At UTC headquarters we’ve been busy preparing for two upcoming events taking place in London. On Thursday 25 September I will be giving a talk for the Soho History Club titled: Under the Counter: The Hidden History of Soho’s Adult Shops. Here’s what to expect:
Between the 1950s and the 1980s, Soho became the centre of Britain’s adult retail trade—a place where specialist bookshops selling pornographic material thrived amid legal grey areas, loose regulation, and the protection of corrupt police. In this illustrated talk, Professor Oliver Carter, author of Under the Counter: Britain’s Illicit Trade in Hardcore Pornographic 8mm Films, traces the hidden history of these shops: from their roots in the ‘obscene’ literature trade of Victorian Holywell Street, to their migration into Soho, and the growth of the 1960s to 1980s, when more than 60 adult shops clustered within a few tightly packed streets.
Drawing on rare images, video footage, and newly uncovered archival material, Oliver explores how these shops operated within a wider hidden economy—fuelled by domestic production of explicit material and protected, for a time, through police corruption. He also traces the 1970s shift when many bookshops rebranded as ‘sex shops’, and how stricter licensing, gentrification, corporatisation, and the rise of digital distribution combined to ultimately reshape the landscape for adult retail in Soho.
Today, few of these shops survive, but their legacy continues to shape the public memory of Soho.This talk brings that hidden history back into view.
I believe that tickets are selling fast and are available from here.
The second event takes place on Thursday 1 October and is the official launch of the Under the Counter Archive at the wonderful Bishopsgate Institute, London. Here’s more:
Under the Counter Sex, Film & Soho’s Hidden Economy
Between 1960 and 1980, a thriving—yet secretive—trade in short, sexually explicit films existed in Britain. Produced on 8mm film using semi-professional equipment, these so-called ‘rollers’ circulated under the counter in Soho’s adult bookshops, by mail-order, and were even smuggled across Europe. Despite being technically illegal, the trade was enabled by a network of entrepreneurs and corrupt police, and has been largely overlooked in accounts of British screen culture.
Join Professor Oliver Carter for the launch of Under the Counter—a new archive at the Bishopsgate Institute that sheds light on Britain’s hidden 8mm film economy. Developed out of the research for his book Under the Counter: Britain’s Illicit Trade in 8mm Pornographic Films, the archive offers a rare glimpse into the underground networks that operated beneath the surface of Soho’s bookshops and beyond.
With live 8mm film projection, original archive materials, and discussion of the people behind the trade, this evening reflects on how these films were made, circulated, and remembered. Audiences can also explore a pop-up Soho bookshop backroom, showcasing the types of illicit materials that once circulated within this secretive market.
It should prove to be a fun evening, with a pop style Soho bookshop backroom as well as an illustrated talk. Tickets are available here and a great way to support the Bishopsgate Institute. Coincidentally, we just received a very welcome, anonymous donation of 68 films, including 58 rollers. It included some rare labels, such as Blue Boy Films and Conquest Films. Many thanks to the donor, who I believe is a regular reader. I’ll give more detail about the collection in a future post.
Hope to see some of you there at the events.
