Sex and the Somme (18 June 2014)

Lunch Hour Lectures on tour at The Guardian, June 2014 This summer series of Lunch Hour Lectures marks the centenary of the start of the First World War and is introduced by Guardian experts. Dr Clare Makepeace, UCL History Tommies queued in their hundreds to visit brothels in the First World War. Dr Clare Makepeace explores this little-discussed aspect of the war. She uncovers soldiers' reasons for visiting brothels, their reactions to them and the prostitutes, and how they dealt with the potential consequences: venereal disease. The findings give us fresh insight into what it meant to be a British man at war. You can also watch this lecture on the UCLLHL YouTube channel at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlIvE7OdQbk