Men behaving badly

Chivalry, exquisite tailoring, self-deprecating wit, extreme politeness. The reputation of British men – according to Hollywood, at least – paints an alluring portrait. However, despite a long-standing history of producing exemplary gentlemen, Britain is also home to the cad, the bounder and the rogue; all descriptions that might have largely disappeared from common parlance, but are synonymous with what our tabloids now call “love rats” or “bad boys”.

While ‘cad’ and ‘bounder’ both basically translate as a man who behaves dishonourably, especially towards women, there is another layer to the descriptions. As with most insults in the English language, class is at the core. There is a suggestion of ill breeding to both terms, yet cads in particular are thought of as upper class. In fact, some of the most famous cads in British history were members of the royal family.

Take Henry VIII. The Tudor king