b'A turning point in literary censorshipin AustraliaRegina v Angus & RobertsonUntil the 1970s Australia was governed by some ofwhen it went on sale on 31 August 1970. The Angus & the most severe censorship regulations in the WesternRobertson store in Sydney sold 600 copies in the first day. world. The Australian Government used the Customs Act 1901 (Cth) to prohibit the importation of literary worksIt wasnt long before the authorities discovered what was deemed obscene, indecent or seditious. Between the 1920shappening and police seized the prohibited books. While and 1970s, more than 15,000 books were banned fromthe crown solicitor could have prosecuted any number of publication in Australia, including J D Salingers The Catcherbookstores participating in the illegal sales, he agreed to in the Rye and Ulysses by James Joyce. Even Ian Flemingsundertake a test case against Angus & Robertson. Allen James Bond novel The Spy Who Loved Me was consideredAllen & Hemsley led the defence for Angus & Robertson, inappropriate. Australians had been growing uneasy withtheir longstanding client, bringing in an impressive group the governments paternalism, but it was the publication ofof witnesses, including celebrated author Patrick White, Philip Roths bestselling novel Portnoys Complaint in 1969who was called to testify to the literary merit of the book. that proved the tipping point for literary censorship William Deane QC (later Sir William Deane of the High in Australia. Court of Australia and governor-general of Australia) acted as senior counsel. A devout Irish Catholic, he personally Portnoys Complaint is the salacious story of a young lawyerfound the book distasteful, but was determined to let the and his confessions to a psychiatrist. Despite its scandalouslaw speak for itself, commenting in his closing remarks,content or perhaps because of it the book was an instantNot everyone enjoys Shakespeare. bestseller, moving 200,000 copies in the US in its firsttwo months of publication. The Australian Government,The jury in New South Wales was not able to reach a however, considered the novel too explicit for Australianverdict. Many considered the book obscene, yet its literary readers and prohibited its importation.merit could not be ignored. A series of similar legal trials in different states drew further attention to Australias Penguin Books Australia had been lobbying for many yearsdraconian censorship laws and ultimately created a to ease Australias restrictive censorship laws. Determinedpowerful momentum for change. In 1971 the Australian to take a stand and let Australian readers make up their ownGovernment was left with little choice but to remove minds, in conjunction with Angus & Robertson they secretlyPortnoys Complaint from the list of banned books. This printed and distributed 75,000 copies of the book. It was anrepresented a marked liberalisation in Australias attitudeimmediate success, with readers queuing outside bookstoresto censorship.154'