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Oz Magazine Trial
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The [[OZ magazine]] case of 1971 was the longest obscenity trial in British legal history. The original sentences of up to 15 months for [[Richard Neville]] and the other defendants sparked a wave of protest from many, including [[John Lennon]]. With [[Yoko Ono]], Lennon joined the protest march against the prosecution and organised the recording of 'God Save OZ' by the Elastic Oz Band, released on Apple Records. At the time in Britain, conspiracy to pervert the course of public morals carried a life sentence and the defence of the ''OZ'' magazine defendants was an important libertarian cause. The fuss and hilarious court case were all about Edition 28, 'The Schoolkids Issue', which was worked on by school students as well as the staff. More specifically, a sexualised cartoon of the popular children's book character Rupert Bear was the culprit. Felix Dennis, who was given a lesser sentence because the court viewed him as "very much less intelligent" than Neville and Anderson, went on to become one of Britain's wealthiest and most prominent publishers. ''OZ'' co-founder Richard Walsh became one of Australia’s most prominent conservative publishers. Richard Neville is one of Australia’s best selling authors and a prominent media figure. [[Martin Sharp]] is one of Australia’s best-known visual artists. The ''OZ'' defence barrister, John Mortimer, is one of Britain's best-selling authors and creator of the acclaimed 'Rumpole of the Bailey' books and TV series, and ''Brideshead Revisited''. His assisting counsel, Geoffrey Robertson, is a prominent Queen's Counsel as well as a well-known Australian media identity. He has argued many landmark cases in the European Court of Human Rights, the House of Lords, the Privy Council and Commonwealth courts. He has conducted a number of missions on behalf of Amnesty International. He is the author of numerous books, and a play, ''The Trials of Oz'', which won a BAFTA 'Best Play' nomination, and the recipient of a 1993 Freedom of Information Award. He was appointed to the Appeals Chamber of the UN Special Court for Sierra Leone, and is a Visiting Professor in Law at several universities. ''OZ'' finally ceased publication in 1973. ==External links== * [http://pers-www.wlv.ac.uk/~fa1871/oztrial.htm "Oz Trial lifted lid on Porn Squad bribery"] * [http://pers-www.wlv.ac.uk/~fa1871/rupage.html The Rupert Bear Controversy] * [http://www.pooterland.com/index2/literature/oz/oz.html ''Oz'' magazine covers] * [http://www.ozit.co.uk Oz magazine full issues online in a readable library] * [http://www.jpgr.co.uk/col_apple36.html Bill Elliot and the Elastic Oz Band]: benefit single for ''Oz'' at the time of its UK obscenity trial; [[John Lennon]] and [[Yoko Ono]] credited as songwriters and producers * [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19950726/ai_n13996904 Dennis sues ''The Spectator'' over Argyle allegations] *[http://www.richardneville.com/ Richard Neville website] [[Category:Political trials]]
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