Eddie recalls his early days as well as things he learned about his father's past that could have a bearing on his future.

In this extract, Eddie reminisces about his earliest encounters with the world of the homosexual. The first words he heard used to describe gay men were 'queer, poof, shirt-lifter and bum-boy'. The word 'gay' wasn't used then as it is today. Eddie was excited by these words as they resonated with what he was feeling about himself.

He recalls two men who lived together in 'shared digs', next door. This arrangement meant that they also shared the same bed, a not uncommon situation at a time when men had to search for work all over the country. Eddie refers to his father doing the same in the 1920s, and which his mother later saw as the reason Eddie was gay - because his father was 'the same'.

Eddie was also fascinated by an ex-Navy man at his place of work, and who was labelled 'queer' by other workmen, because he kept 'chasing other men's arses'. All these gay men rejected the curious Eddie's approaches, probably because of the danger of discovery and punishment. Eddie recalls that, at the time, nobody thought there was anything amiss with two men sharing lodgings and beds. Yet the idea of two men meeting in a pub and then going off for some sex wasn't really thought about at the time.

Eddie's father's relationship with his friend changed when the other man got married. Eddie's father in turn married his friend's sister. He also refused to let his son undergo the many aversion therapies that were popular in the 1950s, saying that his son should 'grow up in a way that's natural to him'. In a time of deference, that was a very brave thing to do.

Born in 1935, Eddie, a single child, grew up in wartime South London, where his father was a hairdresser and his mum a housewife. He knew from an early age that he was 'different' and an influential and affluent aunt proved quite an inspiration for him. His father, whom Eddie suspected might also have been homosexual, prevented his son from undergoing aversion therapies which were being recommended by a school doctor.

Eddie chose to do his compulsory National Service in the Royal Air Force, and after the completion of his basic training, was selected to train for secretarial duties. Sent to RAF Ruislip in Middlesex, Eddie discovered that the base was largely run and staffed by gay personnel.

Back in civilian life, Eddie, after numerous affairs met Chris, who became his life partner. He also holds several degrees and worked for a number of years in Germany, and together they became involved in a number of gay equality organisations including the Gay Liberation Front and the Campaign for Homosexual Equality. Eddie also worked for a time at Gay News.