Interview with Stephen Bourne about the experiences of gay men in the British Armed Forces and at home during the Second World War.
Out of the 6.5 million men and women who served in the British Armed Forces during WW2, as many as 1.2 million may have experienced some form of same-sex intimacy. In this episode, Matthew Kidd speaks to Stephen Bourne about his book "Fighting Proud", a fascinating study that unearths remarkable stories about some of the gay men who experienced the war in the British armed forces or at home. Among other things, Stephen and Matthew consider how "Fighting Proud" challenges some of the assumptions that people have about gay men during the war, and discuss how certain individuals featured in Stephen’s book proudly and bravely defied the expectations of their times.
