The Closet Canon E.M. Forster: The Secret of a Happy Ending He wrote a gay happy ending in 1914. Then he hid it for 57 years. by Emmanuel Hanley-Lloyd · 19 May 2026 Bloomsbury English Literature Happiness In 1913, E.M. Forster visited Edward Carpenter and his male partner George Merrill at their cottage near Sheffield. … Read more
The Closet Canon Daphne du Maurier: Haunted by an Absent Woman She wrote Rebecca: a woman’s obsession with another woman. Du Maurier knew the feeling. by Emmanuel Hanley-Lloyd · 11 May 2026 Gothic fiction Bisexuality Cornwall Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989) was one of the bestselling novelists of the 20th Century. Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, My Cousin … Read more
The Closet Canon James Baldwin: The Witness Who Wouldn’t Hide James Baldwin was told a gay novel would destroy him. He published it and outlived them all. by Emmanuel Hanley-Lloyd · 28 April 2026 American Literature Race & Sexuality Identity In 1956, James Baldwin did something everyone around him said would end his career. He … Read more
The Closet Canon Sappho: Our Oldest Queer Voice in History The word ‘lesbian’ comes from her island. Almost none of her poetry survives. by Emmanuel Hanley-Lloyd · 24 April 2026 Ancient Greece Poetry Queer origins She’s the earliest surviving queer voice we have. Before there was even a word for it, there was Sappho. Before … Read more
The Closet Canon Michelangelo: The Pronouns They Painted Out Michelangelo spent thirty years in love with a man. But his family rewrote his poems to hide it. Emmanuel Hanley-Lloyd Renaissance Poetry Art History Michelangelo is the single greatest defining artist of the Renaissance. He painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling, carved the David, and designed the … Read more