Clapham Common
Clapham Common is a large area of park land (about 89 hectares or 220 acres) near Clapham, south London. It is partly in the London Borough of Wandsworth and partly in the London Borough of Lambeth, but wholly maintaned by Lambeth.
LGBT History
Parts of Clapham Common have been known for gay cruising for many years.
The then Welsh Secretary Ron Davies MP had a "moment of madness" in 1998:[1] he was robbed at knife-point on the Common and met some strangers to whom he gave a lift; they took his car, wallet and phone. Davies resigned, repeatedly denying the incident had anything to do with drugs or sex.[2] Newspapers have since reported that Mr Davies admits being bisexual and has "been successfully treated for a compulsion to seek out gay partners".[3]
The London Pride festival was held on Clapham Common in 1996 and 1997.
Jody Dobrowski was murdered in Clapham Common in 2005 in a homophobic attack. A similar murder on the Common was depicted in a TV film, Clapham Junction (2007) by Kevin Elyot.[4]
References
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/204691.stm "My moment of madness" BBC News, 31 October 1998
- ↑ Colin Brown Chief Political Correspondent "THE DAVIES AFFAIR: How much did Downing Street know about that night". The Independent, 6 November 1998. FindArticles.com. 14 July 2008. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19981106/ai_n14190889
- ↑ http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2003/mar/10/uk.wales Patrick Wintour, "Ron Davies ends political career", The Guardian, 10 March 2003.
- ↑ http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2007/06/15/channel-4-drama-has-echoes-of-jodis-murder/ "Channel 4 drama has echoes of Jodi’s murder" Pink News 15 June 2007
