RED RAG (cover illustration)

Back Issues

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Established 1979
Free! Fortnightly! Fun!

These are the back issues of Red Rag. They'll be posted here every (usually) two weeks on or around the anniversary of their original publication. We're currently reissuing 1983; the latest issue is dated June 26th (scan / txt); the next one is due out on July 10th.

Red Rag, or Reading's only newspaper, had a noble tradition of misspelling, mixed metaphors, wrong facts, confused political judgements and a print run by now of 1240. It printed pretty well everything it got sent ("unless the Collective judged it racist, sexist, right wing, or supportive of oppressive religions"). It aimed to provide a decent alternative coverage of local news and issues from a radical non-aligned position; to promote subversive and creative initiatives; to provide a forum for unorthodox views; to allow some sort of co-existence between a huge variety of interests. And it was free.

In this issue (scan / txt): the Scrounger, published by users of the Centre for the Jobfree, can no longer be published at the Centre for the Jobfree; we print its second (and final) issue, featuring a look at the Specialist Claims Control Unit and its unsavoury reputation for intimidating innocent claimants, particularly women. Reading Health Watch calls on Health Service workers to "blow the whistle" and force the Health Authority's spending cuts and their effects into public debate. The only Gay-Man-in-Drag at Glastonbury (14 pounds for 3 days) and Stonehenge reports back on hyper-commercialism and spectacular recuperation. At the Council Committee meetings (they didn't have railings along the Kennet when I was a kid, you just fell in) we come to the help of the Liberal councillor who's having problems with the defective recipe in the last Rag; they're still sewing bags in Reading Gaol, but not for the Royal Mail; and the students are revolting.