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Tales from the coffee shop

BBC NEWS | UK | Magazine | Tales from the coffee shop: "Sleaze

The intellectual strength of this scene also contributed to its reputation for political dissent, and King Charles II tried and failed in 1675 to thwart their power by closing or levying fees on the houses.

But the decline of the coffee house was well under way by the 19th Century, when many shed their open door policy and turned into gentlemen's clubs serving tea, coffee and alcohol. And their role as a communication centre was eclipsed by an improved press, transport and postal system.


In the sanitised, lactified form of the branded chain, the coffee house is no longer oppositional, rebellious and dissident
Markman Ellis
Author
The coffee houses that remained took on a slightly sleazy nature, associated with gambling and prostitution and characterised in the novels of Dickens and Trollope, says Professor Chapman. Mass production, driven by the East India Company, also meant swigs of coffee could be bought at street stalls and tea could be drank at home."

posted by Dave @ 4:29 PM