Homophobe Mary Whitehouse with ardent supporter, Cliff Richard.

In 1980 the National Theatre produced Howard Brenton’s play The Romans in Britain. It was, in reality, a criticism of British troops in Northern Ireland but, for arch homophobe Mary Whitehouse, the only obscenity in the play was two men simulating anal sex. The fact that the act was perpetrated as rape also didn’t seem to be her major concern either.

Even though she never actually saw the play, Whitehouse was motivated by the belief that men would be so stimulated by the scene they would “commit attacks on young boys”. She didn’t seem to have this concern with plays, films and television programmes that portrayed the rape of women.

Unsurprisingly, the Attorney General saw no grounds for taking action against the National Theatre or the play’s producer Michael Bogdanov. This was a blow for Whitehouse who, had she been sensible, should have cut her losses and let the matter drop. But her archaic morality would never allow her to do that and she determined to take out a private prosecution instead.

As part of this she issued a writ to the play’s producer, charging him with “procuring an act of gross indecency by [actors] Peter Sproule with Greg Hicks on the stage of the Olivier Theatre.”

Whitehouse initially employed barrister John Smythe as prosecuting counsel – the same man she had used for the Gay News blasphemy trial. Smythe obviously felt that the actors’ sexual orientation was crucial to the case and asked one of them if he became aroused during the rape scene and also if he found it necessary to masturbate in the wings afterwards!

Shortly after this Smythe came down with a virus and had to withdraw from the case. Whitehouse chose not to see this as divine intervention and pressed on with the prosecution.

The prosecution’s case was based largely on the claim of Whitehouse’s solicitor – who had seen the play – that he had seen “the tip of the penis” of the actor playing the Roman soldier (the rapist). The case immediately came unstuck when it emerged that the solicitor had been seated in the back row of the theatre – 90 feet from the stage – at the time of the alleged sighting. Either the actor had an immense penis or the solicitor had telescopic vision!

Even Whitehouse’s prosecuting counsel realised he couldn’t possibly win and telephoned her to advise her that he was withdrawing from the case. Whitehouse subsequently claimed in a television interview that they had ‘withdrawn’ the case to protect the reputation and career of “the young Bogdanov”.

And, mysteriously, she omitted the entire episode from her autobiography.