| AdminHistory | Oz was an underground magazine which originated in Sydney, Australia, in 1963, but was also published in London from 1967-1973. Oz formed an important part of the emerging counter culture of the time and is most well-known for the court case resulting from the 1970 School Kids Issue.
Twenty young people aged 14-18 were selected to edit the School Kids Issue (Issue 28) of Oz. They were given editorial freedom, resulting in a mixture of articles and cartoon strips that communicated their view on music, sexual freedom, hypocrisy, drug use, corporal punishment, and education. In 1971, Oz was raided by the Obscene Publications Squad. The School Kids Issue was seized and the editors were charged with obscenity and conspiring to 'debauch and corrupt the morals of young children.' The Oz editors were found guilty under the Obscene Publications Act and received fines and prison sentences. However, after an outcry by supporters and anti-censorship campaigners, the verdict was overturned at appeal. |
| CustodialHistory | This collection originates from two main deposits - the material related to the OZ Obscenity Trial which was purchased in 2010 using RCIF funding, and additional issues of OZ magazine split from 1966JS, Jon Savage's research papers for writing 1966: The Year the Decade Exploded, which was purchased in 2018. |