Sexual freedoms of long ago tamed by modern times

A study by a University of Manchester historian has cast doubt on the widespread belief that the Victorians and Edwardians were prudes who had few sexual freedoms. It was advent of the private bedroom, modern suburb and social housing, says Dr Lief Jerram, which tamed a 'free-for-all', widespread in many Western cities before the First World War. A benign tolerance of gays by the police and courts in the 1900s - with a few notorious exceptions - he argues, gave way to a 'reign of terror' in the 1950s and 60s, when thousands of people were imprisoned and persecuted - especially in the UK. "Because the vast majority of people lived and slept together in overcrowded rooms before the First World War, lacking privacy, the street was the place to go have sex,” said Dr Jerram. Newly established public amenities of a century ago, such as baths and toilets, provided the opportunity for amorous encounters he writes in "Streetlife” published this month by Oxford University Press. The book pulls together cutting-edge research from across Europe, for the first time, to challenge received wisdom on urban life. London County Council built sports halls and boxing clubs and organised open ponds and swimming areas, banning clothes and excluding women.