The He-She Ladies: The Case of Boulton and Park

In 1870, Fanny ‘Fredrich’ Park and Stella ‘Ernest’ Boulton were arrested at the Strand Theatre by three undercover policemen and prosecuted for violating the Offences Against Persons Act of 1861 – aka, Solicitation for Sodomy. They also left behind rare visual sources of their cross-dressing, which are managed by the national archives. Alongside their letters and the trial where they were found not guilty under a defence that argued that they were so 'outrageous' they couldn't be sodomites trying to hide their lives - their story is an important history lesson. Their case predated a story we all know better, Oscar Wilde's, with their case setting a precedent that went on to be used against the author.Episode Credits: This episode was produced by HRH Aphrodite I. Executive production by Amber Devereux and Jamie Wareham. This episode was produced as part of QueerAF's Trans+ History Week mentoring programme with thanks to Trans+ History Week's Creative Talent Sponsor, Publicis Groupe UK. Additional thanks to the National Archives of Great Britain. Music: “Estimations”, “Lambent (Arr. Gabel)”, “Fortis”, “Buried in the Dirt”, “Progression”, “Desert Hideout”, “Missing Memory”, “Partners in Crime”, and “Crescere” all by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen. Licensed under Epidemic Sounds. National Archive references are KB 6/3 and DPP 4/6.Sign up as a QueerAF member to listen along ad-free and support our not-for-profit work, investing in a new generation of queer audio professionals:https://www.wearequeeraf.com/membership/If you like our podcast, you'll love our free weekly newsletter that thousands of readers use to understand the LGBTQIA+ 🏳️‍🌈 headlines, learn new perspectives and stay on top of the latest queer content. Try it now:https://www.wearequeeraf.com/subscribe/Make sure to sign up for updates about Trans+ History Week, a QueerAF launchpad project:https://www.wearequeeraf.com/transhistoryweek/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.