Bernard was born in
Hampstead,
London, and was the youngest of the three sons of the English architect
Oliver Percy Bernard (1881–1939) and his opera singer wife Edith Dora Hodges (1896–1950). His siblings were the poet
Oliver Bernard, and the photographer
Bruce Bernard. He was a paternal cousin to the actor
Stanley Holloway. Bernard attended
Pangbourne College for two years before his parents responded to the college's protest that he was "psychologically unsuitable for
public school life". He later briefly served in the
British Army but went
AWOL.
Soho Even while at school, Bernard had begun to explore
Soho and
Fitzrovia at the age of 14 with his brother Bruce. Seduced by the area's lurid glamour, he moved there at 16, supporting himself in a variety of jobs that were at odds with his middle-class background, including boxing booth attendant, building labourer, dishwasher, stagehand, kitchen assistant and coal miner. His fellow miners mocked him for bringing his lunch wrapped up in pages from
The Times. He later took up photography with the encouragement of his second wife Jackie Ellis and often collaborated with his best friend
Frank Norman. In 1962, Norman and Bernard worked together on a collection of writing and photography based on Soho called
Soho Night and Day. "I think we were drunk for a year," Bernard later reflected. The duo obtained an advance of £100 for the collection, but Bernard lost his payment playing
roulette. By this time, Bernard became a regular at
The Coach and Horses, as well as
The Colony Room and
The French House. However, he came to favour
The Coach and Horses above the other venues in later life, particularly after
Muriel Belcher (the proprietor of The Colony Room and a friend of Bernard's) died. Bernard did not get along well with
Ian Board, who took over The Colony Room from Belcher. Bernard took racing bets for his friends and infamous pub landlord
Norman Balon. This eventually landed Bernard in trouble. He was arrested for illegal betting practices and pleaded guilty to taking illegal bets in 1986. The arresting officers invited Bernard to their Christmas party. Over the years, Bernard built a circle of friends and associates that included
Tom Baker,
John Hurt,
Daniel Farson and
John Deakin. He also knew
Dylan Thomas,
Francis Bacon,
Lucian Freud,
John Minton,
Nina Hamnett,
Graham Greene and
Ian Fleming.
Love life Though married four times (Anna Grace in 1952, Jackie Ellis in 1959, Jill Stanley in 1966 and Susan Ashley Gluck in 1978), he often remarked, only half in jest, that alcohol was
the other woman. He was a womaniser and had numerous affairs. His drinking, gambling, violence and infidelities ensured each marriage failed. In the case of his third wife, Jill Stanley divorced Bernard in 1973. He sought treatment for
alcoholism and was sober for two years before returning to the bottle. Bernard and Stanley also had a daughter together, Isabel Bernard. Despite rumours to the contrary, Jeffrey Bernard
was Isabel's father. Incidentally, Graham Lord who wrote the book "Just the One" (where this rumour began) was asked by Bernard's family not to attend the funeral due to all the lies published in the book. Bernard and Gluck divorced in 1980. He later described her as "my fourth, last and most angry wife". He did not remarry for the rest of his life. ==Writing==