Robert Hutton

Robert Hutton born 16 May 1898 in Hutton, Essex (real name Horace Charles Forbes Cheston), was the author of 'Of Those Alone' published in 1958. Known as Forbes Cheston but used the alias Robert Hutton for his autobiographical book charting many of his gay encounters. He was at prep school in Eastbourne in 1911. The family home was Hampton Lea, a substantial house recorded as having twelve rooms in the 1911 census. It was on Langley Park Road, Sutton, Surrey. Age 16 Cheston (aka Hutton) was studying Engineering and commuting from Sutton to London Victoria Station. It was at that station in 1914 that he describes, in 'Of Those Alone', an encounter with an older man which led to sex in a summerhouse in Belgrave Square.

The following is an extract from a blog written by Kathy Nichols in 2017: 'He was very young when he joined up – in fact he was too young. Having been born in May 1898 he would still only have been seventeen when he was made temporary 2nd Lieutenant in the Cheshire Regiment in October 1915. The minimum age for enlistment was nineteen at the time but many young men lied about their age. He relinquished his commission less than a year later in August 1916.

A medal index card reveals that he served as a rifleman in the 5th London Rifles from July 1917 to January 1918 and then with the 28th London Rifles (The Artists’ Rifles) from January 1918 to August 1918. After the war he spent time in the USA and is recorded as having no occupation on various passenger lists.

In 1919 his parents moved to Folke, Cedar Road, London Borough of Sutton (then a Municipal Borough in Surrey) (but his father died soon after). His mother lived there until 1926 . In 1936 he was living in South Stoke, Oxfordshire .

Part of dust jacket notes 'Of Those Alone' (1958)

. He married Mary Godley Starr (born in 1882 in Minnesota) in Berkshire in 1936.

Later Hutton (Cheston) became an advocate for the progressive treatment of alcoholism. He felt that he had been rescued by Alcoholics Anonymous while he was in America and he encouraged the setting up of a British version over here. He also became the Secretary of the Interim Committee on Alcoholism.

By 1955 he had a business in London which offered interior decorating consultancy. On 13th February 1957 he featured on Woman’s Hour in the item “Forbes Cheston offers some thoughts on interior decoration”.

He wrote various pamphlets and items for magazines. He also wrote the book “Of Those Alone” using the pseudonym Robert Hutton (he was born in Hutton in Essex). Published in 1958 and subtitled “an autobiography”, the book described gay London in the years between 1918 and 1957. He and his wife lived in the Norwich area in their later years. She died there in 1974 and Forbes followed in 1975' .