10/04/2021
We love zines. Short for fanzines, these often self produced publications became popular during the era of punk rock and the associated goth, indie and autonomous social scenes during the eighties. However, you could argue that they can trace their pedigree back to the underground press of the early nineteenth century, when papers like the Poor Man’s Guardian were printed on mobile and collapsible printing presses to avoid prosecution by the authorities. Freedom Books in London, a well known anarchist retailer since 1886, is stocking Sian Docksey’s new fanzine Great Gays of the Past. It retails at five pounds and can be purchased from the Freedom Press mail order portal online. The fanzine is described as a “lovely zine which is a compilation of A+ historical queers having a good time”. What’s more, all proceeds are dedicated to SWARM, a collective of se.x workers and in particular, their fund for assisting members hit badly during the Coronavirus pandemic.
