A penny dreadful (also called penny horrible, penny awful, penny number and penny blood) was a type of British fiction publication in the 19th century that usually featured lurid serial stories appearing in parts over a number of weeks, each part costing one (old) penny. The term, however, soon came to encompass a variety of publications that featured cheap sensational fiction, such as story papers and booklet "libraries". The penny dreadfuls were printed on cheap pulp paper and were aimed primarily at working class adolescents.
Famous quotes containing the words penny and/or dreadful:
“And not an hour ago you hadn’t a penny to warm your pocket. Did someone die and leave you a pot of gold?”
—Dudley Nichols (1895–1960)
“Heat, ma’am! It was so dreadful here that I found there was nothing left for it but to take off my flesh and sit in my bones.”
—Sydney Smith (1771–1845)