Spare Rib was an active part of the emerging Women’s Liberation Movement in the late 20th century. Running from 1972-93, this now iconic magazine challenged the stereotyping and exploitation of women, while supporting collective, realistic solutions to the hurdles women faced.
Visitors to this site can explore selected highlights from the magazine; and examine how the magazine was run, why it was started and the issues it dealt with. The full run of Spare Rib magazines can be accessed via https://journalarchives.jisc.ac.uk/britishlibrary/sparerib.
Important information for researchers: some material from the Spare Rib magazines on the journals archive site has been redacted until the Library is able to secure further copyright permissions. More information on the redactions can be found here.
Featured content
Featured themes
From sexuality and health to childcare, the arts and legal rights, Spare Rib offers a wealth of themes to explore.
About Spare Rib
The feminist magazine Spare Rib ran from 1972 to 1993. It set out to re-define what it was to be a woman in 20th century Britain. So how did it get started and what, exactly was it all about?
Read moreRights and justice
Spare Rib was at the heart of feminist campaigns. With its photography and reportage it provided a window on the feminist revolution as it unfolded. Never just the journalistic bystander, it was also there at the demonstrations and the marches, its Spare Rib banner held high.
Read moreWork and education
Feminists thought that fundamental change was needed in the worlds of work and education in order to end the oppression of women in society. Spare Rib was committed to ending sexism in the workplace and in schools and ran a series of articles and news items about this.
Read moreRepresentation and identity
Women’s liberation was all about a re-defining of what it was to be a woman, a re-evaluation of how women saw themselves and were seen via mass media and advertising. As the movement evolved, the voices of many different women entered the debate; black women, working class women, lesbians and disabled women. Spare Rib provided the forum for the playing out of this ‘identity politics’, both in its articles and news pages and within the collective itself.
Read moreFeatured collection items
Examine selected highlights from 23 years of Spare Rib.
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