''AARGH (Artists Against Rampant Government Homophobia)'' was a 76-page

one-off In the field of vehicles authorized to drive, a one-off vehicle is a vehicle that was manufactured only once. The production of unique vehicles is reduced to one unit in each case. The easiest cases to analyze are those of cars and motorcycles. Un ...

comics anthology A comics anthology collects works in the medium of comics, typically from multiple series, and compiles them into an anthology or magazine. The comics in these anthologies range from comic strips that are too short for standalone publication t ...

published by Mad Love in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

. The comic was designed to aid the fight against Clause 28, which was a controversial amendment to the

Local Government Act 1988 The United Kingdom Local Government Act 1988 is an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament. It was famous for its controversial section 28. This section prohibited local authorities from promoting, in a specified category of schools, "the teaching ...

, a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

law which was designed to outlaw the "

promotion of homosexuality Societal attitudes toward homosexuality vary greatly across different cultures and historical periods, as do attitudes toward sexual desire, activity and relationships in general. All cultures have their own values regarding appropriate and ina ...

" by

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

. At that time

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and ''From Hell' ...

, who was in a relationship with his wife and their girlfriend, felt that the law was

heterosexist Heterosexism is a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of female–male sexuality and relationships. According to Elizabeth Cramer, it can include the belief that all people are or should be heterosexual and that heterosexual ...

and that it would obviously affect them personally. To help their fight Moore formed Mad Love, his own publishing company, to release ''AARGH''. The title was a mixed collection of almost 40 stories, mostly comics with some text pieces. Moore himself contributed an eight-page story called "The Mirror of Love", with

Steve Bissette Stephen R. Bissette (born March 14, 1955) is an American comic book artist, editor, and publisher with a focus on the Horror comics, horror genre. He is known for working with writer Alan Moore and inker John Totleben on the DC Comics series ''Sw ...

and

Rick Veitch Richard Veitch (born May 7, 1951) is an American comics artist and writer who has worked in mainstream, underground, and alternative comics. Early life Rick Veitch is a native of the small town of Bellows Falls, Vermont. One of six children, he w ...

providing art. Other creators included David Lloyd,

Robert Crumb Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...

Howard Cruse Howard Cruse (May 2, 1944 – November 26, 2019) was an American alternative cartoonist known for the exploration of gay themes in his comics. First coming to attention in the 1970s during the underground comix movement with ''Barefootz'', he wa ...

Hunt Emerson Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...

Dave Gibbons David Chester Gibbons (born 14 April 1949) is an English comics artist, writer and sometimes letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries ''Watchmen'' and the Superman story "For the Man ...

Los Bros Hernandez The Hernandez brothers, also known as Los Bros Hernandez, are the three American cartoonist brothers Mario (b. 1953), Gilbert (b. 1957), and Jaime Hernandez (b. 1959). The three were born in a Mexican-American family and grew up in ...

Garry Leach Garry Leach (19 September 1954 – 26 March 2022) was a British comics artist and publisher. Biography Garry Leach's early work for ''2000 AD'' included mainly one-off stories featuring '' Dan Dare'' and '' M.A.C.H. 1''.Dave McKean David McKean (born 29 December 1963) is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician. His work incorporates drawing, painting, photography, collage, found objects, digital art, and sculpt ...

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on Daredevil (Marvel Comics ser ...

Harvey Pekar Harvey Lawrence Pekar (; October 8, 1939 – July 12, 2010) was an American underground comic book writer, music critic, and media personality, best known for his autobiographical ''American Splendor'' comic series. In 2003, the series inspired a ...

Savage Pencil Edwin Pouncey (born June 1951), also known by the '' nom de plume'' Savage Pencil, is an English comics artist, musician, and music journalist. Biography As Savage Pencil and otherwise, Pouncey has contributed to magazines such as '' Sounds' ...

Bill Sienkiewicz Boleslav William Felix Robert Sienkiewicz ( ; born May 3, 1958) is an American artist known for his work in comic books—particularly for Marvel Comics' ''New Mutants'', '' Moon Knight,'' and '' Elektra: Assassin''. Sienkiewicz's work in the 198 ...

Dave Sim Dave Sim (born 17 May 1956) is a Canadian cartoonist and publisher, best known for his comic book ''Cerebus'', his artistic experimentation, his advocacy of self-publishing and creators' rights, and his controversial political and philosophical b ...

Posy Simmonds Rosemary Elizabeth "Posy" Simmonds MBE, FRSL (born 9 August 1945) is a British newspaper cartoonist, and writer and illustrator of both children's books and graphic novels. She is best known for her long association with ''The Guardian'', for wh ...

Art Spiegelman Art Spiegelman (; born Itzhak Avraham ben Zeev Spiegelman on February 15, 1948) is an American cartoonist, editor, and comics advocate best known for his graphic novel ''Maus''. His work as co-editor on the comics magazines ''Arcade (comics maga ...

Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle (born 7 August 1952) is an English actor, author, stand-up comedian, television presenter and former recording artist. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s. He was voted the 18th gr ...

, and

Bryan Talbot Bryan Talbot (born 24 February 1952) is a British comics artist and writer, best known as the creator of ''The Adventures of Luther Arkwright'' and its sequel '' Heart of Empire'', as well as the ''Grandville'' series of books. He collaborated ...

. Clause 28 was eventually repealed in 2003. Moore has also reworked "The Mirror of Love" with illustrator

José Villarrubia José Antonio Villarrubia Jiménez-Momediano (born 17 November 1961) – known professionally as José Villarrubia – is a Spanish-American artist and art teacher who has done considerable work in the American comic book industry, parti ...

for

Top Shelf Productions Top Shelf Productions is an American publishing company founded in 1997, originally owned and operated by Chris Staros and Brett Warnock and a small staff. Now an imprint of IDW Publishing, Top Shelf is based in Marietta, Georgia. Top Shelf pub ...

External links

''The Mirror of Love'' at Top Shelf

''Bryan Talbot's contribution to AARGH!'' at the official Bryan Talbot fanpage

(AARGHs for sale with all money going t
''Stonewall''
1988 comics debuts 1980s LGBT literature British comics titles Comics anthologies LGBT-related comics Comics publications One-shot comic titles LGBT literature in the United Kingdom {{UK-comics-stub