Quite simply this book is a work of genius - Matthew Parris The Spectator An absolutely
extraordinary book ... a huge collage and anthology of diaries letters memoirs newspaper
reports trial documents all of this about actually what life was like for homosexual men in
London in the 1940s and the 1950s... It's amazing because the collage effect gives you a sense
of the extreme complexity of this picture - Dominic Sandbrook With it's wide-ranging
selection generous biographical notes and provocative bibliography Some Men in London is a
serious and important contribution to our understanding of Britain up to today - Fiona Sampson
The Tablet The first part of a major new anthology which uncovers the rich reality of life
for queer men in London In the 1940s it was believed that homosexuality had been becoming
more widespread in the aftermath of war. A moral panic ensued centred around London as the
place to which gay men gravitated. In a major new anthology Peter Parker explores what it was
actually like for queer men in London in this period whether they were well-known figures such
as John Gielgud 'Chips' Channon and E.M. Forster or living lives of quiet - or occasionally
rowdy - anonymity in pubs clubs more public places of assignation or at home. It is rich
with letters diaries psychological textbooks novels films plays and police records
covering a wide range of viewpoints from those who deplored homosexuality to those who
campaigned for its decriminalisation. This first volume from 1945 to 1959 details a
community forced to live at constant risk of blackmail or prison. Yet it also shows a thriving
and joyous subculture one that enriched a mainstream culture often ignorant of its debt to gay
creators. Some Men In London is a testament to queer life which was always much more complex
than newspapers governments and the Metropolitan Police Force imagined.
