I used to buy Shocking Pink, which ran from the late 1980s until early 1990s. The content had a good mixture of politics and feminism though the style was cut and paste. It was rough around the edges with its montage art, photography, cartoons and drawings. It reminded me of punk fanzines, with its DIY stencil art. The front cover was indeed shocking pink yet it was quirky and funny but packed a political punch (I found it the antithesis of Spare Rib).
I remember the excellent editions they did on the Alton Bill where they championed a woman’s right to choose along with articles on Section 28 and sexuality. I used to have a collection of Shocking Pink’s kicking around but with various house moves and the passage of time I’ve probably mislaid them along the way.
So here’s to you Katy Watson, member of the collective of Shocking Pink, that zeitgeisty feminist magazine that inspired young teenage feminists like myself.
