Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang

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Henry Mayhew gave a verbatim account of Polari as part of an interview with a Punch and Judy showman in the 1850s. The discussion he recorded references the arrival of Punch in England, crediting these early shows to a performer from Italy called Porcini (see also John Payne Collier’s account of Porsini—Payne Collier calls him Porchini—in Punch and Judy).[11] Mayhew provides the following: Waterhouse, Keith (1959). Billy Liar. Michael Joseph. pp.35, 46. ISBN 0-7181-1155-9. p35 "Naff off, Stamp, for Christ sake!" p46 "Well which one of them's got the naffing engagement ring?" I am a student or someone who works in the media. Can you provide me with people who still speak or spoke Polari for my own project? As feely homies, we would zhoosh our riahs, powder our eeks, climb into our bona new drag, don our batts and troll off to some bona bijou bar.

rough trade – a working class or blue collar sex partner or potential sex partner; a tough, thuggish or potentially violent sex partner In England, homosexuality was officially considered a crime until 1967, when the Sexual Offences Act legalized private “homosexual acts” between consenting adults over 21. (“Private” was interpreted very strictly by the courts—hotel rooms, for example, did not qualify.) The Act came a decade after the government’s Wolfenden Report, which ignited debate by recommending the partial decriminalization of homosexual acts.

What is Polari?

Polari was used in London fishmarkets, the theatre, fairgrounds and circuses, hence the many borrowings from Romani. As many homosexual men worked in theatrical entertainment it was also used among the gay subculture, at a time when homosexual activity was illegal, to disguise homosexuals from hostile outsiders and undercover policemen. It was also used extensively in the British Merchant Navy, where many gay men joined ocean liners and cruise ships as waiters, stewards and entertainers.[9] On one hand, it would be used as a means of cover to allow gay subjects to be discussed aloud without being understood; on the other hand, it was also used by some, particularly the most visibly camp and effeminate, as a further way of asserting their identity.[citation needed] The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English Dalzell and Victor (eds.) Routledge, 2006, Vol. II p. 1349.

British comedian Kenneth Williams often spoke Polari in his performances on BBC radio and TV programmes in the 1950s and 60s, some of which had up to 20 million listeners at a time, introducing the language to a much wider audience. Watch the video above to find out more. People learned Polari through the mingling of different social groups, from their lovers, and from their queer friends,” he says. Nowadays, Polari has a lot of legacy appeal for the LGBT community. The British queer community is slowly rediscovering the dialect, thanks to workshops run by bookshops like London’s Gay’s The Word . Some queer artists have used Polari in projects like the independent book cruising for lavs and the short film Putting On The Dish , both of which are written entirely in Polari. Palone / Polone / polony – Woman (Italian paglione –“straw mattress”, [viz. old Cant “hay-bag” = woman]).In 1965, nine million people would regularly tune into BBC Radio every Sunday afternoon to listen to the comedy programme Round the Horne.

In 2015, Jez was commissioned by the House of Commons to create a piece of work featuring Polari. Read More Related Articles JULIAN: Well, it depends on what it is. We’ve got a criminal practice that takes up most of our time. Quinion, Michael (1996). "How bona to vada your eek!". WorldWideWords. Archived from the original on 7 September 2019 . Retrieved 20 February 2006.That said, it also had the unfortunate effect of breaking Polari’s spell of secrecy, and can be attributed, in part, to it falling out of popularity.” Read more of today's stories here Jivani, Alkarim (January 1997). It's not unusual: a history of lesbian and gay Britain in the twentieth century. Bloomington. ISBN 0253333482. OCLC 37115577. {{ cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( link)