This page was created to provide further information about glamour bombs in support of the Glamourbombing community on Livejournal. The views expressed here are entirely those of the creators of this page.

Are there precedents to glamour bombing?

Yes, there are. The most obvious one is the realm of faerie itself, which is the basis and primary inspiration.

Secondarily, we owe at least a little credit to the writings of the mystic-trickster Hakim Bey, whose famous essay on "Poetic Terrorism" suggested remarkable possibilities. Although not directly inspired by fairie, the acts he described have much in common with our goals, being nonrational and wonderful.

It's been widely acknowledged that the original "ur-glamourbomb" was the great 1917 hoax of the Cottingley Fairies. At a time when England had become fed up with Victorian sentimentalism and fairy faith, and were generally disillusioned as a result of the atrocities of the First World War, two young girls turned the nation on its head with a series of photos showing them posing with a variety of different kinds of fairies. For a little while there was a renewed belief in fairie throughout the UK and even in America. It was not until 1981 that the ladies confessed to their childhood hoax.

A good "post-precedent" can be found in the brilliant French film Amelie. The main character of this story, Amelie Poulain, is an exemplary glamour bomber. She cultivates mystery and wonder (and sometimes fear) in the lives of others in such a way that they feel touched by magic, marvel, and the divine, and not merely pranked, blessed or manipulated by a person. Think "postcards from the garden gnome" ...