Blitz - by Robert Elms (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The short-lived Blitz club in London's Covent Garden was more than a place to hang out or be seen: it was the catalyst for a cultural explosion, a counter-culture blast against all that Thatcher's leadership had ushered in by the dawn of the 80s. Tuesday nights boasted a ferocious, fearless cast - from Boy George and Spandau Ballet to Grayson Perry and Peter Doig, Sade and Wham! to Michele Clapton and John Galliano. They were the vanguard of a very different England; socially liberal, loud and proud, celebrating diversity, but also fiercely individualistic and above all determined to succeed. Britain stood in black and white; between 1979 and 1980, the Blitz Kids switched on the colour.

In Blitz, Robert Elms reflects on the club night, founded by a group of working-class kids, which made its mark on the worlds of art, literature, fashion and music, one whose impact reverberated far beyond its doors and is still felt today, in the UK, across Europe and even in America.

Review Quotes

"The Blitz was the most important club of the 80s and Elms is one of the greatest chroniclers of our age. He was born to write this book." - Dylan Jones

"This book is fantastic! It is like time travel, taking me back to the Blitz in 1979, where the 80s were being planned in the most exciting, innovative, outrageous, wildest, most creative club ever." - Steve Dagger

"Delightful . . . There are high-grade celebrity stories - but Elms is also good on youth culture's tangled threads, dismal late-70s London and the equally bleak political landscape, underlining just why Blitz was such a vital escape hatch." - Mojo

"To read about an era when you created yourself, liberated yourself from any expectations, transcended gender, race, class, and dreamed new selves... well, it cannot fail to be inspiring." - Martin Robinson, Evening Standard

"This book's charm lies in its detail, enthusiasm and wistful nostalgia for the certainty of youth ... there's much outrageous fun." - Helen Barrett, The Spectator

"The richness of London topography, and the rolling pageant of people, shops and venues, make this account as valuable as any formal study." - The Wire

"A dazzling dive into a scene I wish I could have witnessed with my own eyes and ears. It's sharp, funny and caked in two-day old eyeliner. The cast is all-star, the soundtrack is electric, the late-night tales hit like a blast." - Jodie Harsh

"The definitive volume on the subject, as few were more integral to the New Romantic circle as Elms himself. Because with the Blitz and that self-glorifying time, it really is fine to 'print the legend'." - Classic Pop