in 1950, the outgoing president of the royal academy, sir alfred munnings, got hold of some of spencer's "scrapbook drawings" and initiated a police prosecution against spencer for obscenity. it was reported in the press that the, unnamed, owner of the pictures agreed to destroy them. spencer also appears to have removed some drawings from his private scrapbooks and continued to ensure that the "leg of mutton nude" would not be exhibited during his lifetime. he was appointed a cbe and the new president of the royal academy, sir gerald kelly, who had supported spencer in the obscenity case, persuaded him to rejoin the royal academy, as an associate before being elected an academician. spencer visited his elder brother harold in northern ireland in 1951, 1952 and 1953, painting portraits of harold's daughter, daphne, and urban scenes there, most notably "merville garden village near belfast" in 1951. in 1952 spencer made a small number of lithographs on the theme of the "marriage at cana" which were published in a limited edition of thirty that year and reprinted in an edition of 70 after his death.