Boulton and Park, two Victorian homosexuals from upper-middle-class English households, were cross-dressers

who enjoyed performing female parts in theatrical performances. Lord Arthur Clinton, Member of Parliament
for Newark, began a relationship with Boulton. Boulton and Park were arrested in 1870 after leaving a London
theatre in drag. They were still dressed as women the next morning when they appeared in court, where
hundreds had assembled. Boulton and Park were charged with conspiracy to commit sodomy, a felony
punishable by life in prison with hard labour. They were found not guilty when the prosecution failed to prove
that they had anal sex. The judge, Sir Alexander Cockburn, was harshly critical of the police inquiry. Boulton
and Park both admitted to acting in