Nina Antonia Interview

Nina Antonia

AUG. 13, 2023, 3:32 P.M.

Music Journalism Insider

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Nina Antonia is author of Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood. The book was first published in 1987, but has been revised and expanded to coincide with the 50th anniversary of his debut album with the New York Dolls.

How did you get to where you are today, professionally?

If I was to tell you about my journey as a music journalist and author, we would be here all day and night! I didn’t go to school to study journalism and always wrote from the heart, for the passion of the subject rather than cold objectivity. People have different ways of getting into the field and although education and a university degree is helpful, sometimes it can make people’s work a little homogenised. The people I looked up to as music journalists were Lester Bangs and Nick Kent whose personalities seep through in their writing. They are very much products of their time but still readable, they capture the energy of those times.

The first edition of Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood which came out in 1987, when I was 27, is very different to the updated 1992 version, I’d had time to grow as a writer and gather more material. I’ve written countless liner notes, aside from Thunders, there has been the Dolls, Stooges, Velvet Underground & Nico, in fact I think there is a kindle book of the sleeve notes that Jungle Records compiled. I never looked upon writing as a profession or a job. For me, it was a vocation and I still feel that way.

In my late teens I read Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, Norman Mailer’s The Executioner’s Song and most importantly Ladies and Gentlemen, Lenny Bruce as well as work by Burroughs and Genet and that informed my approach. Of course, I wasn’t a lauded male author, I was an inexperienced young woman with a dream! Johnny loved the idea of there being a book about him! In the long ago days of the mid-1980’s, rock books were far fewer. However, Barbara Charrone had just worked with Keith Richards on an authorised biography, so that was fortuitous as it meant in Johnny terms, “If it’s good enough for Keith Richards to have a chick write his story, then it’s good enough for me!”

After the book first came out, I did sporadic work for the music press, Record Collector mostly, Jimmy Miller, Wayne Kramer, Richard Hell, Jayne County, people who weren’t really being picked up on at the time. As a woman and a single mother, I worked my own niche, there was very little support. Sadly but predictably, after Johnny died in 1991, interest in the book grew and there was a greater demand for it. By that point, I was more confident as a writer and had accrued more information, including an in-depth interview with Jerry Nolan. For whatever reason, even as a young person, I had a sense of wanting to capture time. Johnny and the mileu around him were exceptional people, even if flawed but their time was fleeting. That’s the rock n’ roll life for you.

I kept on writing, had more books published, including The New York Dolls – Too Much Soon which had done well, but getting paid work was still sporadic, though I did contribute to Mojo, Uncut, Classic Rock and umpteen others. When Johnny died, the lights went out for me in terms of what I liked in music, although I was still listening to stuff: Nick Cave’s early work, Nico I’ve always loved.

Maybe it was part of growing up—however, I’d always been interested in fantasy and decadent literature and that is the field I’m now writing in. I’ve had a novel published The Greenwood Faun (Egaeus Press) and a collection of essays Dancing with Salome (Trapart) as well as collating the poetry and essays of the ‘forgotten’ Victorian poet, Lionel Johnson, for a volume entitled Incurable, which includes a lengthy biographical introduction I also wrote. More recently, I’ve had articles published, including cover stories for Fortean Times which is the only magazine I’m likely to read these days!

Can you please briefly describe the book?

The Bible of All Things Thunders: a candid, unflinching portrayal of one of the most influential musicians of the 20th Century.

How did you come to this subject for a book? What made the topic so interesting to you?

Because he represented the spirit of rock n’ roll, Johnny was like an electric charge! I’d adored both the Dolls and The Heartbreakers and couldn’t understand why no one had written a book about Johnny. Iggy Pop’s I Need More had just been published and that was another prompt. As I mentioned earlier, in those days, rock books were far fewer, whilst information was less readily available pre the internet.

Since the Dolls, I’d been collecting whatever press there was on the guitarist, which was helpful. Johnny was a man of mystery and, as I was to discover, he was quite a private, shy person. The UK media loved posting teasers as to his whereabouts. At the time I began the project, either the NME or Sounds had announced that he was on the run from the mafia due to his having had an affair with the daughter of a Don. It was utter nonsense of course… or maybe it wasn’t! You never could tell with Johnny, he lived a midnight kind of life, which of course made him a fascinating character to write about. He breezed into a room like he was on the set of Mean Streets, which was irresistible from a literary perspective.

What did the research process look like?

Due to my circumstances, it was initially patchy. I had my press cuttings of course but I had to learn on my feet by doing interviews with some of the people who were around Johnny at that time, for example Leee Black Childers, who had worked with both Bowie and Iggy and then managed The Heartbreakers, Stiv Bators when he was adding backing vocals. Because Johnny was quite a quiet person and he’d answered the same old questions a million times before, he suggested that I write by observing what his life was like. I used to imagine that I was a camera!

What was the hardest thing about the whole project?

Getting a publishing deal. Don’t forget I was an absolute beginner when it came to knowing how to get a book deal, what a publisher actually does and distribution which is all important. First of all, I wrote to all the established publishers, maybe 10 or more and had to get used to rejection slips. I was disheartened, but knew there had to be a way to progress. I even contacted the NME, which was then Britain’s leading music paper. The editor, Neil Spencer, told me I should give up on the idea and that Thunders’ music was found to be wanting not just by him but by all the members of staff.

Virgin Books, who were then quite a big concern, got in touch and suggested that I have a meeting with their editor, whose name I can’t remember unfortunately. I think I may have deliberately erased the memory cells. I was living in Liverpool at that point so had to sell off a great many records to be able to pay for the coach fare there and back, but I figured it was worth it and was quite upbeat. I was invited into this really plush office and after handshakes, the guy told me he liked my writing. Great! I thought he was going to give me a deal for it, but he took the same route as the NME. He didn’t hold Johnny as being in any way important and nor did he think punk was important, other than the Sid Vicious Family Album which they were publishing. I think the guy thought he was doing me a favor by concluding that if I was to choose more commercial subjects such as Frankie Goes To Hollywood or Lionel Ritchie, I might just get a book deal! Although it was upsetting, I was young and feisty and certain that the world really really needed a book about Johnny Thunders.

What was the easiest thing about the whole project?

The easiest thing was when Johnny signed to Jungle Records in London and the director of the company said they would publish the book. Finally! For many years, the rejection letter from the NME‘s editor Neil Spencer took pride of place in the toilet of Jungle Records. It’s worth mentioning that Jungle were and remain a truly independent label, there are no penthouse offices with sculptured fountains, but simply the desire to release music and somehow survive in increasingly corporate times. After Johnny died in 1991, there was increasing demand for the book. By that point I had gleaned a lot more knowledge than had previously been available as I’d written a book on the NY Dolls entitled Too Much Too Soon (Omnibus Books) I was able to incorporate that into the new edition which was published via Cherry Red Records. Johnny Thunders ‘In Cold Blood’ has had quite a journey and is now available through Jawbone Press. They’ve done a lovely job on presentation and it has a new chapter as well as an introduction by Mike Scott of the Waterboys. Few books get to travel quite so far. There have also been Italian and Japanese versions. Imagine if I’d stopped trying after the Virgin debacle?

Did you have any mentors along the way in your career? What did they teach you?

If I look back to the earliest incarnation of In Cold Blood, then I would have to say it was my ex-husband, Kris Guidio, who was an illustrator. Originally we hoped there would be space for his artwork, but that turned out not to be viable. Nonetheless, he edited my work and would point out anything that was glaringly gauche. I was a novice at my craft, having only written a few articles for a local fanzine, but I was young enough for passion to override caution.

As the book took shape, there were a couple of people who were really inspiring, particularly The Heartbreakers former manager, Leee Black Childers. As well as being a great photographer, he was also a fabulous raconteur. Johnny’s manager, Christopher Gierke, also taught me a lot, he was very philosophical and unconventional in his approach. Both Leee and Christopher were extremely encouraging even if the rest of the world wasn’t.

If I think about all the fantastic people, the last of the post-Warhol, New York art scene and how kind they were, I’m quite taken aback. Although I’ve been a writer for the longest time now, that was the honeymoon, believe it or not. It was the culture beyond that, the English rock media, who were far less welcoming. Women were accepted as photographers, but it took a long while for them to be accepted as music writers.

What’s next for you? Anything you want to plug?

I suppose the spark of rock and roll died for me when Johnny passed, although like I mentioned there is a New York Dolls biography that is still available and I also edited Peter Doherty’s diaries for him, as well as continuing to write sleeve notes and the odd magazine article. However, the days of Lester Bangs and Nick Kent are far far behind us, music is just another commodity rather than a way of life. Plus going to gigs became very expensive and I don’t like stadium shows. The best place to see a band is in a small sweaty dive.

However, I have a need to write and I’d always liked decadent and fantasy literature, as well as certain types of poetry, Edgar Allan Poe was an influence, Wilde’s Dorian Gray too. But I didn’t have the confidence to write about it until I got into my late 50’s, when I submitted a short story to an independent publisher, Egaeus Press. They produce beautiful limited edition books that are meant to look like Victorian annuals. They also published my first novel, The Greenwood Faun which is a ghostly gay love story set in Victorian London. Following on from that, I collated the poetry and verses of the “lost” Victorian poet, Lionel Johnson, for a book entitled Incurable via Strange Attractor Press. A new edition of Incurable is expected before the end of the year. Michael Dirda of the Washington Post has reviewed my writing favorably and I got a lovely write up in the Gay and Lesbian Review for Incurable.

The last project I worked on was a series of essays about the uncanny aspects of Oscar Wilde’s life, Dancing With Salome, which is available via Amazon and through Trapart Books. I’ve also started contributing to Fortean Times which is a great magazine covering anomalies, from UFOs to Poltergeists and all manner of strange things! It’s like if X-Files was English and turned into a magazine.

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Nina Antonia reviews Phil Baker’s ‘The Perfumed Cesspit’ for Fortean Times

Nina Antonia

‘The Perfumed Cesspit’: My review of Phil Baker’s book ‘City of The Beast – The London of Aleister Crowley’ (pub. Strange Attractor Press) which appeared in the June 2023 edition of ‘Fortean Times.’ I have two of Phil Baker’s books, namely his study of absinthe and his biography of Austin Osman Spare, interesting subjects both. The challenge of reviewing ‘City of The Beast’ however was my dislike of Crowley. As a wealthy and privileged Victorian male, every pleasure was his for the taking whilst he immersed himself in the darker side of magic(k) Volumes have been written about Crowley and his devotees are legion. Why? He serves as a symbol of rebellion; a one man pre-cursor of the Swinging Sixties but he was a cruel narcissist, his ego as big as the mountains he once climbed, who cared not for those he wrecked, ravaged and slandered, including two partners who both ended up in asylums. Despite this, Baker’s book is an engaging read that captures a freer more bohemian London peopled by a glittering guttersnipe cast.

New Worlds

Nina Antonia

I’ve been writing for 30 odd years now and like all creative people my work has evolved over time. I would never have imagined after decades as a music journalist and biographer that two articles of mine would be featured on the cover of ‘Fortean Times.’ The first pre-empted the publication of ‘Incurable : The Haunted Writings of Lionel Johnson, the Decadent Era’s Dark Angel’ in 2018 via Strange Attractor Press. The winsome Johnson had largely been forgotten despite having been a pivotal figure of the Decadent Era. As well as being a driving force in the Celtic Revival, spearheaded by W.B Yeats, who held the poet in high regard, Lionel also introduced his special friend, Lord Alfred Douglas to Oscar Wilde enabling the greatest scandal of the ‘Fin de Siecle.’ As ethereal as it’s possible to be without being invisible, Johnson had slipped through the pages of time which made him deeply appealing. (Those who enjoy universal acclaim tend to be without wit or wonder, at least from my perspective.) Strange Attractor Press, one of the most astute publishers in the UK for discovering and retrieving lost or esoteric culture picked up on the Lionel project. (My thanks to author Mark Valentine for making the initial introduction) Weeks of feverishly typing out a selection of Johnson’s poetry and essays followed, rounded off with a lengthy biographical introduction. Virtually a life-long dipsomaniac, poor Lionel had declared himself ‘incurable’ to W.B Yeats, who had expressed concern over the poet’s drinking. ‘Incurable – The Haunted Writings of Lionel Johnson, the Decadent Era’s Dark Angel’ received critical acclaim and is due for a reissue later this year, on kindle and in print. Lionel Johnson might not seem an obvious subject for a magazine like Fortean Times but like a tale written by Poe, he was haunted by a strange avian entity not long before his death. The haunting became one of the last great unsolved mysteries of the Victorian age and Lionel the obscure became a Fortean Times cover star! Named after Charles Forte, ‘Forteana’ is the study of anomalies; ghosts, fairies, flying saucers, big foot etc and the only magazine that I both read and contribute to these days. In the same way that music had once seemed boundless and free so the subversive nature of Forteana gives it more latitude in a world ever more mundane. Earlier this year FT also included an essay of mine on the uncanny aspects of Oscar Wilde’s life, to coincide with a book of essays published via Trapart entitled ‘Dancing With Salome’ but I digress ever so slightly because life never runs on straight lines.

For three years I had struggled with finding a story-line for a novel. It seemed like all the good ideas had been taken, not just in the present but in the past as well. My imagination and notebook was crammed with opening paragraphs and insubstantial characters. Plots were circled and revised, whilst pen portraits of shadow people refused to hear my literary entreaties. The best thing to do when words are being skittish is to take a break. Every few years I reread my favourite book, Arthur Machen’s ‘The Hill of Dreams’ (pub. 1907) Each time I picked it up, I would find something new in Machen’s enchanting, decadent prose, immersing myself in what the author had described as ‘Impressions of wonder and awe and mystery.’ Again I must doff my cap at David Tibet, singer, artist and visionary, who had the foresight to introduce me to Machen’s work. It was a pivotal moment in how I thought about writing, Machen unlocking the door to a sense of lambent, impressionistic craftsmanship that I longed to somehow incorporate in my own work. ‘The Hill of Dreams’ features a young dreamy boy, Lucian, who inspired by the pagan countryside where he grew up, moves to London to fulfil his dream of getting a novel published. Lucian’s hypnotic dissolution in the labyrinthine city has an unearthly compulsion as he loses himself in a series of visions induced by near starvation and Laudanum (opium in alcohol) although Machen is too good a writer to point out the obvious. Tragic Lucian perishes before he can finish ‘the great work’ leaving behind a wild flower thicket of literary flights of fancy, glimmerings of a strange and ineffable radiance which he can sense but not describe. He dies with the pieces of the manuscript strewn about his desk, described by Machen as ‘illegible hopeless scribblings; only here and there was it possible to read a word.’

Had no one pondered the fate of Lucian’s manuscript? All we know from ‘The Hill of Dreams’ is that ill-destined author had left his few worldly goods to his landlady. The idea was to consume me until I began writing ‘The Greenwood Faun’ which opens with the discovery of Lucian’s lost manuscript. Thus commences a gay, ghostly love story set in Victorian London against a decadent backdrop and a conjuration of Pan. This then was the novel which found me rather than it being the other way around. ‘The Greenwood Faun’ was written in 6 months, the length of time that Lucian Taylor had spent on his manuscript. It was subsequently issued as a deluxe limited edition by the independent fantasy publisher, Egaeus Press, whose books are also works of art, harking back to Victorian annuals. I cried when I first saw a copy of ‘The Greenwood Faun’ it was so very beautifully produced, with gold edging and exquisite art nouveau end papers.

Inspiration is surely a magical process, although it doesn’t come from nowhere and is the hardest thing to define. Irish folklore tells of the ‘Lianan Sidhe’ a beautiful fairy-muse who imbues artists, musicians and authors with the treasure of creativity but in return, they must pay with their lives. When the fires of rock and roll dimmed after Johnny’s death, a whole universe vanished, like Atlantis. It took a while to find my bearings but books had always proved a solace and so I returned to the fantastical and phantasmagorical subjects that had always entranced me. I’m not certain when I purchased my first ‘fairy’ postcard but I do remember that it was a hand-painted image of Lough Fee, in Ireland at twilight. In that picture, the ineffable quality inherent in Machen’s writing had transferred itself into a vision, albeit through the medium of postcards. Five years later, I had amassed quite a collection of mainly Victorian postcards featuring Fairy Glens, Fairy Steps, Fairy Chapels, Hob Holes and Pixie Parlours. Most of them had folklore attached but in capturing those fading bygone postcards a story surfaced of how beauty spots had been stolen from the public by private concerns and the enchantment of fairy inherent in wild nature had been devoured by commercial interest. ‘Postcards From Fairyland’ made the front cover of June 2023’s ‘Fortean Times.’ It was delightful to see some of the postcards that I had most treasured featured in the magazine. Might not these be the landscape of ‘The Hill of Dreams’?

Postcard from Fairyland, Ramsay’s Elfin Glen. Visitors to the still leafy glen often sense that they are being watched

“Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood”/Nina Antonia [Episode 144]

Nina Antonia

Eric Senich|7/23/2023

Thirteen years ago, author Nina Antonia wrote the cult bible of all things Johnny Thunders with her book Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood. It’s the definitive portrait of the condemned man of rock and roll, from the baptism of fire and tragedy that was the New York Dolls, through the junkie punk years of the Heartbreakers, to his sudden and mysterious death in 1991. A brand-new edition was released this week, adding a new closing chapter, bringing Thunders’ legacy up to date with new photos and a foreword by Mike Scott of The Waterboys. Nina is about to tell you all about it in this episode!

Purchase a copy of Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood: The Official Biography: Revised & Updated Edition through Jawbone Press HERE

Listen to a playlist of The New York Dolls, Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers, and Johnny Thunders solo HERE

Find Nina Antonia online at her official website HERE

Follow Nina Antonia on Twitter HERE

Visit the Booked On Rock Website HERE

Watch exclusive video segments from the Booked On Rock podcast HERE

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Support Your Local Bookstore! Find your nearest independent bookstore HERE

Contact The Booked On Rock Podcast: thebookedonrockpodcast@gmail.com The Booked On Rock Music: “Whoosh” by Crowander / “Last Train North” & “No Mercy” by TrackTribe

DROP DEAD CITY: The Dolls, Blondie and the Birth of Punk

Nina Antonia
https://onlyrockandroll.london/2023/06/05/johnny-thunders-in-cold-blood/

In Conversation with Gary Lachman, Nina Antonia and Travis Elborough

The Century Club, Shaftesbury Avenue, London

July 4th 2023

Torrential rain was not the best backdrop to trying to find an anonymous Soho doorway but once inside the fourth floor of London’s Century Club turned out to be an excellent space in which to eavesdrop on a three-way conversion between Nina, Travis and Gary – who you might know better as Gary Valentine, bass player with Blondie up until 1977. Now based in London, these days Gary is a writer specialising in consciousness, the esoteric and the occult. Nina shares many of these interests but the discussion tonight was about music – specifically about the New York scene in the mid-1970s.  Gary lived there as a budding musician, whilst Nina chronicled the rise and fall of the New York Dolls and their guitarist Johnny Thunders, the subject of her most recent book, In Cold Blood. Travis did well to keep the conversation flowing and we got some excellent anecdotes – who knew that Kung-Fu Girls on the first Blondie LP was written for Thunders? Nina hung around after the event to sign copies of her book  (Gary had been too modest to bring his book New York Rocker) and I learnt that guitarist Neal Whitmore and ex-Thunders drummer Chris Musto will be setting some of Nina’s poems to music. A very rewarding couple of hours.

Last Word

Nina Antonia

Thank you for persevering and visiting the site that hasn’t been updated since last September, due to health issues. Happily it is now rolling again, to coincide with the publication of a revised edition of ‘Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood’ via Jawbone Press. Featuring an additional chapter and a foreword by Mike Scott (The Waterboys) the release date was set as close as could be for what would have been Johnny’s 71st birthday. It also has an index which might not seem particularly exciting but it gives a book a kind of elan, underpinning the concept of it being a culturally valid item. For at least the last 7 years, people have made contact asking if there were any spare copies of the book left, it used to break my heart to tell them the cupboard was empty, whilst according to Amazon ‘Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood’ was one of the most sought after books on their site. Meanwhile, both the 1987 version and the Cherry Red 1992 edition were being sold by book dealers at extortionate prices. Although nothing beats having an actual copy of a book, a Kindle version of the book has been available for a year or so, not that I have Kindle being somewhat old fashioned!  

For almost a decade, attempts were made to find a new home for ‘In Cold Blood’ – publishers are strange creatures, they don’t recognise sub-cultures or their devotion. A U.S literary agent knocked on the door of several companies in New York that specialise in rock biogs, hoping to get a deal for ‘JT- In Cold Blood’ but it was a futile exercise, they had their hands full with Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin projects. There I was thinking that Johnny being a home-grown rocker who could have come from nowhere else, might have swayed them. The corporate perspective has narrowed the scope to the tried and tested. Did they even notice when the Japanese edition zoomed into the top 10 music books of the Amazon chart on the day it was released? It’s all history now…I’m eternally grateful to Mike Scott who introduced me to Kevin Pocklington at the North Literary Agency and a deal was swiftly forged with Jawbone Press who truly understand how significant Johnny Thunders is. This is the definitive edition, featuring an intense final chapter.  ‘Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood’ has grown up with me or perhaps it is I who have grown up with the book that changed the course of my life.  

‘Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood’ is Available through good book shops and via Amazon

Dancing with Salomé Review by Christopher Josiffe in Fortean Times

Nina Antonia

A fateful destiny: Uncanny happenings and anecdotes: this portrait of Oscar Wilde and his troubled friends is a decadent delight, says Christopher Josiffe

Comprising five essays, each of which highlights esoteric aspects of Oscar Wilde’s fateful relationship with “Bosie”, aka Lord Alfred Douglas, this book, while slim, includes many surprising details new to this reviewer, despite some familiarity with Wilde’s triumphs and travails.

Constance Wilde’s membership of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, alongside Yeats, Machen and the ubiquitous Crowley, is well-known. Less so, perhaps, is the idea that Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray included some of the Order’s ritual secrets, passed on to her husband by Constance. These were not to be shared among the profane on “pain of being paralysed without visible weapon”. Constance later became seriously ill with a spinal condition causing gradual paralysis. Both Oscar and Constance consulted society fortune-teller Mrs Robinson; she once told him: “I see a very brilliant life for you up to a certain point. Then I see a wall. Beyond the wall I see nothing.”

Aubrey Beardsley, Decadent artist par excellence, refused to have any of Wilde’s books in his house because, he said, they were “accursed”.

Dorian Gray, as described in Wilde’s novel, resembled Lord Alfred Douglas in appearance and mannerisms, yet Wilde hadn’t yet met Bosie at the time of writing. Douglas later recalled having read the book many times before his first encounter with Wilde, suggesting it had placed a “glamour” upon him, drawing the two together for good or ill.

Lord Alfred was already living under the shadow of a family curse; Wilde described his ancestors as “a mad, bad line”. The curse dated back to the 14th century, when “Black Douglas” attempted to transport his friend Robert the Bruce’s heart to the Holy Land, but was ambushed and killed en route.

Three centuries on, the violently insane third Marquess of Queensbury, aged 10, murdered a cook by roasting him on a spit. He was caught in the act before he could consume his victim, but was henceforth known as “The Cannibalistic Idiot”.

John Douglas, the seventh Marquess (Bosie’s grandfather) died in a curious hunting incident in 1858, officially due to an accidental gun discharge. However,rumours of suicide were rife. Seven years later, his 18-year-old son Francis died in a mountaineering accident. Another son, James, committed suicide in 1891 by slitting his own throat with a razor. Other untimely deaths among the Douglas male line are recorded, most recently in 2009. Bosie’s father John Sholto Douglas, the ninth Marquess of Queensberry, is renowned as the founder of modern boxing, and for his outspoken atheism, violent temper and obsessive, relentless pursuit of Wilde, leading to the latter’s imprisonment and ruin. He evidently held Wilde responsible for leading his son astray.

Aleister Crowley adopted the opposite position, regarding Wilde as the victim. His hostility towards Bosie, expressed in verse and worse, may have been an attempt to instigate a court-room battle; the Beast being no stranger to litigation. Douglas failed to respond, despite Crowley issuing increasingly offensive pamphlets and essays unsuccessfully seeking to provoke their target. “Bosie”, read one, absurdly, “is a common prostitute, blackmailer, sodomite.” One wonders what had attracted Crowley’s ire? Was it, as Antonia suggests, Douglas’s conversion to Roman Catholicism? Or envy of Douglas’s superior poetry?

The doomed poet Lionel Johnson introduced his Winchester College friend (and perhaps more than friend?) Lord Alfred to Wilde in 1891, and thus commenced their fateful destiny; although as Wilde later wrote to Douglas: “I discern in all our relations not Destiny but Doom.” Johnson’s “melancholy verses wreathed by an eerie foreboding” appear to have predicted his early death aged 35. Ill health, including bouts of spinal paralysis, were worsened by a diet of tea, cigarettes and alcohol – especially the latter. Absinthe was a particular favourite.

His austere rooms at 8 New Square, Lincoln’s Inn Fields had long been associated with a malevolent entity occasionally glimpsed as “a large shadow winged creature with fearsome claws” (see FT353:30-33). Johnson confided to a friend that all was not well in his chambers, where “things happened”. His landlord had failed to point out that tenants taking these rooms invariably died within two years. Johnson’s trilogy of “infernal hymns”, Vinum Daemonum, Satanas and Dark Angel may not have helped matters. His spectre is said to haunt the area still.

Dancing with Salomé includes a good deal more in the way of uncanny happenings and anecdotes, and is enhanced by evocative photo portraits of its protagonists. A decadent delight, by virtue of its prose as well as its subject matter.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Nina Antonia at The Atlantis Bookshop 8/13/22

Nina Antonia

Nina Antonia at The Atlantis Bookshop
Saturday 13th August from 7pm

We are delighted to be able to host the author Nina Antonia this coming weekend.  We featured her book, Dancing with Salome, in a January Friday Favourite during lockdown and now have the chance to welcome her to the Shop.  Her book features a series of interlinking essays which take the reader on a journey to meet the Decadent demi-monde of the 1890’s with whom Wilde and Douglas mingled. Whilst eroticism and mysticism were key themes of the Decadents, there was also a surge of interest in ritual magic, enabled by the flowering of the “Golden Dawn” – the most significant esoteric order in England’s history. Wilde’s wife, Constance, was a member, as was W.B. Yeats, alongside Aleister Crowley and Arthur Machen. All would play a part, directly or indirectly, in the drama of Oscar Wilde’s enchanted & accursed life.

Although this is a free event, please be kind enough to RSVP (LINK BELOW) to help us plan the logistics of the evening.

If you are unable to attend but would still like an inscribed copy, please order it below using the link (LINK BELOW), and send us an email with the message you would like incorporated.

https://mailchi.mp/theatlantisbookshop/author-signing-nina-antonia-on-saturday-13th-august?e=70e1162fb7

We look forward to welcoming Nina, and many of you, to the Shop this Saturday.

Best wishes
Bali & Geraldine