The Dictionary of Disgusting Facts
The Dictionary of Disgusting Facts is a quirky non-fiction book by Alan Williams and Maggie Noach, first published in 1986 in the United Kingdom by Futura. It has 157 pages and features a collection of strange, gross anecdotes and odd definitions. The foreword is written by Sir Les Patterson, a comic character created by Barry Humphries.
Notable entries and stories include:
- Sootikin: a small, mouse-like lump said to form in the vaginal cleft of women who did not wear underwear, built up from soot, dirt, sweat, smegma, and vaginal or menstrual discharge over weeks, and sometimes dropped off.
- A drowned woman found with an unusual substance in her lungs.
- Richard Burton on stage: during Henry V, he allegedly tried to urinate through his chain-mail, the urine boiled at the hot footlights, and the front rows had to be evacuated.
- Philip Murray, son of Gilbert Murray: he reportedly fell in love with a female chimpanzee, got her drunk, bathed her with lavender soap, and hours later died from a pneumonia linked to apes.
Reception: The book sparked strong reactions. It drew criticism from editor Auberon Waugh, who was disgusted by the material. David Profumo reviewed it for Literary Review, a piece that amused and astonished some readers. Kate Kellaway found the book hilarious and admired Profumo’s review, while author and critic Neil Gaiman endorses it and says it’s a book people keep asking him about.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 18:42 (CET).