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Friday, May 28, 2021

Early 20th Century - Intermission and Segue - P.C. Harry Daley


Harry Daley (1901-1971) was a London Metropolitan Police Constable who is one of the most unlikely and fascinating characters from gay history I have ever come across.  He was an openly gay policeman at a time (1925-50) when any sex acts between men were illegal.  When asked why he never tried to hide it, he said,  "A fox can't be chased if he won't run."  Harry became an unlikely member of the influential Bloomsbury Group when he chatted up playwright J.R. Ackerley on the doorstep of Ackerley's Hammersmith house while on duty and ended up going inside for a romp in the hay.  Afterward, the two discussed classical music, theater, and avante garde art.  That led to introductions to and affairs with E.M. Forster, Edward Sackville-West, Duncan Grant and others.  Busy guy.  

 

10 comments:

  1. Harry Daley's story is a fascinating one and, at times, hard to believe ... even though it's all true! Strangely enough, I came across his story on another blog site recently and have been tracking down further reading matter. No luck in locating Harry's postumous autobiography 'This Small Cloud' but I have just read a chapter about him in Stephen Bourne's excellent book 'Fighting Proud: the untold story of gay men who served in two World Wars'. I also got copies of Peter Parker's biography of J.R. Ackerley and Ackerley's own book 'My Father and Myself' from my local (London) library this week so have plenty of interesting reading lined up.

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    1. Please let me know if you discover any interesting stories. Harry's book has been out of print for a long time, and the rare old copies that end up for sale fetch top dollar . . . or pound.

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  2. Thanks Jerry. I can't find Harry's autobiography for sale anywhere but can imagine that copies go for top dollar/pound.

    Stephen Bourne quotes Harry from the autobiography as saying: "I was attracted to normal men, older, rougher and stronger than myself. Youthful innocence and freshness of outlook I found delightful, but never connected it with sexual desire." As such, maybe he was just being friendly with a couple of the lads pictured in this series?

    One of Harry's lovers was novelist E.M. Forster who was certainly older than him but I wouldn't have thought he was rougher and stronger. Interestingly, after Harry, Forster had a long-term relationship with Bob Buckingham, another working class London policeman, who lived for several years in the same section house (police accommodation for single officers) in Hammersmith as Harry. Harry acknowledged than Bob was much more suitable for Forster than he was, not least as he was more discreet about their relationship than Harry had been about his.

    I think the Ackerley books will be good so happy to pass on any interesting stories I come across.

    Peter

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    1. Wow, Peter, you've already expanded my knowledge. Thanks! I do recall reading that Harry was too "wide open" for some of his paramours, and you put a name to at least one, Forster.

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  3. Glad that was of interest to you Jerry. Forster's biographer, P.N. Furbank says Harry "was homosexual and made no secret of it; indeed he was wildly indiscreet" which certainly alarmed Forster and some of the Bloomsbury Group. Interesting that he could be so open about himself at work but this was frowned upon amongst some of the artistic and literary set.

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    1. Yet another paradox. The comfy "liberals" couldn't handle his openness.

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  4. I have to confess to my utter shame that I had never, ever heard of Harry Daley. Perhaps that was because the Metropolitan Police were so hard, so cruel and so unjust - until the 1980s - that his remarkable history was just simply buried. What a fascinating character.

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    1. Harry Daley's lack of notoriety is the other end of the paradox of his having "hidden in plain sight." He was out and up front, but hardly anybody noticed because that wasn't where the haters were looking.

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    1. Yes, Larry, the more I learned, the more my jaw dropped.

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