Alan King-Hamilton

His Honour Alan King-Hamilton QC
Personal details
Born	(1904-12-09)9 December 1904 West Hampstead,London
Died	23 March 2010(2010-03-23)(aged 105)
Spouse	Rosalind Irene Ellis ​ ​ (m.1935; died 1991)​
Alma mater	Trinity Hall, Cambridge

Myer Alan Barry King-HamiltonQC (9 December 1904 – 23 March 2010) was a Britishbarristerandjudgewho was best known for hearing numerous high-profile cases at theOld Baileyduring the 1960s and 1970s. These included the trial ofJanie Jonesin 1974 and the 1977 blasphemous libel trial againstGay Newsand its editor,Denis Lemon,for publishing "The Love That Dares to Speak Its Name", a poem byJames Kirkup.

Early life and career

King-Hamilton was born Myer Alan Barry Harris inWest Hampstead,London on 9 December 1904, the youngest child and only son ofsolicitorAlfred Harris (1871-1959) and Constance Clyde Druiff (1877-1963).His father changed the family surname to King-Hamilton in 1916.King-Hamilton attendedYork Houseprep schooland brieflyThe Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School,but completed his schooling atBishop's Stortford College.He read law atTrinity Hall, Cambridge,receiving athird-class BA degreein 1927. He later commented that "it is not essential or even important to get a First, or even a Second, to succeed at the Bar."Hamilton took hisMAin 1929, the same year in which he was called to the Bar by theMiddle Temple.

In 1935, he married Rosalind Irene Ellis (1906–1991),with whom he had two daughters.During his first few years at the Bar, King-Hamilton specialised in road traffic law before branching out into other areas.

Military service

In 1939 King-Hamilton became acensorwith theMinistry of Informationand by 1945 had achieved the rank ofsquadron leaderinRoyal Air Force Intelligence.Upon demobilization he returned to his legal career.

Judicial career

After being appointedQCin 1954, King-Hamilton was appointedRecorder of Herefordfrom 1955 to 1965, ofGloucesterfrom 1956 to 1961 and ofWolverhamptonuntil 1964.In that year he was appointed an additional judge of theCentral Criminal Court,which lead to his most notable reported cases.

Emil Savundra trial

Emil Savundraran a fraudulent insurance company and had been exposed on television byDavid Frost.His 1968 trial forfraud,under King-Hamilton, led to his conviction and imprisonment for eight years. Despite this, King-Hamilton described Savundra as "What a man. How could one not admire his spirit?" in his memoirs, and would have had him as an imaginary dinner party guest, along with Cleopatra, Dame Edith Evans and others.

Janie Jones trial

King-Hamilton also presided over the 1973 trial ofJanie Jones,a pop singer andmadame,on charges of procuring women to become prostitutes,blackmailandperverting the course of justice.After the jury convicted her on the first and third charges, King-Hamilton sentenced Jones to seven years imprisonment, describing her as "the most evil woman he had ever met".Jones's own recollection was that he had said "of all the women I've ever tried, you are the most evil. I thought one woman was really evil, but you leave that woman in the shade."

Peter Hain trial

In 1976Peter Hain,then leader of theYoung Liberals,was charged with therobberyof £490 from a branch ofBarclays BankinPutney.He was acquitted on the ground of mistaken identityand later accused King-Hamilton of bias against him.

Gay Newstrial

A poem,The Love that Dares to Speak its Name,was published in the 3 June 1976 issue ofGay News.The poem, written from the viewpoint of a Romancenturion,graphically describes him having sex with Jesus after hiscrucifixion,and also claims that Jesus had had sex with numerous disciples, guards, and evenPontius Pilate.

Christian morality campaignerMary Whitehouseinitiated aprivate prosecutionfollowing the refusal of theDirector of Public Prosecutionsto take action. The trial, under the nameWhitehouse v Lemonwas heard by King-Hamilton at theOld Baileyon 4 July 1977, withJohn MortimerQC andGeoffrey RobertsonrepresentingDenis LemonandJohn Smythrepresenting Whitehouse. On Monday 11 July, the jury found both defendants guilty. Gay News Ltd was fined £1,000 and Lemon fined £500 and sentenced to nine months imprisonment suspended for two years. King-Hamilton said that "it had beentouch and gowhether he would send Lemon to jail immediately.He would later say "It was a difficult summing up to prepare but I felt as if I had an influence over my left shoulder, I felt that I was being guided to put it helpfully to the jury... the previous prosecution was back in the early 1920s and did not give me much help."

After retiring in 1979, King-Hamilton acted as an arbitrator in theChannel 4television seriesCase on Camera.

Death

King-Hamilton died on 23 March 2010, at the age of 105.