London: American filmmaker Andy Vallentine, one of the upcoming directors of Los Angeles, is gearing up to produce a full-length movie based on hundreds of love letters written during WWII between two British gay soldiers.
Gilbert Bradley and Gordon Bowsher exchanged hundreds of love letters during the war, a time when being gay in the military was not only forbidden but punishable by death.
The letters, unearthed in 2017 and subsequently exhibited at Oswestry Museum, captivated American filmmaker Andy Vallentine, who has since championed their transition to the screen.
Having previously crafted an award-winning short film based on their story in 2022, Vallentine is now endeavouring to develop a full-length feature, preserving the historical and emotional gravitas of their relationship, according to a report by BBC.
"I'm a gay filmmaker and I felt a need to tell that story. I had a strong connection with my grandfather who was a glider pilot in WW2," he said. Taking my love of history and of WW2 and the respect that I have for my grandfather, and then also being a gay filmmaker who wants to tell gay stories, I was like: 'This is a perfect combination."
Despite the perils they faced, Bradley and Bowsher exchanged intimate missives throughout the war. In one particularly haunting letter, Bowsher implored his lover, "do one thing for me in deadly seriousness. I want all my letters destroyed. Please, darling, do this for me. Till then and forever I worship you."
Yet another passage carried a wistful hope for a future, where their love could be acknowledged, "Wouldn't it be wonderful if all our letters could be published in the future in a more enlightened time. Then all the world could see how in love we are."
Although the couple wrote throughout the war, the letters stopped in 1945.
"Gay people have been around always, we have always been here… mostly we've been in the closet, most gay people would burn letters or destroy them out of fear of discovery. It's just such a important historical moment in the broad gay community that we have this insight into what a relationship looked like for these men at that time."
After securing the story rights from historian Mark Hignett, Valentine is now in discussions with studios and production houses to bring the project to a wider. audience. He hopes to film in Oswestry or Shropshire, staying true to the locations where their love story unfolded. While casting is still undecided, he has floated "Bridgerton" star Jonathan Bailey as a potential lead.
