“Don’t look now, but vada the omee by the door. Absolutely gorgeous riah, but look at his naff tatts.”
Also known as Palari, Palare, Parlaree or a variety of similar spellings, the fantabulosa coded language of Polari had been used in the UK since the early 19th century, but its use became widespread during the 50s and 60s.
Although the language had originated among travelling circus, fairground, and theatre performers, and was later adopted by merchant seafarers and the London entertainment circle, it became the primary secret language for urban gay communities in the 1950s and 60s.
The main functions of Polari were protection, secrecy, and social bonding. Dropping a Polari word into casual conversation was a covert way to identify a “friend” without alerting heterosexual outsiders (or undercover police officers).
The language evolved from a number of disparate sources, including rhyming slang, backslang (saying a word as it’s spelt backwards), Italian, Occitan, French, Lingua Franca, American airforce slang, drug-user slang, Parlyaree (an older form of slang used by tinkers, beggars and travelling players) and Cant (an even older form of slang used by criminals).
The use of Polari sharply declined after the Sexual Offences Act 1967, which partially decriminalised homosexuality in England and Wales. With less need to hide in the shadows, the emerging Gay Liberation movement of the 1970s largely abandoned Polari, viewing its intense campness and heavily gendered terms as outdated stereotypes.
Ironically, the very thing that made Polari famous also stripped away its secrecy.
In the 1960s, the incredibly popular BBC Radio comedy show Round the Horne featured two camp, out-of-work actors named Julian and Sandy (played by Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Williams, pictured).
The pair spoke almost entirely in Polari, and millions of British households suddenly learned the secret code, making it useless as a hidden language
Polari’s impact on everyday British and queer slang remains significant. Words like camp, butch, naff (meaning rubbish or uncool), bevvy (drink), slap (makeup), and zhoosh (to smarten up or style) all originated from or were popularised by Polari.
Although the language had originated among travelling circus, fairground, and theatre performers, and was later adopted by merchant seafarers and the London entertainment circle, it became the primary secret language for urban gay communities in the 1950s and 60s.
In the 1960s, the incredibly popular BBC Radio comedy show Round the Horne featured two camp, out-of-work actors named Julian and Sandy (played by Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Williams, pictured).
