Abstract
ABSTRACT Spartacus magazine (1969–1972) was one of Britain’s first openly gay periodicals. This essay explores the early career of its publisher, John D. Stamford, to argue for the constitutive role of gay entrepreneurs and transnational erotic commercial networks in articulating queer politics in Britain following the 1967 Sexual Offences Act. An examination of the reception of Stamford’s commercial and political work suggests that gay male consumption preceded political mobilisation rather than followed in its tracks. More so, that consumerism provided a shared vocabulary and an important platform on which a diverse readership coalesced around a set of contradictory political dictums on what constituted ‘proper’ sexual and gender expression.
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