John Gulliver: History of glue not to be sniffed at
'You might describe glue as one of the original ‘legal highs’ of the post-war period'
Thursday, 7th May — By John Gulliver
Malcolm Russell will speak at event on Somers Town about the history of glue-sniffing
BACK in the early 1990s I remember spotting some school pupils sniffing glue on Hampstead Heath, feeling shocked at the public display of depravity – and yet also somewhat intrigued…
The inhalation of vapours to intoxicate, popular among punks and skinheads of the 1970s and 80s, had become rare at that time having been outlawed following a moral panic-inspired crackdown on the sales of what became known as the first “legal highs” of the post-war period.
Young people were moving on to other cheap-but-easy-to-obtain substances like aerosols and butane gas, both arguably more dangerous than solvents.
The small silver cylinders of nitrous oxide that are often seen lying around the streets are the latest incarnation of an age-old problem.
Anyone looking for a brief respite from the council elections, may consider glue-sniffing, the history of, as told by Malcolm Russell at the People’s Museum in Somers Town tonight (Thursday).
The historian says that studying glue-sniffing’s past – and what it tells us about working-class lives at the dawn of Thatcherism – provides important historical context for understanding how best to tackle problems caused by drug use today.
He said: “By the early 1990s, sniffing adhesives had declined. So, the sight of someone sniffing glue would have been less expected at that point. Your shock can perhaps also be explained by the fact that sniffing glue was never illegal. This meant it was possible to do it in public without fear of arrest, unlike other forms of drug use.
“During early 1980s, glue-sniffing in public places such as parks, shopping precincts, and even Leicester Square – a sniffing hotspot where an unscrupulous souvenir stall-holder stocked glue specifically to sell to sniffers – was the subject of complaints to the police, who could do little to stop it, and of letters to local newspapers.”
The typical glue-sniffer, according to surveys conducted in the early 1980s, was around 13-15 years of age, he said.
Mr Russell said: “Camden saw a number of high-profile news reports focused on glue-sniffing in the 1970s and early 1980s. In February 1978, The People reported that teenagers living in a Camden council-run children’s home were regularly sniffing glue, a situation exacerbated by a shortage of staff. Around 100 empty tins of glue were found on the premises and in a nearby garage.
“Although for most sniffers it proved a passing phase from which they emerged unharmed, sadly deaths did occur. Some of these were caused directly by the effects of solvents on the body. Others were the result of suffocation caused by sniffing with a plastic bag over the head to enhance the effects, or accidents that happened when teenagers were intoxicated.”
In 1984, the New Journal reported on the death of a 17-year-old punk who had travelled here from Scotland looking for work.
He was reported to have been a chronic sniffer, keeping a bag of glue beside his bed from which he inhaled before launching himself through a window.
Mr Russell said: “Concern over glue-sniffing wasn’t just about risks to health. In the early 1980s, as youth unemployment spiralled, for some journalists, politicians and sociologists, the glue-sniffer became emblematic of a generation described as having ‘no future’.
“The unemployed teenager with nothing to do all day apart from hang around, sniff glue and engage in petty criminality became a stereotype to be found in newspapers, TV programmes and film.
“Glue – and other products containing solvents such as dry cleaning chemicals, paint thinner and plaster remover – became popular because it was cheap, legal, easily available in the home or on the high street, and effective.
“Some of the earliest cases of glue-sniffing involved glue that was manufactured for model-making which was popular with children and younger teenagers, but the brands that were most popular with sniffers were intended for DIY use. You might describe glue as one of the original ‘legal highs’ of the post-war period.”
. The Q&A talk with Malcolm Russell, in conversation with Professor Esther Leslie, is at the People’s Museum in Phoenix Road, Somers Town, tonight, 6.30pm.
