Felix Dennis – Publisher, Poet and the Spirit of Oz

Photographed by Robert Whitaker at The Old Manor, Dorsington, Warwickshire, c.1990–1993

Felix Dennis (1947–2014) was one of Britain’s most colourful and unconventional publishing figures. Entrepreneur, magazine editor, poet, collector and philanthropist, he built an extraordinary career that began in the rebellious counterculture of the 1960s and developed into one of Britain’s most successful independent publishing businesses.

Yet his story cannot properly be told without returning to Oz magazine, the publication that brought him together with Robert Whitaker and a remarkable circle of artists, photographers, writers and cultural provocateurs.

The photographs in the Robert Whitaker archive, taken around 1990–1993 at Dennis’s home, The Old Manor in Dorsington, Warwickshire, offer a more personal glimpse of a man who had travelled a considerable distance from the chaotic world of London’s underground press.

They show Dennis in his own surroundings: first outside the historic house, and then inside, surrounded by an eclectic collection of African masks, carvings and objects. These are photographs not of the controversial young magazine editor, but of the established publisher who had created his own distinctive world in the Warwickshire countryside.

The beginning – Oz and the London underground

Dennis was born on 27 May 1947 in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. He left school at 15, briefly attended Harrow College of Art and spent time playing drums in rock-and-roll bands before finding his way into publishing.

His introduction to Oz came in 1967. Initially a reader and enthusiastic supporter, he contacted Australian-born editor Richard Neville with his criticisms and suggestions for the magazine. Rather than simply dismissing the young enthusiast, Neville gave him copies to sell.

Dennis proved an exceptionally effective salesman. He began selling Oz on London’s King’s Road, quickly becoming involved in the magazine’s operation. He subsequently worked as a designer and writer, eventually becoming one of its three principal editors alongside Richard Neville and Jim Anderson. 

The British edition of Oz had launched in 1967, following the original Australian magazine established by Neville in Sydney in 1963.

It became one of the defining publications of the underground movement, combining radical politics, experimental design, psychedelic artwork, music, humour and provocative social commentary.

Its contributors and collaborators included Germaine Greer, Martin Sharp, Richard Neville, Jim Anderson, Philippe Mora and Robert Whitaker.

The magazine was particularly notable for its visual presentation. Martin Sharp’s psychedelic artwork, unconventional layouts and experimental use of photography helped establish Oz as something considerably more ambitious than a conventional magazine.

Whitaker was part of this creative environment, contributing photographs and working with members of the Oz circle on other artistic projects. His association with the magazine placed him directly within the cultural networks that connected London and Australia’s emerging counterculture. 

Robert Whitaker and Felix Dennis – a friendship formed through Oz

The connection between Whitaker and Dennis goes back to the late 1960s, when Whitaker was living at The Pheasantry on London’s King’s Road.

The Pheasantry was an extraordinary meeting place for artists, musicians, photographers and writers. Among those associated with it were Martin Sharp, Richard Neville, Germaine Greer and Eric Clapton.

Whitaker’s friendship with Martin Sharp was particularly important. Sharp had arrived from Australia and became closely involved in the visual direction of Oz. Together, Sharp and Whitaker developed a creative partnership that extended beyond the magazine.

Their work included the famous psychedelic collage for Cream’s 1967 album Disraeli Gears, constructed by Sharp using photographs Whitaker had taken of the band.

Dennis belonged to this same Oz circle, working as editor, designer and publisher while Whitaker supplied photographic material.

It was an environment in which the distinctions between photographer, artist, writer, editor and publisher were often blurred. Ideas were exchanged freely, friendships developed through shared projects, and creative collaborations frequently extended beyond the original publication.

Whitaker and Dennis remained friends after the extraordinary years of Oz. The photographs at The Old Manor are a later record of that continuing association.

The Oz obscenity trial – a defining moment

The most notorious chapter in Dennis’s early career came in 1971 with the prosecution of the Oz editors.

The controversy centred on the magazine’s infamous Schoolkids Oz issue, number 28, which had been produced with the involvement of schoolchildren. Its contents included a sexually explicit cartoon featuring Rupert Bear, provoking outrage among politicians, newspapers and the authorities.

Dennis, Neville and Anderson were charged with conspiracy to corrupt public morals. The subsequent Old Bailey proceedings became one of the most significant obscenity trials in British legal and cultural history.

The three editors were convicted and initially imprisoned. Their convictions were subsequently overturned by the Court of Appeal in November 1971.

The trial attracted enormous publicity and became a defining confrontation between the establishment and the counterculture. Dennis later reflected that the experience had fundamentally shaped his attitude towards authority and his determination to control his own publishing business. 

For Whitaker, who had photographed and worked alongside members of the Oz community, this was part of the wider cultural world in which his own photographic career had developed.

From underground magazine to publishing empire

Following the end of Oz in 1973, Dennis turned his attention to building his own publishing company.

He founded Dennis Publishing in 1973, initially concentrating on specialist magazines and books. One of his first major successes was Kung-Fu Monthly, launched in 1974, which capitalised on the extraordinary popularity of martial arts films and Bruce Lee.

The magazine was an immediate commercial success and demonstrated Dennis’s ability to recognise an emerging market before his competitors.

He subsequently expanded into consumer technology and computing, publishing titles including:

  • Personal Computer World
  • PC World
  • MacUser
  • Computer Shopper
  • Hi-Fi Choice

The company eventually expanded into lifestyle, news and men’s magazines, with titles including Maxim, Stuff, Men’s Fitness and The Week.

Dennis was particularly successful in recognising the potential of specialist audiences. Rather than attempting to publish magazines for everyone, he identified passionate groups of readers and built publications specifically for them.

His entrepreneurial approach was unconventional but highly effective. He preferred retaining control of his businesses and was famously resistant to outside interference.

His publishing interests also extended into the United States, where his involvement in computer retailing through MicroWarehouse helped create a substantial fortune.

By the 1990s, Dennis had become one of Britain’s wealthiest and most recognisable independent publishers. 

The poet and the love of the English countryside

There was another side to Felix Dennis that became increasingly important during his later years: poetry.

Although he had spent much of his life building a publishing empire, Dennis developed a serious passion for writing poetry. Following a life-threatening illness, he began concentrating more heavily on his writing, eventually publishing A Glass Half Full in 2002.

Further collections followed, including Lone Wolf (2004) and Homeless in My Heart.

He became a surprisingly popular spoken-word performer, touring Britain and the United States to read his work to live audiences. His performances were theatrical and entertaining, often accompanied by wine and food, and reflected the same larger-than-life personality that had characterised his publishing career.

His poetry explored love, mortality, loneliness, nature and the contradictions of human existence. 

His other great passion was trees.

In 1989, Dennis conceived the idea of creating a substantial native broadleaf woodland around his Warwickshire home. What began as a personal project developed into the Heart of England Forest, an ambitious environmental undertaking intended to restore woodland across the landscape surrounding Dorsington.

He began planting trees in 1996, gradually acquiring additional land and expanding the project. By the time of his death, the forest had become a major conservation initiative, with thousands of acres of land dedicated to woodland creation and wildlife habitats.

Dennis left a substantial part of his estate to support its continuation. Today, the Heart of England Forest remains one of his most significant legacies. 

The end of an extraordinary life

Felix Dennis died on 22 June 2014 at The Old Manor, aged 67, following a battle with throat cancer.

His life had encompassed extraordinary contrasts: the rebellious young editor of Oz, the defendant in Britain’s most notorious obscenity trial, the successful international publisher, the wealthy country landowner, the poet and the environmental philanthropist.

Few individuals moved so comfortably between the worlds of underground publishing, commercial enterprise, literature and conservation.

He left behind not only a substantial publishing legacy but also the Heart of England Forest, which continues to fulfil his ambition of restoring native woodland to the Warwickshire countryside. 

These photographs preserve a personal chapter in the story of Felix Dennis and Robert Whitaker – a friendship that began in the creative ferment of the 1960s and continued long after the world of Oz had disappeared.