The pontoon leads out into the inviting waters of the Men’s Pond, on Hampstead Heath, a tranquil oasis for a morning swim. The lifeguards chalk up the day’s water temperature on a board by the changing room, and in the cooler months retreat into their hut for coffee and toast. The stunted posts under the umbrella are all that remains of the 40-foot-high diving board, practice home of the Olympic diving squad “the Swallows” in the 20s and 30s.

Love in a Cold-War Climate

On Hampstead Heath, London’s gay community rubs shoulders with Russian spies

By Charlie Baker

Illustrations by Paul Cox

After a cloud-spoiled summer, September was stifling in London. It was hot—almost too hot. Even Harry Styles left his aerie next to the Spaniards Inn to take a dip in Highgate Men’s Pond on Hampstead Heath. As ringing an endorsement as Styles’s appearance was, it’s not for me, I’m afraid. I like the balmy waters of the Mediterranean, as opposed to the brisk murk of the Pond, but here you will find London at its most relaxed and leisurely, enjoying the lulling change of the seasons.

In summer, the Men’s Pond is the epicenter of gay life in London. When the heat rises, men of all ages sunbathe and chat on the lawns surrounding the water. Hampstead Heath is a vast, and storied, cruising ground. Even after homosexuality was legalized, in 1967, the Heath has remained a site of covert assignations beneath the beech trees—George Michael used to hook up there—although these assignations are not always sexual ones.