Fanny and Stella: The Men Who Shocked Victorian Society

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

History Hit

Society, Sex, Scandal, Education, History

4.8 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 21 June 2022

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In 1870, two young women were arrested after leaving a theatre in London. These women, so-called Fanny and Stella, were in fact Ernest Boulton and Frederick Park, and they were charged with ‘buggery’.

So who were Boulton and Park? What was the evidence against them? And why did this create such a stir across the front pages and the world?

Neil McKenna joins Kate Betwixt the Sheets to share Stella and Fanny’s extraordinary life stories and trial.

*WARNING: There are adult themes, explicit descriptions of sex and suicide references in this episode*

Produced by Charlotte Long and Sophie Gee. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas.

Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society. A podcast by History Hit.

This episode includes music by Epidemic Sound.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Everyone leaves a legacy.
0:02.2	But a legacy can change over time as new generations
0:05.6	re-examine old preputations.
0:07.6	From Wundery and Gohanger podcasts, I'm F4hersh.
0:11.0	I'm Peter Frankapan, and in a brand new series,
0:14.0	we're exploring the lives of some of the biggest characters in history,
0:17.4	from Napoleon to Picasso.
0:19.2	And asking, what does their past tell us about our present?
0:23.4	This is legacy.
0:24.7	Follow now wherever you get your podcasts.
0:30.4	Hello, it's me, Kate Lister, jumping in once again,
0:35.6	to forewarn you that this episode will contain descriptions of sex,
0:39.9	some fruity language, and the odd swear word dropped when nobody was looking.
0:44.2	So if that's not your cup of tea, you may want to skip this one.
0:48.2	Ernest Bolton, and Frederick Park, two young middle-class Victorian fellers
0:53.6	who were absolutely hopeless at clarking jobs that their parents got for them.
0:57.7	There's not much of a story there, but today, on the Twix the Sheets,
1:01.4	we're not hearing about their dreary admin jobs.
1:04.5	We're hearing about their alter egos,
1:07.0	witnessed in the streets, and on the theatre circuit,
1:09.7	winking at gentlemen, and generally upsetting the establishment.
1:14.0	Today, the Twix the Sheets, I, Kate Lister, want to introduce you to
	...

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