Obscene Publications Act 1857
Territorial extent | England and Wales, Ireland |
---|---|
Dates | |
Royal assent | 25 August 1857 |
Repealed | 29 August 1959 |
Other legislation | |
Repealed by | Obscene Publications Act 1959 |
Status: Repealed | |
Text of statute as originally enacted |
The Obscene Publications Act 1857 (
Origins
The spur for the Act arose from a trial for the sale of pornography presided over by the
and proposed a bill to restrict the sale of pornography, arguing that giving statutory powers of destruction would allow for a much more effective degree of prosecution. Lord Campbell, the Chief Justice of Queen's Bench, introduced the bill.The bill was controversial at the time, receiving strong opposition from both
The House of Commons amended the bill to exclude Scotland, on the grounds that Scottish common law was sufficiently stringent.
Provisions of the Act
The Act provided for the seizure and summary disposition of any material deemed to be obscene, and held for sale or distribution, following information being laid before a "court of summary jurisdiction" (a magistrates' court). The Act required that following evidence of a common-law offence being committed – for example, on the report of a plain-clothes policeman who had successfully purchased the material – the court could issue a warrant for the premises to be searched and the material seized. The proprietor then would be called upon to attend court and give reason why the material should not be destroyed. The Act also granted authority to issue search warrants for premises suspected of housing such materials.[10]
Application of the Act
The Act did not define "obscene", leaving it to the courts to devise a test, based on the common law.
This interpretation was clearly a major change from Campbell's opinion only ten years before – the test now being the effect on someone open to corruption who obtained a copy, not whether the material was intended to corrupt or offend.
Cockburn's declaration remained in force for several decades, and most of the high-profile seizures under the Act relied on this interpretation.
Current status
This section appears to contradict itself on the significance of the 1959 act ("significantly reformed the law" and "the actual reform of the law was limited").(June 2019) |
The Obscene Publications Act 1959[12] significantly reformed the law related to obscenity, coming into force on 29 August 1959. The actual reform of the law was limited, with several extensions to police powers included. The 1959 did, however, repeal the 1857 Act and became the main Act dealing with obscene publications.
The Obscene Publications Act 1964[13] made several minor additional provisions to the 1959 Act. As of 2008 these latter two Obscene Publications Acts are still in force, albeit as amended by more recent legislation.
Notes
- short title was authorised by the Short Titles Act 1896, section 1 and the first schedule. Due to the repeal of those provisions it is now authorised by section 19(2) of the Interpretation Act 1978.
- ^ "A Collection of the Public General Statutes: 1857,2". 1857.
- ISBN 978-0-8247-2077-3. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
- OCLC 3738175
- ISBN 9780807856987.
- ISBN 0333904915.
- ^ Originally by the Vagrancy Act 1824; subsequently extended by the Vagrancy Act 1838, the Metropolitan Police Act 1839 and the Town Police Clauses Act 1847
- ^ From the precedent set by R. v. Curl (1729) following the publication of Venus in the Cloister
- ^ Perhaps the earliest known appearance of this ever-popular analogy; compare "I would rather give a healthy boy or a healthy girl a phial of prussic acid than this novel", describing The Well of Loneliness in 1928
- ^ ISBN 978-0-275-94127-7. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
- ^ Wikisource. – via
- ^ Text of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.
- ^ Text of the Obscene Publications Act 1964 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.