239 Interiors DOI: 10.2752/???????????? Interiors Volume 2, Issue 2 pp 239–254 Reprints available directly from the publishers Photocopying permitted by license only © Berg 2011 Printed in the UK “Smirting” in the Designated Area: The Smoking Shelter and the English Public House Damon Taylor ABSTRACT This article examines the development of the smoking area in the English public house after the 2007 smoking ban. It discusses the way in which the specialized form of interior that constitutes “the pub” can be considered a liminal space that functions between the regulated zones of work and domesticity, one that is self-consciously coded to offer a sense of tradition and continuity. Through the application of a methodology based in Actor- Network Theory, the article suggests that the pub can be understood as a system of technologies that has been disrupted by the introduction of legislation, which has led to the development of a new form of architecture: the smoking shelter. It is argued that this has led to the development of an activity that has come to be known as “smirting” (a combination of smoking and flirting), which constitutes a reconfiguration of the Damon Taylor teaches the history and theory of design at University College Falmouth. He was head of Historical and Critical Studies at Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College from 2004 to 2007. He is an active writer, performer, and teacher and his research interests include the study of commodity aesthetics, the cultural history of pub interiors, the interplay between art and design in consumer culture, and the development of Design Art in contemporary furniture practice. damonpresley1969@yahoo.com