest darling
Eddie.

I know it is foolish to write letters
couched in those terms, but it is no

better or worse if they are my social
inferiors or superiors.

In one of your letters, you write of
having the most wonderful holiday at

Bewley. What made it wonderful?

The weather was beautiful.

We were spending it in very pleasant
surroundings.

For the first few days, we had the sea
to bathe in on our doorstep. It was a

wonderful change from the life I had
been living in London.

The weather.

Would you look at Exhibit 23, please?

Would I be wrong in describing this, if
I may use the term, as a sexy

photograph?

Not particularly.

Am I wrong in thinking that the male
organ is in a state of erection?

Yes, I think you're quite wrong.

It's simply the way the organ is
arranged inside the trunks.

The prosecution's case hung in the
balance, but Wildblood's most critical

of truth still lay ahead.

As the trial entered its second week,
there were hints of a shift in press and

public opinion.

The press are laying odds of 11 to 2 on
all three of us being acquitted.

But the biggest sensation was yet to
come.

Mr Wildblood, when you entered this box,
you did go and call him out and tell

the whole truth and nothing but the
truth.

You realise that?

Yes.

You are aware that in this court we have
McNally, your friend of some 21 months,

describing what took place between him
and you?

We know some of the letters that passed
between you.

And you still persist in saying that
you've told the whole truth?

Yes, I say I have told the whole truth.

Have you any suggestion to put forward
to explain why McNally would tell such

wicked lies against you?

Yes, I should have thought it was
perfectly obvious.

He's either doing it to save his own
skin or doing it to save somebody

But how can he save his own skin by
telling what happened between

you? Your Honour, these questions are
suppositional.

I do not think, Mr Roberts, that it
would do the jury any good to speculate

the motives of another man.

You say that you did not know that
McNally was a practising pervert. Is

correct?

I think we need to agree on some sort of
vocabulary.

Is that not an exhaustive definition of
the term homosexual?

A practising pervert? Only in the sense
in which the word has been used in this

court. But a pervert is a man who, from
wickedness, gets desire from an

unnatural function.

I think so.

Whereas a homosexual is a man who, from
accident of birth, has unnatural

desires. Is that correct?

Yes.

Mr. Wildblood, nothing during this trial
has been brought against your

character. You can hold your head up
high.

But are you a homosexual?

Mr. Wildblood, please answer the
question.

I am a homosexual.

Well, I admired Peter Wildwood very much
because he was completely honest and

spoke the truth.

I admire Peter Wildwood's bravery in
confessing his homosexuality at that

stage, but I think it was a tactical
error.

Well, I thought it was great, and I
thought he was extremely brave, and I

brave enough.

I think that any chance he had of being
found not guilty disappeared at that

time.

The jury was out for four and a half
hours.

You have all three been found guilty of
serious offences.

New Montague, less serious offences than
the other two.

I have paid greatest attention to
everything that has been said on your

but of course it is quite impossible for
these offences to be passed over.

I'm dealing with you in the most lenient
way that I possibly can.

New Montague.

will go to prison for 12 months.

You, Pitt Rivers, for 18 months.

And you, Wild Blood, for 18 months.

Wild Blood's daring declaration of his
homosexuality had sealed the

But the severity of the sentences
shocked an increasingly sympathetic

Because at that time we had no idea what
people were thinking outside, nor did

we know what the attitude was going to
be with other people.

But nobody foresaw the reaction as the
defendant left the prison.

Keep your head down.

They can't hurt us now.

Lord Montague, keep your head up.

Well done.

Wobbler.

Wobbler.

Pick a wobbler.

The pizza. The pizza.

The trial created the first groundswell
of press and public opinion that the law

was too harsh.

The crusade against homosexuals had
backfired.

In the wake of the trial, a Home Office
committee was set up to look at the law.

It would become famous as the Walforden
Committee.

Chief Constable, do you think that
homosexuality between

consenting males... in private, should
be decriminalised.

I would expect a tremendous increase if
this were to happen.

Punishment keeps it down. Why is it that
other countries have adopted a more

tolerant view?

I have visited and consulted policemen
in France, Italy, Scandinavia and

America.

And I feel you never hear of any country
with higher morals than this country.

Except probably Canada and Fiji.

I'm worried that these sessions are not
yielding enough facts.

In all my view, they're committed in
grave danger of becoming a farce.

Really? How so?

How can we determine whether the laws of
homosexuality should be changed without

hearing evidence from homosexuals?

I've been wondering whether we should be
hearing from...

Our Huntleys.

But how can we have criminals giving
evidence before a Home Office inquiry?

If we do it behind closed doors.

Off the record, sort of thing.

We could put an advertisement in a
newspaper.

With respect, Mr. Wolfenden, we'll have
every Huntley coming out of the

woodwork. We'll be made to look like
fools.

I think you're quite wrong, Mrs. Curran.

I can't see anyone being brave enough to
come forward.

Three of our huntlies have volunteered
to come forward.

Volunteered?

I take it all three want to be
anonymous.

No, there's one who's prepared to give
his name.

Peter Wildblood was released from prison
in March 1955.

He was now committed to campaigning for
homosexual rights.

The Walforden Committee would give him
the perfect opportunity to make his

known.

My name is Peter Wildblood.

And what evidence and expertise do you
bring to us, Mr Wildblood?

I am a homosexual.

Peter Wildblood really did very well. He
was turning himself into a crusader to

have the law changed, and he wrote a
very successful book, and good luck to

Two years later, the committee published
their long -awaited report.

It put forward Peter Wildblood's main
recommendation that homosexual acts

between consenting adults in private
should be decriminalised.

It was such a wonderful turning point
because we were also relieved

that, in fact, you know, without doing
anything outrageous, too outrageous in

public, you could do it in private, do
things in private.

And I thought, I think most gay people
thought that, that it, you know, was

excellent. It took another ten years for
Parliament to make it law.

When we felt we knew we were safe, we
could get rid of the two single beds and

we could get a double bed and we could
live together as a couple.

It was a hell of a... And looking back
on it, it was a hell of a statement to

make. We were very pleased to meet the
son.

Very old men who proudly told us they'd
been together for 47

years. And so it gave us much pleasure
to top that and say 54 years.

We've got more programmes that note
homosexuality's decriminalisation.

night from 10, gay men whose lives
interconnect over 36 hours in London,

-off drama Clapham Junction. And Tuesday
night from 5 past 11, how gay sex

changed the world, how the sex life of
Britain changed for good, and how gay

lifestyles became socially acceptable.

Up next, though, Farooza Balk, Nev
Campbell and Rachel True, a .k .a. the

bitches of Eastwick. Horror fantasy, my
friends.

in the craft.