Page "David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty" Paragraph 53

A ( perhaps apocryphal ) story is sometimes told of Beatty's retirement, that he canvassed in uniform in support of Conservative candidates in dockyard constituencies, presumably in the 1929 or 1931 General Elections.

On knocking on one door the lady of the house, presuming him to be a sailor in search of " horizontal refreshment ", directed him to the local brothel several doors down the road.

Another version of the story is that he canvassed with Nancy, Lady Astor, MP for Plymouth Sutton, and received an embarrassingly friendly welcome at boarding houses who were used to renting rooms by the hour to sailors and their lady companions.