Soldiers, one in drag, performing in a concert party as "The Bow Bells"; posing for a group portrait. Photographic postcard, 191-.

The "Bowbells"

Harold Chapman of the Bow Bells and his Pierrot chorus. Several pierrots surround the man in drag, kneeling either side; the man in drag is reading a note and has long pigtails. They were members of the 56th (London) Division concert party, called Bow Bells, which was particularly active on the French front from 1916. This was a particularly well-organized concert party, and in Harold Chapman, shown here, they had a star on their hands. He was extremely popular and attractive in drag; all the more surprising for his having a baritone voice

Part of James Gardiner Collection: photographs of military, naval, and prisoner-of-war camp drag.

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View At: https://wellcomelibrary.org/item/b20442865
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Item Information:

Identifier: 2r36tx82x
Collection: James Gardiner 20th Century Drag Postcards
Institution: Wellcome Library
Date Issued: 1910 to 1919?
Genre: Photographs
Prints
Topic(s): Female impersonators
Resource Type: Still Image
Analog Format: 1 photograph : photoprint ;
Rights: Copyright undetermined
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