Canadian journalist and critic Robert (Robbie) Ross was BOTD in 1869. Born in Lyon, France, to a prominent Canadian political family, he was raised in London after the death of his father. He won a scholarship to Cambridge University, where he was bullied for for his open homosexuality and leftist political beliefs. After graduating, he returned to London and worked as a journalist and critic. He is best known as the lover and close friend of gay playwright Oscar Wilde. In 1895, Ross advised Wilde against suing the Marquess of Queensbury for libel, and later tried to persuade him to escape to France before his arrest for gross indecency. Following Wilde’s conviction and imprisonment, Ross moved to France, returning to England in 1898 to meet Wilde after his release from prison. He became Wilde’s chief carer and companion, and was with him at his death in Paris in 1900. He became Wilde’s literary executor, tracking down and purchasing the rights to Wilde’s writings (which had been sold to pay off debts) and produced a definitive version of his works. He also commissioned Jacob Epstein to create the sculpture for Wilde’s tomb in Paris, asking Epstein to reserve a small space for his own ashes. A well-known figure in the Edwardian literary scene, he mentored a younger generation of gay writers including Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. His loyalty to Wilde earned him the enmity of Wilde’s ex-boyfriend Lord Alfred Douglas, who made several attempts to have him arrested. In 1918, Ross and his friends were publicly accused of being members of a pro-German homosexual cult, which severely damaged his reputation. He died later that year, aged 49. In 1950, Ross’ ashes were interred with Wilde’s tomb, as per his own wishes. He has been portrayed frequently onscreen, notably by Michael Sheen in Wilde and by Simon Russell Beale in Terence Davies‘ Sassoon biopic Benediction.