Product Description

At the millennium Britain stands at a cultural cross-roads. There's been endless talk of cultural regeneration - a brave new Britain of Cool Britannia and Brit Pop. In an age of cultural cross-pollination and pop cultural imperialism from the USA what can we really call our own? and why? In this book, Andrew Calcutt takes a lively and opinionated look at the real movers, shakers and innovators, the cultural icons, touchstones and shrines of what could truly be called British pop culture. Stretching over the past 30 years it includes everyone and thing from The Kinks to The Fall, mods and rockers to rave culture. It also looks at the roots of each entry to see what they have taken from even further back in British culture. Altogether it paints a picture of a multi-cultural tapestry recycling the past in search of the new.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #469338 in Books
• Published on: 2000-02-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 448 pages

About the Author

Andrew Calcutt (London, England) is an acknowledged expert on British pop culture and the author of several books on the topic, including the acclaimed Cult Fiction.

Customer Reviews

Goodish
Almost a British counterpoint to the excellent 'Retro Hell' (look it up), 'Brit Cult' is an A-Z of interesting, significant, and / or distinctive British cultural items. It has a surprisingly broad range (covering the boring obviousness of Tony Parsons and 'The Sun' to Chris Morris, the KLF, the Ford Sierra Cosworth and, amazingly, the undeservedly-obscure John Cooper Clarke), although several of the bits seem to have too many obvious lifts from elsewhere (the KLF entry is *very* familiar), and there are lots of niggling errors - Jarvis Cocker didn't drop his trousers at the '96 Brits, he just waggled his bottom. There's a general bias towards traditional media, and 'Modern Review'-style 'low culture', as well - the home computer boom of the 80's is ignored totally, and there's nothing about Raleigh Choppers, 'Jaw Breakers', the London Marathon, the Open University and the Falklands.

Still, it's fun to read on the train, and any book which treats the Pet Shop Boys as more than just an ironic joke deserves praise.

The greatest contribution since 'England's Dreaming'
The greatest contribution to Brit-Cult-Lit since Jon Savage's 'England's Dreaming'. Calcutt is a true maverick. We should relish him whilst he's still with us.