Gradwell. The public prosecutor brought an action under Section 3 of the Obscene Publications Act. During the hearing the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate ordered that all copies of the book within the jurisdiction of the magistrates' court be seized. Not a single bookseller possessed a copy, but the publishing offices of Calder and Boyars, within the Bow Street Magistrate's jurisdiction, were discovered to be in possession of three copies. The books were duly seized, and Boyars was summoned to show cause why they should not be forfeited. Expert witnesses spoke, "unprecedentedly," for the prosecution: they included the publishers Sir Basil Blackwell and Robert Maxwell. On the defense side were the scholars Al Alvarez II, and Professor Frank Kermode, who had previously compared the work to Charles Dickens. Others who provided rebuttal evidence included H. Montgomery Hyde. The order had no effect beyond the borders of the Marlborough Street Court, the London neighborhood of Soho. At the hearing Calder declared that the book would continue to be published and would be sold everywhere else outside of that jurisdiction. In response the prosecutor brought criminal charges under Section 2 of the Act, which entitled the defendants to trial by jury under Section 4. The jury was all male. Judge Graham Rigers directed that the women "might be embarrassed at having to read a book which dealt with homosexuality, prostitution, drug-taking and sexual perversion." The trial lasted nine days; on November 23 the jury returned a guilty verdict. In 1968, an appeal issued by lawyer and writer John Mortimer resulted in a judgment by Justice Geoffrey Lane that reversed the ruling. The case marked a turning point in British censorship laws. By that time, the novel had sold over 33,000 hardback and 500,000 paperback copies in the United States. Film adaptation In 1989, director Uli Edel helmed a film adaptation of the novel. See also The Queen Is Dead: the title of the 1986 album by the Smiths is taken from the book. Last Exit on Brooklyn, a Seattle coffeehouse named in homage to the book "Last Exit to Springfield", an episode of The Simpsons, which parodied the title Alt-J, British band composed a song entitled "Fitzpleasure", inspired by the novel. The Novembers, a Japanese band, composed the song "Last Exit to Brooklyn". The Velvet Underground song "Sister Ray"'s lyrics are based on a scene in the novel. References 1960s LGBT novels 1964 American