The Glamour Boys: The Secret Story of the Rebels who Fought for Britain to Defeat Hitler

Enjoyable book, the more open parts of 1930's Britain are always fabulous.

Very well researched and readable. Some unknown history found at last.

This book is about a group of gay/bi politicians who were instrumental in Britain's fight against Hitler, in a time when homosexuality was against the law. It's intelligently written and researched, without being full of academic jargon. A riveting read.

This extremely well researched and detailed history of the contribution that a group of queer men made to the second world war british victory makes compelling reading.In particular, that their queer experience of pre war Germany enabled them to have the foresight of the horrors of Nazi Germany that were to come.Some of these men witnessed the changes in German queer society in Berlin from being the most liberal, outrageous and often hedonistic city in the world to becoming dangerous, repressive and forced totally underground by nazism.In particular, from a social history perspective, the book is superb in describing the life world of what it was like to be queer in pre-war Britain.The "Glamour boys", as they were labelled at the time, were both respected and condemned at the same time for their views and lifestyle. They were respected by a growing number of politicians who came to understand that they "had a point" regarding their views on scary changes happening in Germany. At the same time they were condemned, criticised and abused by many for their flamboyant lifestyle and sexuality in an essentially homophobic culture.There are a lot of actors in this work, and sometimes the number of people being discussed can feel a bit overwhelming, the list of the significant people at the beginning of the work is a useful reference point.What I enjoyed most was how much I learned from this book, both the sociological accounts of how this group of people made their way in the world and of the huge, often tragic, contribution they made to the war effort.

If you are familiar with the narrative of the Appeasement of Germany during the nineteen-thirties, you will not learn anything new from this book by Mr. Bryant.If you wish to learn about the subject read Adrian Phillips 'Fighting Churchill - Appeasing Hitler' or Tim Bouverie 'Appeasing Hitler'.There is nothing in 'The Glamour Boys' that cannot be gleaned from either of these two recently published books, both of which refer to the same personalities to which Mr. Bryant.Read this if you have an interest in the subject of how male homosexuality was regarded and the penalties to which those involved could be subjected during the period under review. Otherwise borrow a copy from your local library. I shall be donating mine to a charity shop.

The Glamour Boys is excellent, even if it does keep referring to "Christ Church College", which I assume is an Oxford in-joke. This book is also an insight into the foreign policy position that is espoused by Chris Bryant, who is a stalwart of the Henry Jackson Society. Several of the Glamour Boys went to war, and some of them were killed in action, so they were no neocon chickenhawks of today. But they did want a war in order to restore the Berlin of Christopher Isherwood and Cabaret. Avant la lettre, that was very much the neoconservatism that is once again dominant in all three political parties.

Fascinating account of the goings on in the years before WW2. It highlights that while homosexuality was illegal there were many men of that persuasion at all levels of society, govt and armed forces who played vital roles in the war and Britain's success.

Interesting read about mps and the second world war set in a time when homosexuality was illegal. Sad that they could not be themselves.