1962: Article: ‘My Strange Life’ by April Ashley in The News of the World, 6 May 1962. Catalogue ref: J 77/4532-J 77/4537
April Ashley was a model and one of the first people in Britain known to have had sex reassignment surgery. On 19 November 1961, The Sunday People ran an article under the headline ‘Her’ Secret is Out, outing Ashley as transgender. Her name was dropped from her recent film credit and her modelling work vanished. She retaliated by telling her own story in this article in the tabloid The News of the World.
In 1963, she married Hon. Arthur Corbett. However, the pair separated soon after. Corbett sought an annulment of the marriage based on the fact that Ashley was assigned male at birth, and same-sex marriage was not yet legal. The annulment was granted.
This decision by the court set a precedent that transgender people would be defined by their assigned sex at birth, rather than their gender. This made it harder for transgender people to gain rights and change their legal gender. It wasn’t until the Gender Recognition Act in 2004 that this process changed.
Transcript
A lovely girl adds a touch of lipstick – April Ashley in London yesterday
THIS, surely, was the most agonising yet joyous, the most harrowing yet soothing moment of my whole strange, mad, whirlwind life. The moment a few hours ago when, for the first time in more than eight stormy years, I was reunited with my mother.
The mother who last saw me when I was George Jamieson, deck hand in a British cargo ship.
The mother, so dearly beloved, from whom I had deliberately kept apart all this time to spare her the agony of my gradual transformation from manhood into womanhood.
The mother to whom now, at long last, I was ready – even proud – to present myself anew as a daughter.
Hesitated
l had hesitated about this reunion right up to the time the papers broke the news of my forthcoming engagement to the Hon. Arthur Corbett, son and heir of Lord Rowallan, present Governor-General of Tasmania and a former Chief Scout.
Even then I dithered for a day or two. But finally I plucked up courage and sent a telegram to her at her home in Cheetham, Manchester.
It said, “Dear Mother. Very urgent you phone me as soon as you get this. Love.”
And so, not many hours later, my mother arrived at my flat in Kensington.
All morning I had been watching for her from the first-floor window. But somehow, when the taxi drew up, I didn’t see it.
The first I knew was the familiar voice behind me in the room saying: “George!”
I turned and flew into her arms. Tears streamed down our cheeks as we hugged one another. And for a while not another word was spoken.
But then she drew back a little and, holding me at arm’s length, gazed at my long hair, my pearl ear-rings, the jewels about my neck and on my fingers, my new lemon-coloured suit and stiletto-heeled shoes.
“Why, George,” she said. “I can’t believe it. I simply can’t believe it.
“How you’ve changed. You look so young, so beautiful. Just like a film star.”
Gently then, right at the beginning, I had to remind her: “Not ‘George’ now, mother, but April. Try to remember always – April.”
We drank champagne and talked of all the members of our large family. I had not seen any of them, except one sister, Marjorie, since I was a young man of 19, just over eight years ago.
All my three brothers and two sisters are married now, I discovered. And all have children – the one great blessing which I am forever denied.
It was long past midnight when at last we decided it was time to go to bed. But even then I said: “Come along, mother. Come and sit with me and talk to me while I have a bath.”
And all the time she kept saying: “I can’t believe it. You are so beautiful. So very beautiful.”
I tried to be completely frank with her. l explained everything about my transformation and the wonderful magical operation in the minutest detail, but very, very gently.
We have hardly stopped talking since that first meeting.
Choosing ring
We have been out on several exciting shopping expeditions, choosing wonderful clothes and lingerie and cosmetics together. And talking all the time.
And now I have asked her to come with me to help me choose an engagement ring.
I’ve explained to her that I’ve had a letter from Arthur, from the night club he runs in Marbella, on the Spanish coast near Malaga, telling me to go along to Aspreys, in Bond-street, and choose a find ruby surrounded by diamonds.
Arthur is a connoisseur of rubies.
My sister Marjorie is coming to join us tomorrow. I would like them to be with me when I open in cabaret at the Astor, in the West End, probably next week. But I doubt whether they will be able to stay that long.
Before they leave me, though, I hope I shall be able to tell them everything about my fascinating, exciting, but often frightening life in the years I have been away from them.
Just as I shall be telling you in the News of the World in the next few weeks.
They know already, of course, about the early days in the back streets of Liverpool, when I was an ugly, thin, but quite hearty little boy.
Even though I did like playing with dolls and preferred the company of little girls, I literally forced myself …
- How does April Ashley’s family react to her coming out as transgender?
- What kind of emotions are described in this article?
- How does Ashley teach her mother about her identity?
- How does Ashley present herself in this article?
- How would the ruling against Ashley in her divorce case eight years later come to affect both her and other transgender people?