Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Buy Used
Used - Good See details
Price: £17.02
Fulfilled by Amazon

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Trade in Yours
For a £9.25 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Colour:
Image not available

 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang [Paperback]

Paul Baker (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
RRP: £22.99
Price: £20.23 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.76 (12%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.
Want delivery by Monday, 20 May? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover --   -- --
Paperback £20.23   -- --
Trade In this Item for up to £9.25
Trade in Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £9.25, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Learn more

Book Description

Publication Date: 25 Mar 2004 | ISBN-10: 0826473431 | ISBN-13: 978-0826473431 | Edition: Reprint
Polari has been the secret language of gay men and women through the twentieth century. But more than a language, Polari is an attitude. From the prisons and music halls of Edwardian England to Kenneth Williams, American Gls in London and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Polari has been used to laugh, bitch, gossip and cruise. Like all slang, Polari users coined an ever-changing vocabulary. Derived from words used by criminals, circus artists, beggars and prostitutes, it also employed Italian, Yiddish, French, rhyming slang and backslang. Polari speakers camped up a storm, from West End chorus boys and office workers to East End sea-queens. Since gay liberation, lesbian and gay slang has become less a language of concealment than a language of specialization, though the tradition of camp remains. A carefully researched and entertaining read, Fantabulosa presents a lexicon of Polari and a more general dictionary of lesbian and gay slang. If you don't yet know what vada the bona cartes on the ommee ajax, parkering ninty, a Mexican nightmare or a nellyectomy mean, then this is the book for you.

Special Offers and Product Promotions

  • Join Amazon Family before 26 May 2013 and you'll be automatically entered into a prize draw to win one of 10 Motorola Blink Baby Monitors. Find out more.

Frequently Bought Together

Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang + The Bona World of Julian and Sandy: Starring Kenneth Williams, Hugh Paddick & Kenneth Horne (BBC Radio Collection) + "Round the Horne", the Very Best Episodes: v. 1 (BBC Audio)
Price For All Three: £37.05

Buy the selected items together

Product details

  • Paperback: 254 pages
  • Publisher: Continuum; Reprint edition (25 Mar 2004)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0826473431
  • ISBN-13: 978-0826473431
  • Product Dimensions: 13.6 x 2 x 19 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 403,934 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Paul Baker Page
Paul Baker
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

Product Description

Review

'Simply Fantabulosa!... Definitely worth a vada and at [pound]12.99 an ideal pressy for your omee Palone!! So get out your handbag and get trollin to the shops!' Scotsgay Magazine

About the Author

Paul Baker is Lecturer in Linguistics and Modern English Language at Lancaster University. He acknowledges the contributions of sailors, drag queens, hustlers and up- and-coming porn stars in compiling the 1650 entries in this book.
Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Reviews

5 star
3
4 star
0
3 star
0
2 star
0
1 star
0
5.0 out of 5 stars
3 reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars How bona to vada a dolly book! 19 May 2004
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
Great fun. Old recordings of 'Round the Horne' have me in stitches and now I can work out what J&S are REALLY saying its an even greater pleasure. Here's to keeping away from dirty dishes! :-) Buy the book and you'll find out what I mean.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
19 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantabulosa just says it all 13 Jan 2003
By Ben Waines
Format:Hardcover
This is one of my best buys in a long long time. I can't stress the humour and generally useful information available in this little book. It explains everything from 'Homosexual' to a few scary sounding sexual practices. So if you've ever been asked to do something you've never heard of and aren't sure if you want to, you can check in here. This book has had everyone I have shown it to laughing out loud within seconds of opening a random page.

This book provides invaluable information to any LGBT person as well as Heterosexuals looking into this wonderful community, while keeping a sense of humour and not getting too deep, which is easily done.

This is really a must buy for everybody. Everybody I know will be getting this book for their birthdays for the next year.

Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantabulosa: a Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slng 9 Jan 2010
By FatKat
Format:Paperback
I was brought up with Julian and Sandy, and always thought their use of the language was elegant and entertaining. The title says it all - fantabulosa. Have a vada yourself.
1 Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

There's a problem loading this menu at the moment.

Learn more about Amazon Prime.

    Your Shopping Basket is empty.

    Give it purpose -- fill it with books, DVDs, clothes, electronics and more.

    If you already have an account, sign in.

    There's a problem previewing your shopping basket at the moment.

    Check your Internet connection and go to your cart, or try again.

    View Shopping Basket (0 items)

      Customer Discussions

      This product's forum
      Discussion Replies Latest Post
      No discussions yet

      Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
      Start a new discussion
      Topic:
      First post:
      Prompts for sign-in
       


      Active discussions in related forums
      Search Customer Discussions
      Search all Amazon discussions
         
      Related forums

      Listmania!

      Create a Listmania! list

      Look for similar items by category

      Feedback


      Amazon.co.uk Privacy Statement Amazon.co.uk Delivery Information Amazon.co.uk Returns & Exchanges