In 1895, playwright, writer, and wit Oscar Wilde was sentenced to two years hard labour in prison. Incarcerated in Reading Jail, Wilde wrote De Profundis in the form of a letter to his lover "Bosie" (Lord Alfred Douglas). On his release, in exile in France, he wrote the poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol. This was published under the pen name C.3.3. which refers to the space Wilde had occupied for the duration of his incarceration: cell block C, landing 3, cell 3. It would be Wilde's last work.