UK Sex Sells News

A poster, for Perfect 10s gentlemens club, featured an image of a woman, naked except for a small pair of knickers which were pulled down around her hips. The ad featured the text Say hello to my new boobs for the first time here at Perfect 10s covering her breasts. The ad also featured three smaller images of other women in their underwear in sexually provocative poses. The text at the bottom of the ad stated Its our 7th Birthday! Party with guest models Gemma Massey & Dani Thompso".

Ten complainants objected that the ad was offensive and unsuitable for display where it could be seen by children.

ASA Assessment: Complaints Upheld

The ASA considered that the images in the ad were explicit and were likely to be seen as sexually provocative. We noted that they appeared on a poster, which was an untargeted medium and situated near to a public space and where they could be seen by children. We concluded that the sexually suggestive nature of the images meant that they were likely to cause serious or widespread offence to adults in an untargeted medium and were unsuitable for public display where they could be seen by children.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 2.2 (Social responsibility) and 5.1 and 5.2 (Offence). The ad must not appear again in its current form.

Equity is campaigning to prevent venues that host burlesque, pole and lap dancing from being classified as sex encounter establishments, warning that such a change will put dancers at risk of physical danger.

Under a government bill being debated such venues will require a Sex Encounter Establishment Licence within the Policing and Crime Bill. This could cost up to £30,000 per site.

Opponents of the reform fear that it will leave dancers out of work and impact the way they are perceived by the public.

Equity has tabled a motion to be put forward at the Trades Union Congress next month, which insists that entertainment venues are sufficiently covered by the Licensing Act 2003. It calls on the TUC to support calls for the reclassification to be dropped by the government.

Equity spokesman Martin Brown told The Stage: We think it is simply wrong to categorise these places as sex encounter establishments. If the clientele go there thinking it is a sex encounter establishment, they may expect from these professional dancers things they are not willing to give. That could put them at risk and at physical danger.

Ruby Rose of the Burlesque Women's Institute welcomed Equity's motion: Defining lap dancing, striptease or burlesque striptease as a ‘sex encounter' is a step backwards, being deeply misleading and potentially creating unnecessary stigma.

Meanwhile, Kate Nicholls, secretary of the Lap Dancing Association said: It is wholly inappropriate and a disproportionate response to concerns about the siting and operation of clubs. With licence costs of £30,000 per annum, there is little doubt this measure will cost jobs. We hope the TUC takes note.

Mobile phone networks have been asked to cut off sex workers ahead of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

City Hall chiefs have called on phone companies to help crack down on prostitution in the lead up to the sporting event.

They want help targeting numbers advertised on thousands of sex calling cards that appear in phone boxes throughout the capital.

Kit Malthouse, deputy mayor for mean mindedness and policing, said the mobile phone numbers are a valuable resource for those behind the sex industry.

He said an agreement must be reached between mobile phone networks and police that sees them taken out of use as soon as they are identified.

Malthouse said: If you are an American tourist and if you walk into a telephone box you would think it was a sex shop. We want a streamlined, agreed process for barring these numbers because they become very valuable for a number of reasons. Firstly, they become a source of repeat business. Plus the numbers operate as a kind of switchboard, there will be several poor girls operating behind the number. Hopefully it will become dangerous to advertise your number in these boxes because you may loose your business.

Chief executives of all the major mobile operators have been invited to a meeting at City Hall in October. City Hall named Vodafone, Orange, O2, 3, Virgin and T-Mobile as the main companies in their sights.

Malthouse has had a bee in his bonnet over calling cards since 2000 when he worked as a councillor in Westminster. At one point campaigners stood in Oxford Street handing out calling cards printed with details of mobile phone company bosses.

Opening a lap dancing club in Wisbech could lead to an increase in rape and sexual assaults in the town, according to angry residents who are fighting plans to open a club at the Clarkson Arms pub.

Nutters claim local residents will be intimidated by single young men visiting the premises.

Women feel more threatened travelling at night than men, and are more likely to restrict their travel plans because of fear of crime and disorder that this development will generate, said objector Anthony Saunders: I have seen a drunken man from one of the pavement smoking tables accost a female pedestrian and follow her down the street calling out inappropriate comments. How more likely is this when the activities proposed are guaranteed to generate sexual tension/frustration?

A few letters from objectors - including the police - has been sent to Fenland District Council, whose licensing committee is due to consider the application next Tuesday.

Some objectors have complained that the plan would have a detrimental effect on the use of the nearby park, while another says it would affect the residents of a nearby care home.

Licencee Patrick Stickwood of the Clarkson Arms has applied to vary his current licence, to allow the performance of indoor dance, and the provision of indoor dancing facilities, between 7pm and 1am from Monday to Thursday, and until 2am on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Details of the application for the adult entertainment says performance will take place in a private room, with table dancing the main bar. Children will not be permitted access. Door supervisors will be used, and noise levels will be appropriate.

Update: Nutters Win

14th August 2009.  Based on article from cambstimes.co.uk

Nutters have won the day to stop a Fenland pub from using the premises for a new lap dancing club.

A three hour meeting of the Fenland District Council Licensing Committee concluded with a decision by councillors to refuse the application by the Clarkson Arms, Wisbech.

Four objectors spoke at the meeting which had been called after opposition mounted, including a letter from Cambridgeshire Police also opposed to lap dancing at the pub.

Update: Inexperienced Councillors

14th August 2009.  Based on article from wisbech-standard.co.uk

Publicans Patrick and Janet Stickwood are to appeal after councillors rejected their bid for a lap dancing club in Wisbech claiming they were too inexperienced to run it properly.

Councillor Kit Owen, chairman of Fenland District Council Licensing Committee, issued a statement saying the overriding consideration of the committee was for the protection of the general public. Hebsaid it was the wrong location for a lap dancing club, problems relating to queuing, smoking and car parking would be significant, and the committee did not feel the premises were large enough or appropriate enough for such use.

Even if conditions could be imposed on the club aroused men who are likely to be ungratified could cause various problems in the vicinity of the park. He also said Mr Stickwood's experience is not deemed sufficient to deal with issues emanating from table/lap/pole dancing.

Mrs Stickwood confirmed after the hearing they were lodging an appeal immediately and so felt unable to comment fully at this stage. However she said allegations of inexperience were far off the mark since the couple had run a large club in Devon, hotels and night clubs, licensed for 350 people, with doormen, live bands and live music. We are experienced.

Update: Appeal Rejected

4th December 2009.  See article from wisbech-standard.co.uk

The decision by Fenland District Council to refuse permission for lap dancing in a pub in Wisbech has been upheld by magistrates.

They ruled that the council was right to refuse an application by the owners of the Clarkson Arms in Lynn Road to extend its licence to include adult entertainment.

In August FDC's Licensing Committee turned down the application because of the supposedly detrimental effect it would have on local residents' wellbeing.

Last week Wisbech magistrates rejected the licensees' appeal against that decision.

Considering the impact on the prevention of crime and public nuisance and on public safety, they said: Large numbers all leaving at a similar time will create a nuisance to local residents with regard to noise and vehicle movements.

They added: Despite the licensee's enthusiasm for the project, she has failed to put before us an effective management plan for the operation of an adult entertainment venue.

A lap dancing and strip club in Wolverhampton city centre would be a formula for disaster, according to police bosses who have strongly objected to the plans.

Divas, which would transform a former bar and restaurant opposite one of the city's main churches, has attracted a whinges of protests from official agencies and local businesses.

Businessman Dharam Singh Jagpal wants to open a gentlemen's club in Darlington Street aimed at Asian men which would employ women wearing traditional dress. He has applied for an all-night licence.

But police chiefs say they have serious concerns about the potential for crime and disorder at the club and accuse Jagpal of putting little research into his application. The fire authority and environment services have also lodged complaints.

In a letter to the city council, Wolverhampton police licensing officer Natalie Holt says: The operation in question covers alcohol consumption, sexual arousement and late-night opening. In fact, it would be the only place in the city to get a drink at that time, which the police see as a formula for disaster.

She says Jagpal has failed to address a number of issues, including the siting of three booths for private dances. For the women's safety, there would need to be at least eight permanent security staff.

Councillor Roger Lawrence, leader of Wolverhampton Labour Group, who represents the area, has raised concerns about the congregating of men, possibly under the influence of drink, at unsuitable hours.

Jagpal has applied for a licence from 9am through to 6.30am the following day.

The application will be discussed at a licensing sub-committee meeting.

A billboard of a  glamour model has sparked nutter complaints to the advertising censor.

Lapdancing club Perfect 10s pasted the poster on the side of a cafe in Blackpool Road, Ashton, to advertise an event marking the Preston city centre venue's seventh anniversary.

The 15ft picture shows a pouting woman peeling her knickers off, with a banner across her chest saying: Say hello to my new boobs for the first time at Perfect 10s.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has received three complaints about the poster, which was put up last week.

Some locals believe the billboard, was too graphic. Janine Reynolds said she would not be happy if her two-year-old grandson spotted the picture: The children from St Andrews School are off for six weeks but they'll still be going on the park opposite. It's the bottom half of the picture – they should have cut it off from the navel down.

The ASA said there are no specific codes regarding nudity in adverts and context is taken into account.

Businessman Edgar Wallace, part of the consortium which owns Perfect 10s, said: I have not personally received any complaints or heard of any problems about the poster. However, if public opinion comes out in favour of removing the poster, I will remove it straight away.

Lords are making a bid to save lap dancing clubs.

New laws aim to reclassify the saucy fun palaces as sexual encounter establishments. And they could lead to thousands of exotic dancers nationwide being thrown on the dole.

But both Tory and Labour peers have launched a last-ditch attempt to trip up the plans.

Tory Viscount Bridgeman said: It is astonishing to see that the Government are happy to label a large number of dancers, who have never participated in prostitution, as ‘sex encounter workers'. How can a lap dancer ever be expected to break into a more socially respectable line of dancing with that on her CV.

And Labour's Lord Brett added: The word ‘encounter' could give the impression that lap dancing clubs and similar venues offer sex for sale and, by implication, stigmatise those who work at such venues. If the legislation remains as it stands, a large number of dancers will be stigmatised career-long for truthfully putting this on their CV.

Stephen Less, owner of the Secrets chain of table-dancing clubs, told the Daily Star Sunday: The real bottom line is that the Government Bill, as it stands, will allow all local authorities to close down every existing, even well-run, table and lap dancing club in England without giving a reason and without any right of appeal.

The owners of a new strip club in Swindon have promised the business will not be sleazy.

Late night venue the Godfather Club has opened on Victoria Road.

The creation of a second pole dancing club in the town centre has been criticised by sthe Bishop of Swindon, Lee Rayfield: I don't think Swindon needs another lap-dancing club because I don't necessarily think it's good for the people in there. [Wasn't the Church of England just wondering if we 'need' so many bishops]. I think people have to ask themselves ‘would you like your daughter doing this sort of thing with people slobbering all over her?' I certainly don't think it dignifies either men or women.

But co-owners Carmine Di Liso and Esther Grist said the club would provide a safe environment for couples. Up to 15 topless dancers perform at the two-storey club. Di Liso added: It is important to realise this is not just for men – we will have male dancers for women too. I think we will succeed. There is a market for this and almost no competition. We also plan to have pole dancing lessons in here and hope to make the neighbourhood safer with bouncers standing outside our doors. [er so they can give on the spot fines to people passing by?]

The 2009 ETO Adult Industry Awards took place at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Birmingham, on the evening of July 5th. Over 250 guests attended the event which this year was focused around a Summer BBQ.

The winners, as voted by ETO readers, were:

• Best R18 DVD: Cathy Barry Extreme Cougar [NSFW] (Pumpkin Media)
• Bets Gay R18 DVD: British Soccer Lads [NSFW] (Rentboy)
• Best Adult Product: Screaming O Lingo (Screaming O)
• Best Consumable: ID Glide (ID Lubricants)
• Best Film Brand: Harmony Films
• Best Gay Film Brand: LoadXXX
• Best Sex Toy Brand: ToyJoy
• Best Erotic Clothing Brand: Dreamgirl
• Best Online Retailer: LoveHoney.co.uk
• Best Retailer: Soho Original Books
   
• Best R18 DVD Distributor: Darker Enterprises
• Best Erotic Goods Distributor: Net 1on1
• Best Overseas Distributor: Scala
• Best Lingerie Distributor: GotLingerie
• Best Sales Team: Creative Conceptions and Net 1on1 (joint winners)
• Services to the Industry: Mike Wallace (Darker Enterprises)
• Innovation in Adult: Screaming O

A lap dancing club in Wembley has been stripped of its entertainment licence after a series of breaches and problems with boozy customers.

Blue Eyes, in South Way, was reported to Brent Council licensing committee by Brent Police, who asked for the club's licence to be reviewed.

Officers reported a series of violent and anti-social incidents on match days at nearby Wembley Stadium, and claimed the club bosses had repeatedly breached the terms of its late licence.

The panel of councillors agreed, and stripped the club of its right to open until 5am, it now having to close at 11pm each night.

Blue Eyes has also been banned from having lap dancing after the terms of its licence were changed.

Harmony For the second time in two years, UK-based retailers and readers of English magazine Erotic Trade Only voted Harmony Films Best British Film Brand for 2009 at the publication's award show on 5 July.

A single ETO award for Best Film Brand is tremendous, but winning two is outstanding, Jason Maskell, Harmony Films' manager of sales and marketing, said. We're very pleased our peers in the UK adult industry recognized the quality that goes into each production Gazzman, Tanya Hyde, Strangelove and Dave West shoots.

Maskell stressed that Harmony Films spares no expense to shoot elite X-rated performers in locations around the world: The fans' tastes have matured and it's never been easier for them to compare reviews and discuss movies with other enthusiasts. Harmony Films will continually seek to raise the standard of the industry to meet their demands.

A former champagne bar in Leeds city centre is to re-open as a strip club despite objections.

Len's Bar on York Place closed last year and now The Bradbury Executive Trust, the premises licence holder, intends to use the building for a new venture to be called Baby Platinum, a striptease, pole dancing and lap dancing venue.

The scheme cleared a major hurdle when the council's licensing sub-committee agreed the licence could be altered to run from 10am until 6am every day.

Residents living in flats above the former Len's Bar objected to the application fearing it would lead to increased disturbance.

In a letter of objection, residents Howard Davison and Claire Leather said a lap dancing club was inappropriate in a residential building.

A letter of objection from Zolv.com Ltd, a business based in York Place said: A licenced premise with all night opening and these activities would have a negative effect on the immediate area and the reputation of the small businesses well established here.

A bishop has whinged at advertisements for webcam girls which are being carried in the Job Centres of Doncaster.

The job advertisement offers women £10 an hour to sit in front of a webcam in the nude and engage in sexually explicit banter with customers.

The Department of Work and Pensions has confirmed the vacancies are legal and therefore must be advertised. However, adult entertainment jobs are clearly marked as not suitable for people aged under 18 and are only discussed with people who inquire about them.

But women's groups and the Bishop of Doncaster, the Right Reverend Cyril Ashton, have raised concerns that it exploits women desperate for an income who could end up being lured into prostitution.

Bishop Ashton said: I am dismayed that this advert should appear in Doncaster's job centre. Our young women may feel pressurised to apply. It shows a gratuitous lack of respect for women and is entirely inappropriate.

Anne Fairclough, chairman of the south Yorkshire Women's Institute, spewed: These type of adverts all interlink and can lead to the trafficking of women and making them extremely vulnerable. Adverts like these put pressure and tempt women into a life that could lead to abuse.

The advert says women need to be aged 18 be friendly and outgoing and able to work between 20 and 40 hours a week sometimes until 6am. The pay is £10 an hour with bonuses. Successful candidates would work from studios in Rotherham.

New Zealand-based Teli Escort denied the role was exploitative adding similar adverts had run previously.

A spokesman said: So far we've had no calls or complaints. Personally I think the men who are silly enough to spend £1.50 or whatever a minute to use the service are the ones exploited. We're well within the law.

A bid has been made to open a strip club in Sneinton, Nottingham. It would offer pole and lap dancing and nude performances in private booths.

Applicants Leisure Nights want to develop the venue at the former Eurobar Hotel, Bath Street.

Police, local councillor Dave Liversidge and the Nottingham City Safeguarding Children Board have filed objections.

Anne Partington, of the safeguarding board, claims the club would exploit women and could lead to prostitution in the area. She said the club would be in the heart of Sneinton with a market, mosque, school, leisure centre and play area all in the immediate vicinity.

The club would open at 6pm and close as late as 4am and Partington added: The proposed operating times of this application include times when families, children and young people, will still be in the vicinity of the premises.

She claimed nude entertainment has a detrimental impact on the perception of women and added: Research has considered the link between nudity, alcohol use and criminal activity. This suggests a likely increase to public order offences such as prostitution, soliciting drug use and drug dealing.

Coun Dave Liversidge said: Children do pass the area. The area is in need of improvement. Having men driving around looking for the bar into the early hours will not set an example that can attract economically viable businesses to the area. This is an area with a higher crime [rate] and drugs usage, and this all night entertainment will exacerbate those problems.

Notts Police have filed an objection but the details have not been made public.

A Licensing Panel of the city council met this week but will meet again before making a decision

A former champagne bar is set to make a comeback on to the Leeds party scene – as a strip club.

Len's Bar, on York Place, closed last year but the building's owners have applied to re-open as a strip tease, pole dancing and lap dancing venue.

Leeds City Council said the owners had applied for a variation to its original entertainment licence.

The move has caused predictable outrage among nutters and moralists, including members of the Leeds branch of Object. Rosie Robinson Boardman said: "We have found that many people in Leeds believe the nine lap dancing clubs we have in our city is more than enough.

The rights of women in Leeds to access local services are being failed by the Licensing Authority's choice to support lap dance and strip tease. Leeds City Council has a duty to support the different needs of men and women in the city.

But by granting licences to clubs offering adult entertainment involving female exploitation, you are privileging the rights of one gender over another, by licensing venues that have proven detrimental effects on the well-being of women and girls.

Councillor Mohammed Iqbal added: These clubs are degrading. These clubs are springing up everywhere and Leeds already has too many of them. Leeds City Council should put a stop to it.

The owner behind Scotland's newest lapdance club has a sideline in hardcore porn films starring his dancers.

Spearmint Rhino tycoon John Gray boasts that his gentleman's clubs are in the fantasy business with strict no-touching rules.

The American also has an X-rated Rhino Girls website at www.TheRhinoGirls.com offering hardcore action that the girls can't do in the clubs.

Whingers who failed to stop Scotland's first Rhino club opening in Glasgow this month predictably condemned the company's porn business. They say the explicit online content blurs the lines between lap-dancing, porn and prostitution.

Sandra White MSP said: I've been suspicious of the club's insistence that it offers nothing but squeaky-clean, harmless fun but the Sunday Mail has uncovered a part of the business that clearly goes far further than that. I hope this leads to the club's closure in Glasgow.

Last week Glasgow councillors banned the club from describing itself as a gentleman's club in taxi adverts as true gentlemen would be embarrassed to visit it.

There has been much talk amongst prohibitionists about how the capability for councils to ban lap dancing is not quite 100%. One is that occasional strip shows (monthly or less) were to have been allowed and the other that it is up to councils whether they want to impose the licensing scheme or not.

Of course mean minded NuLabour don't like to think that people may even occasionally enjoy adult entertainment, so the predictable 'loophole' closing amendments are being considered.

A circular has now gone round to Labour MPs from the Labour group on the Local Government Association urging them to support an amendment to the lap dancing repression bill by the MP for Stourbridge, Lynda Waltho, to apply the new powers to all local authorities, not just those who choose to do so.

An unusual World Record was created this year when Clone-a-Willy, the very popular replica penis making kit, grew in stature!

Redkisses has just created the largest Clone-a-Willy in the World! The massive record breaking Clone-a-Willy measures a staggering 400mm x 135mm, weighs 8.5 kg and vibrates too!

The enormous record breaking Clone-a-Willy was made by using the equivalent of over 25 of the original Clone-a-Willy Kits.

The original mould was made using a gigantic dildo - The Weapon of Ass Destruction, which measures an incredible 540mm x 135mm. To conclude and make the Clone-a-Willy into a real working vibrator, a massive King Dong Vibrator was inserted, which gave the Record Breaking Clone-a-Willy the authentic look and buzz of a real monster vibrator!

Making this size of Clone-a-Willy was a real challenge for the team, as there were many preparations and procedures they had to undertake, as well as estimating how much special cloning powder and liquid skin would actually be required. This monster size Clone-a-Willy had never been attempted before, so it became a guess in how to mix so much powder and water together before the mix had time to harden.

Buckets ready and water set to the exact temperature - 98F (37C), the plunge was taken, mixing vigorously against the clock! With less than 2 minutes from the moment of applying the powder to the water and into the giant prepared tube, there were only seconds to spare before it started to set.

2 hours later, the final challenge was to pour over 6 litres of the mixed liquid skin into the giant clone mould and then position the massive King Dong Vibrator. The next day became the moment of truth, when the World Record attempt Clone-a-Willy was cut away from the mould. Had Redkisses succeeded in making the largest Clone-a-Willy in the World? - Yes!

'A newly-formed Lap Off! group of more than 80 campaigners gathered with placards - and some with their children - outside Music Palace in Tottenham Lane, Crouch End on Tuesday.

Posters with slogans like No crotch den in Crouch End! will soon cover Crouch End in a bid to win over more opposition to the venue's plans.

A campaign spokeswoman said: We're getting a bit fed up with our opponents trying to write us off as middle-class, whingeing nimbys with no sense of fun.

Lynne Featherstone, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, met protesters on Saturday to offer her backing: It is a free country and people should be allowed to do whatever they like, so long as it doesn't harm others. ...BUT... this particular case - because of where it is in a busy high street, with teenagers and mothers and vulnerable people nearby - is not a suitable location.

Haringey Council has postponed the licensing meeting to decide on the plans at the applicant's request. It will now be held at the Civic Centre in Wood Green at 7pm on Thursday, May 14, rather than Tuesday, March 24.

Update: Line between prudery and repression begins to blur

4th April 2009. See article from hornseyjournal.co.uk

Councillors Nilgun Canver (centre) and Councillor Dilek Dogus (right), join Karen Jennings, Labour Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Hornsey and Wood Green, protesting outside Music Palace in Crouch End.

A heated debate erupted at a full Haringey council meeting. Councillor Dilek Dogus (Labour) said: These clubs are a danger to women who live and work around them and additional research has even linked them to sex trafficking.

Drugs arrive, particularly cocaine, and these are shared with the dancers. Then there are the extras where the line between prostitution and dancing begins to blur."

She cited central London's Tottenham Court Road as an example, where rape cases leaped by 50 per cent after a new club was opened, adding that rape was three times more likely to happen in areas surrounding these venues.

Lap-dancing clubs are not cafes. They are the sex industry on the high street

It is nonsense to paint this trade as harmless or liberating. Reforms are welcome, but risk opening new loopholes

...Read full article

Anti-sex nutters have whinged at Croydon newspapers which continue to run sex advertisements in their papers.

The Croydon Guardian, and publisher Newsquest's 305 titles nationwide decided to pander to the nutters and ban adult advertisements in July 2008.

But eight months on The Croydon Advertiser and its sister paper The Post are continuing to accept adult massage adverts.

A spokesman from the nutters of Croydon Community Against Trafficking (CCAT) said if men were unable to access sex adverts in local newspapers, accessing brothels online through their work and home computers would become more risky for them.

He said: We are thrilled that Newsquest, who have already taken a principled stand in the fight against trafficking, are now initiating a campaign to press other newspapers to do the same.

We have been campaigning for nearly four years for all newspapers to remove these adverts and Newsquest have been the only company who have listened.

A spokeswoman from the Poppy Project, an organisation that campaigns against prostitution, said: We were delighted last year when Newsquest decided to withdraw ‘adult services' advertisements from its newspapers. It is not acceptable in the 21st century that women's bodies can be bought and sold, and even less acceptable that local businesses are benefitting financially from this continued exploitation of women in the sex industry. We encourage other news agencies to stand up and take responsibility in a similar way.

A Nottingham bar has had its application to stage lap, pole and table dancing turned down.

Nottingham City Council rejected the proposals by Snug Lounge Club after moral objections from police.

Club directors told the authority's special licensing panel that they had been looking to bring in international burlesque acts, like Dita Von Teese.

Director Inam Rahman told the meeting: We are looking at offering a very highbrow burlesque event. It has become quite a popular attraction. I don't think it will harm the city or the city centre if such a small venue were to offer additional services.

But police inspector Paul Winter told the meeting that it was confusing that the application was for lap, table and pole dancing yet the discussions in the meeting had been about burlesque: It seems to me that the application we are looking at is for lap dancing. I am concerned that with lap dancing they do attract large groups of people in hen and stag parties. I am not convinced about the level of planning that has gone into this application."

Detective Inspector Ian Winton told the meeting: I feel that by licensing premises like this we seek to normalise acts which make it okay to see women as sexual objects. What this does is show children that it is okay for adults to view women doing a sexual act. That is not a good role model for what it is we are expecting our young children to take on board as they become adults.

The licensing panel chose to refuse the application for Snug to vary its licence on the grounds of crime, disorder and public nuisance.

A thoroughly idiotic article in the Observer

Usual victim feminist nonsense, including the daftness that got the Observer's weekday stablemate (Guardian) into the doo-doo: accepting ideological attacks as reports (in this case) or studies, or research.

Didn't the clowns at Eaves object to you linking to them, using their logo as a hyperlink? [MF: Yes, that's them]

By the way the same edition carried another attack on lapdancing, by the ex-dancer with the improbable name, ending in de Montagnac, mentioned by Cooke in the article linked above.

...Read full article

Lucy began lap dancing when she lost her job as an office temp. It was quite simple: she needed to pay her rent. It felt like a desperate decision. It was a case of: I can't do anything else. But also I'd fallen for the myth that lap dancing is a good way of making a lot of money very quickly.

She applied for, and got, a job as a dancer in a supposedly upmarket club. At the end of her first night's work, however, she went home having earned nothing at all. More alarmingly, she now owed the club some £80.

Like the vast majority of lap dancers in the UK, Lucy was self-employed. Not only was she required to pay the club a dance fee every time she wanted to work, a sum that could vary from £10 to £80 (Friday nights were most expensive, because they were most popular with customers), but she also had to give the club commission on every dance performed (nude dances cost punters £20, of which she kept £17.50; on slow nights, she might perform only once or twice, or not at all).

And then there were the fines. You got fined for everything, at £20 a time: if you were late, if you were wearing the wrong shoes or dress, if you failed to dance on the pole twice an hour. There was also a fine if you were caught breaking the 3ft rule [licensing laws require dancers to stay 3ft away from customers] - though strangely, that one they never seemed to enforce.

The deputy leader of Glasgow City Council, Jim Coleman, a leading crusader against the sex industry, has written to Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill urging the Scottish Government to categorise lap-dancing venues in the same bracket as sex shops.

He hopes it will result in the clubs being driven out of Glasgow.

By attaching the same licensing conditions, Coleman said he believes the local authority will have a tighter control over the setting up and operation of lap-dancing venues.

In the letter, he said it would seem the climate is right in Scotland to take decisive action after the Home Office announced its intention to re-categorise lap dancing venues as sex encounter establishments.

He said: A move to re-categorise the licensing of lap-dancing clubs away from the "entertainment" provision towards "sex shop" licensing would give local authorities greater powers to apply conditions and restrictions on such clubs.

Indeed, in Glasgow, the local authority has set the provision for sex shops at nil due to the underlying belief that there would be an overwhelming contradiction in licensing such exploitative activities, while at the same time trying to promote a Scotland grounded on human rights and equality for all.

Last night, however, his latest attempt to amend the legislation appeared to have floundered. A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: The licensing of adult entertainment is for local licensing boards to make decisions in light of their local policies.

In implementing the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 boards have been given the power to limit licensed premises including those offering adult entertainment premises and impose any relevant condition on how such a premises operates.

Anybody can object to an application and even after a licence has been granted anyone can call for a review of the licence in operation.

'Angry nutters told the owners of Music Palace in Tottenham Lane, Crouch End, they would not rest until plans to transform it into Haringey's only lap dancing venue were forgotten.

Alison Lillystone said: How can I let my 16-year-old daughter out on the streets with men who are aroused?

She added: If you had a brothel, at least these men would be satisfied when they left.

More than 70 nutters voiced their opposition at a public meeting organised by Music Palace's owners. They said 1,000 pupils from the nearby Hornsey School for Girls walked around the area at lunchtime. And they complained that people had urinated in the street, been involved in sexual activity in gardens and caused noise disturbance when the venue had opened late in the past.

But owner Serdal Ziya said after the meeting: At the end of the day we are trying to make a living here. The community doesn't help us at the moment by coming here and trying to build our business up, so this is the only thing that we could think would reduce the noise level - and we don't see it as women being exploited. We're not going to open during the day when children are in the area.

The owner's solicitor, Piers Warne, said the club would be run discreetly and would create employment and less noise nuisance and disorder.

The council had received 97 letters about the plans and a licensing committee hearing in the near future will take a final decision on the application.

A drive to clean up Soho and to diminish its red-light image has been unveiled by Westminster City Council.

Council leader Colin Barrow has pledged to shut down the last remaining unlicensed sex premises following the recent closure of 51 sex shops and the complete eradication of clip joints.

Councillor Barrow said: The idea that the seedy side of Soho is a magnet for tourists and creative trade is a flawed one. It may well be a curiosity, but there is no compelling economic argument for this.

This is not about sanitising the area...BUT...simply making it fit for a modern capital city where people are more aware than ever of the true costs of prostitution and drugs to society.

A senior police officer claims that there are more fake prostitutes and drug dealers than real ones on the streets of Soho in London's West End. Soho was once known as a notorious area for its sex shops, but now while there are still some prostitutes who work inside some premises, the ones on the streets are almost all fake operators.

Det Chief Supt Andy Rowell says that the area has been cleaned-up by the police, but now the danger comes from con artists targeting gullible foreign tourists and out-of-town visitors.

The fake drug dealers pass off boot polish or liquorice as cannabis, and wax wrapped in foil as crack cocaine and aspirin pills, with the markings rubbed off on the side of a matchbox, as tablets.

Where the fake prostitutes are concerned, around 15 of them work together by taking a deposit for a room then disappearing, or luring a punter into an alleyway where a male accomplice will relieve them of their cash.

Rowell said: Soho is now a safe place to come and enjoy yourself - but please don't come looking for drugs and prostitutes. You will almost certainly get something you didn't expect.

A new pole dancing club is set to open on Plymouth's Barbican after Easter – but moralising councillors have slapped 39 ludicrous and discriminatory conditions on its licence.

Plymouth's licensing committee announced they would back plans for the Pilgrims Sports Bar off Southside Street.

But that was only if the bar licensee, Richard Netherton, met 39 stringent operating conditions.

Devon and Cornwall Constabulary have taken to making the law rather than enforcing it and generated the rules to be imposed on the bar.

The decision marks the end of a long battle by the licensee to open the bar. Devon and Cornwall Constabulary appealed against Plymouth City Council's decision to grant a licence variation to Pilgrims Sports Bar last August. Police laughably argued such a venue would attract potential trouble makers to an area where bar expansion is controlled.

So the force put forward a revised list of conditions for the licensing committee to agree.

Solicitor Peter Durbin, acting on behalf of Netherton, argued over a condition to cover up 'private parts' at all times and deny dancers from wearing or removing transparent clothing. There are other establishments in this city which do not have these rules, he told the committee. All these places are working without any of these stringent conditions – and without incident which is highly significant.

The councillors agreed to remove the clause about revealing private parts.

Of course local nutters are not happy with the repressive rule set, they seem to prefer people to have no fun in life.

Dee Harvey said: You have to ask whether you want a nice family-orientated and welcoming area, or do you want it to become part of the night-time economy? I will not walk around the Barbican after dark now.

POLE DANCE CLUB: The conditions

1. No persons other than the performers engaged in the approved adult entertainment shall be in the licensed/designated area in a state of undress.
2. The proprietor/director of the company is to ensure that, prior to engagement, all performers for approved adult entertainment shall provide documents of proof that they are over 18 years of age. Copies of such documents shall be retained on the performers' file held at the premises.
3. No performer shall accept, or give telephone numbers from/to customers or exchange personal details with customers.
4. No performer shall be allowed to work if, in the judgement of the management, they appear to be intoxicated or under the influence of illegal substances.
5. The licence holder shall provide a copy of the House Rules to the licensing authority for approval. A clear copy of these conditions and the house rules shall be given to all performers and displayed at all times in or near the performers' changing rooms. A clear copy of the house rules shall be displayed at the reception and on each table and each bar area.
6. Performers may not a). climb onto the furniture provided for patrons; b). simulate sex acts; and c). remain in a state of nudity when they have completed their act.
7. Performers will wear a G-string or similar piece of clothing on the appropriate part of the body. Clothing shall be neither transparent nor removed. (rule now deleted)
8. The two areas inside the premises should be separated with the installation of a lobby. It should be locked when adult entertainment is not taking place.
9. No entertainment involving nudity or entertainment involving any sexual content will be visible from outside the premises.
10. Secure private changing facilities will be provided for the performers
11. No persons other than performers and authorised staff shall be permitted in the changing room/s.
12. The approved adult entertainment shall only be performed by the performers/entertainers and the audience shall not be permitted to participate.
13. All entrances shall have clear notice stating: NO PERSON UNDER THE AGE OF 21 WILL BE ADMITTED.
14. There shall be no form of physical contact between customers and the performers during approved adult entertainment other than when the performers introduces him/herself at the start of the performance and again at the conclusion of the performance and again at the conclusion of the performance or when a tip is placed in their garter/armband.
15. There shall be no physical contact between the customers and performers during the performance. At all times the performer(s) will keep a minimum distance of 3 feet away from the customers. (Licensing committee added that a "recognisable means of measurement" should also be used to reflect the distance of three feet).
16. The premises shall be equipped with closed circuit television installed so as to cover all areas where approved adult entertainment will take place and will continually record during these performances. Recordings shall be made available only to a police officer or duly authorised officer of the Licensing authority on request.
17. Separate toilet facilities to be installed upstairs for patrons, the numbers and design of facilities to be approved prior to their installation.
18. Performers shall be provided with changing room/s within the premises which shall be located so as to be separate and apart from the public facilities.
19. No person other than performers and authorised staff shall be permitted in the changing room/s.
20. The electrical system, including portable appliances will be inspected and tested annually.
21. Doors and windows will be kept shut during entertainment.
22. Suitable signage at the exit to request the co-operation of patrons to make as little noise as possible when leaving the premises.
23. Patrons will be asked not to stand around talking in the street outside the premises or any car park; and asked to leave the vicinity quickly and quietly.
24. A member of staff will be positioned at exits particularly at closing times. (Door staff should be instructed to encourage patrons to move on as quietly as possible)
25. A specific taxi operator has been nominated for staff and customer use.
26. A senior member of staff (manager) will assess the impact of any noisy activities on neighbouring premises at the start of the activity/entertainment and periodically throughout the activity/entertainment and take action to reduce noise levels if they are found to be excessive/distinguishable above background levels at the nearest residential property.
27. Management will control the sound levels of the music/entertainment.
28. Between 23.00 hours and 00.00 hours: To prevent entertainment being intrusive, noise emanating from the premises will not be clearly distinguishable above other noise 1 metre from the façade of the nearest residential property.
29. Between 00.00 hours and 02.00 hours: Noise emanating from the premises will not be distinguishable above background levels 1 metre from the facade of the nearest residential property.
30. The first-floor bar will operate only between the hours of 9pm until 2am from Thursday to Saturday of each week.
31. No persons under the age of 21 years will be permitted into the premises. An acceptable form of proof of age will be required from any person appearing to be under 25 years prior to their admission onto the premises.
32. There will be two licensed door staff on duty at all times; one to remain on duty at the entrance and the other to monitor the premises by patrol or monitoring of CCTV at regular intervals. At least 2 door supervisors shall be on duty in the part of the premises used for approved adult entertainment when such entertainment is being performed.
33. Admission will be to members only. Full names, current address and proof of identity will be required and a Membership Book will be maintained, which will have to be signed by members each time they attend the premises.
34. Definition of all references to striptease, nudity, lap dancing pole dancing and entertainment of a similar nature shall be referred to in these conditions as approved adult entertainment
35. An entry fee of £5 per person will be charged.
36. The occupancy figure for the first floor to be 75 maximum.
37. Groups of up to 5 persons only will be permitted to enter the first-floor bar.
38. There will be no external advertising or leafleting of the premises or any adult entertainment. They will cause no publication and display of obscene and indecent matter to be displayed or distributed in advertising performances being held at the premises. In addition opaque glass will be installed.
39. The premises to be linked into the pub watch scheme and appropriate radio link.

Playboy UK has relaunched its website as an ad-funded model and made the bulk of its content free to users.

Playboy claims the overhaul will see it offer a dozen new entertainment channels, such as movies, music, games, TV and sport, along with a new branded social networking element.

The site's previous offering was predominantly paid-for content, but Playboy UK is moving to an advertiser-funded model for its various media offerings.

Playboy UK, for instance, recently launched an advertiser-funded lifestyle channel and an advertiser-funded mobile site is scheduled to start later this month. Playboy TV, on Sky channel 900, now offers free lifestyle content between 8pm and 11pm before encrypting for the paid-for service.

Richard Gale, director of marketing at Playboy UK, said: Our UK customers wanted access to our content and advertisers wanted to be aligned with our brand. Now we can provide a product that achieves both of these objectives.

A poster of a scantily clad woman in the window of an Eastbourne lap-dancing club has been partially covered up after police warned the manager displaying it could be a criminal act.

Indigo Redd in Seaside Road was displaying a poster showing a blonde woman in high heels and underwear with a message imprinted.

Sussex Police became involved after Amette Ley, complained it was soft pornography and at eye level for young children.

General manager Leo Valls had said he would not remove the poster and urged Ley to get a grip, claiming the poster was exotic, not erotic.

But an A4 piece of paper has now been pasted on the image, covering the phrase which Ley found offensive.

Julian Williams, neighbourhood policing sergeant said, We received a complaint from a member of the public that a poster was being displayed in the window that was obscene and that her child had seen it. There is a criminal offence of displaying posters etc that are threatening, abusive or offensive, and which cause alarm, harassment or distress. I sent PC Franklin-Lester along to the premises to advise the manager that appropriate action was required and I have since noted that this was done.

In my spare time I run a small Burlesque event in a small music venue. Since the introduction of the Adult Entertainment License the Burlesque and cabaret scene has been put under threat of being forced into Lap Dancing Bars or to close down. The AEL was aimed to curtail the Lap Dancing scene, but the Lap Dancing scene is far more likely to raise the £8K fee whilst cabaret and burlesque nights rarely make money - for my next show I would need to sell out the entire show in advance to make a profit of £100 so £8K is a joke.

A lot of the burlesque scene are not comfortable going into Lap Dancing bars - they are not saying Lap Dancing Bars should be closed down, they just want to leave the Lap Dancing Bars to those who want to enjoy them, but with these new rules we could lose a wide portion of our audience. I liken this to someone who wants to watch Evil Dead 2 also having to sit through Schindlers List, one is light hearted black comedy horror whilst the other is a deeply upsetting slice of reality, people should have the choice of what they want to do, not be forced to do something else also.

Equity are fighting the government - so far they've lost - Labour have forced through another inept law that has far ranging implications, and their main target of the legislation is far better suited to survive the law than the other shows that have been swept into it.

A judge has ruled that a Soho brothel shut down by police earlier this month can reopen for business.

Metropolitan police officers used antisocial behaviour legislation that came into effect at the end of last year to issue a closure notice on two flats in Dean Street, Soho, where sex is sold. But yesterday Mr Justice Riddle, sitting at Horseferry Road magistrates court, refused the Metropolitan Police's application to have the closure order confirmed.

I am not satisfied that any person has engaged in antisocial behaviour on the premises, he ruled.

A large group of sex workers and their maids made a rare public appearance when they attended the court hearing earlier this week. They were supported by some of Soho's residents including Father David Gilmore, rector of St Anne's church.

In court, sergeant Dean Else argued that antisocial behaviour, crime and disorder, blatant acts of drug dealing and clipping in the local environs were linked to the sale of sex inside 61 Dean Street. When asked to provide examples of incidents of antisocial behaviour linked to the sex work flats he cited the example of a member of the public who had their wrist cut to facilitate a robbery at the premises. He admitted, however, that he had not been able to find any record of this incident on the police computer and Mr Justice Riddle said that the evidence was third-hand, anonymous hearsay.

Father Gilmore said that drug dealing was common throughout Soho, including outside his church: but I have never seen it happening outside 61 Dean Street.

Sgt Else said: I understand the judge's decision. Now I have to go back and arrange for the premises to be reopened.

Spearmint Rhino will open its doors in Glasgow in March, three years after the chain bought over an existing lap dancing club in the city, the Truffle Club.

It follows earlier unsuccessful moves by the US chain to open in Glasgow after opposition from the femNazi Glasgow City Council.

The venue has continued to operate as the Truffle Club for the past two years, but is in the final stages of a rebrand and refurbishment.

Perennial nutter Sandra White MSP has slammed the move and said: I'm very disappointed that Spearmint Rhino has been allowed to open in Glasgow. This is detrimental to women and we don't need this sort of entertainment.

In 2002 Glasgow City council told the chain to stay out of Glasgow after it revealed plans for two clubs in the city. However the firm did not have to apply for a new licence for the new club because it was simply transferring the existing licence.

A spokesman for Spearmint Rhino said: We are a well known brand and we have built up a good track record of working with local authorities and complying with restrictions and requirements. We are still in the process of rebranding the club but hope to be open by mid March.

A spokeswoman for Glasgow City Council said: This is not a new club, but one already operating and the current licence covers this kind of entertainment.

No Comment

One usually gets a sound bite from the nutter deputy leader Jim Coleman for such stories. But maybe he is keeping a low profile at the moment.

Thanks to Gary:

Any Glaswegian Melon Farmers here might know Councillor Jim Coleman as one of the leading figures in Glasgow City Council's opposition to lapdancing, sex shops and tolerance zones, a man clearly intent on imposing his own standards of sexual morality on others. So it's interesting to read that his morals and ethics are potentially somewhat lacking when it comes to business interests. Isn't that always the way...

See Councillor ‘failed to declare connections'

'Outraged' nutters have condemned a bid to stage late-night lap dancing at the Music Palace in Tottenham Lane, Crouch End, London.

Crouch End Councillor and moral crusader David Winskill (Not so Liberal Democrat) said: The overwhelming response is hostile and local councillors will be offering any support we can to see off this totally inappropriate application. This is not a moral crusade...[BUT]... This is about a development that is totally inappropriate in a residential area where there is a school around the corner.

If Haringey Council approves a licence change, the club could also be open from 11am-2am Monday to Saturday with early closing at 11pm on Sunday.

Louisa Brittain, chairwoman of governors at nearvy Rokesly Infants School, said: We are very concerned at the prospect of a lap dancing club so close to our schools, especially as many of our children walk past this building daily.

Sue Hessel, chairwoman of Crouch End's Haslemere Road Resident Nutters' Association, said: We would be worried about the way that women would be exploited especially. It is men running these places and often girls that are desperately in need of quick cash.

Update: Meeting the Nutters

21st February 2009. See article from hornseyjournal.co.uk

Music Palace confirmed it hopes to meet interested parties so views can be aired on its bid to become an adult entertainment venue offering dances with near-naked women.

Piers Warne, of Poppleston Allen Solicitors on behalf of Music Palace, said: The applicants are considering the representations received to the application and will be seeking to hold a meeting for all parties who are interested before the application is dealt with by the licensing committee.

The meeting is likely to take place within the next three weeks.

Update: No Police Objection

6th March 2009. See article from hornseyjournal.co.uk

Police will not oppose plans to open a late-night lap dancing club.

Ward councillor Ron Aitken, Liberal Democrat spokesman for crime, policing and community, said: Obviously residents will be disappointed that the police won't lodge an objection, but the problem is the law and the Government did not provide for this type of application in the licensing law 2003.

But police licensing officer Geoff Parker confirmed a raft of conditions which address issues such as crime and disorder and public safety would become part of any licence agreed by Haringey Council.

'A London bar manager says the economic crisis has forced him to apply for a lap-dancing licence to pull some cash in during the quietest days of the week.

Islington councillors gave the go-ahead for exotic dancers to perform between noon and midnight Mondays to Saturdays at Bar Aquarium in Old Street, Finsbury.

There are five other strip bars in the Shoreditch area close to the venue, including Platinum Lounge, White Horse and For Your Eyes Only.

Licensing sub-committee member Councillor Barry Edwards said: I'm also concerned about the number of similar premises in the area. It is licensing policy that when the council should take into account the cumulative effect of these venues.

No residents and no one from the school officially objected to the plans. Ruber agreed to black out all windows when the exotic dancing was taking place.

The committee decided to approve the licence variation to allow exotic dancing - but requested the council and police produce a report on the provision of adult entertainment in the area.

Despite unlikely last minute shenanigans, lap dancing has arrived in Henley.

Diamonds and Pearls in the Greys Road car park held its first night lattended by scores of people.

The surprise opening happened after owner Manowar Hussain pulled out of the venture, blaming negative publicity and pressure from his family. He said: I have sold the lease of the building to somebody else and that is it.

In fact, his share in the business was bought by Andy Mags. Diamonds and Pearls opened with Mags claiming he didn't want to let people down.

The club will be open Monday to Saturday, from 8pm until 2am. There is an entry charge of £10. Mags promised around 10 girls a night, who come from all over the place and said lap dances would cost £20 a time.

The news has reignited plans for a demonstration in Henley, organised by nutter councillor Barry Wood. The demonstration will take place on Saturday, February 14, starting in Market Place at 11am.

Wood said: We have all been misled by Mr Hussain, who stated to several sources that they definitely would not proceed. He claimed these clubs fuel a sexist male culture of treating women as sex objects and inferior citizens.

Wood, a former town mayor, has admitted visiting strip clubs himself but says Henley is not the place for one.

The prudish Wood has also formed a residents' action group (RAG) to try to persuade South Oxfordshire District Council to reverse its decision to grant the club an adult entertainment licence. He said: RAG is definitely not a morality group, nor are we Mary Whitehouse clones...HOWEVER...we are deadly serious that Henley is not the place for a strip club.

Harriet Harman has declared war on firms that encourage employees to go to lap-dancing clubs.

Labour's Deputy Leader launched the broadside as part of a drive to ensure that more women get top jobs in the City.

Harman, also the Equalities Minister, says that there are numerous cases of sex discrimination in the financial sector.

Harman told a trade union conference that the financial services industry treated women unfairly and suggested that companies using lap-dancing clubs for corporate entertainment were in effect harassing female employees.

Ayr Council chiefs stand accused of giving false information.

For Ayr businessman Forbes Robertson says they supplied him with an apparently bogus reason for turning down his lap dancing plan.

Robertson said: I've applied five times to the licensing board to have adult entertainment added to my entertainment licence for the Millionayr Casino in Ayr.

Each time I was turned down I was told the board was ‘awaiting guidelines' from the Scottish Government.

But now I have a letter from Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill saying the government has NO plans to produce new guidelines for adult entertainment.

And South Ayrshire Licensing Board has all along had the power to decide my application.

Robertson blasted: I feel misled by the board, and to add insult to injury, they won't even let me apply again.

Robertson's frustration at being constantly turned down led him to seek guidance from John Scott MSP. Scott was told in a letter from McAskill: The Scottish Government's position remains that it is for each local authority's licensing body to decide whether they wish adult entertainment to take place.

But Robertson has been consistently told by the licensing board that it was awaiting guidelines.

Robertson said: It appears they were just using that as an excuse.

Pubs and clubs hosting monthly lap dancing evenings will be exempt from new legislation aimed at tackling the spread of strip clubs, it has emerged.

Councillor Gill Mitchell, prudish leader of the Labour group on Brighton and Hove City Council, has claimed that venues could exploit the loophole to compensate for a drop in alcohol sales during the economic downturn.

While she welcomed measures under the Policing and Crime Bill to reclassify lap dancing clubs as sex encounter venues, giving councillors more freedom to turn down licence applications, she said there were still problems with the plans. She pointed out that the Bill, which has passed its second reading in Parliament, would exempt premises that hosted lap and pole dance nights once a month or less frequently.

Three fully naked lap dancing clubs now operate in Brighton - The Pussycat Club in Grand Parade, Grace of Brighton in North Street, and Spearmint Rhino Rouge in East Street.

Mitchell has asked the MPs to lobby the Home Secretary to ensure that this loophole for clubs holding occasional nights was closed and that the reforms were made mandatory for all local councils: Also, the legislation should be mandatory to avoid the creation of a postcode lottery where some communities would have more control over lap dancing clubs in their areas than others where councils do not take up the new powers.

A Home Office spokesman defended the Bill and said: The new powers are not mandatory for local authorities as not all areas have a problem with lap dancing establishments, but will be available where local authorise believe they are necessary.

Venues holding one-off or infrequent nude entertainment were being exempted to prevent the provisions from having a disproportionate impact on nightlife, he added.

Nutters are planning to protest outside a neighbour's house in South Gloucestershire which has been used to shoot pornographic films.

They say there is a constant procession of women and men going to and from the house. Up to 20 residents are set to stage a protest in their street on Saturday morning, after previously making a series of complaints and gathering signatures on a petition.

People living in Bradley Stoke, said they are making a stand because police and council officials have declined to take any action.

Adult film producer James Edwards agreed to sign an Acceptable Behaviour Contract – described by the Home Office as a voluntary agreement made between someone involved in anti-social behaviour and the police – more than two years ago, after residents said his pornographic activities had spilled outside the house into the front garden when explicit scenes were being shot.

Police issued an £80 fixed penalty notice on a woman who was urinating beside a lamppost whilst being filmed.

Fred Hillberg said residents had had enough and wanted action taken because they claimed their lives were being made a misery because of Edwards's activities: We started having to put up with pornographic activity about five years ago which eventually spilled out into public view. We approached the police, South Gloucestershire Council and even the Home Office and provided surveillance video, adverts, website data and pictures but to no avail.

Neighbour Pete Kite said: This is no place for this sort of thing. It's degrading and affecting our lives and property status.

Another neighbour, Mike Otley, said: It lowers the neighbourhood and attracts the wrong sort of people into the area.

Edwards said he was not doing anything unlawful in his home and said the accusations were causing him stress: The police have fully investigated the complaints from my neighbours and as far as I am aware the police don't have an issue with me.

Police Inspector Kevin Thatcher said there was insufficient evidence to back up some accusations being made against Edwards by the residents. But he said: However, we believe the occupier is legitimately running a pornographic recording studio.

A spokesman for South Gloucestershire Council said: Mr Edwards received an Acceptable Behaviour Contract in 2006 for six months and there were no reported breaches during this period. We will look into the current situation further.

Update: Making a Scene

1st February. See article from news.bbc.co.uk

James Edwards who uses his home near Bristol as a studio for adult films has been confronted by neighbours protesting outside his property.

People who live in the same cul-de-sac demonstrated outside Edwards' house with placards claiming his business is affecting the prices of their property.

Peter Kite, who also lives in the cul-de-sac and was taking part in the protest, ludicrously claimed: The police say it's legal but they don't see everything. If you've got pornography here now, you're going to have prostitution next, you're going to have drugs. In a residential area? No way - no way.

Thirst Lodge, a popular Oxford nightclub and cocktail bar, has abandoned its plans to host lap-dancing nights after opposition from nutters and students.

The club withdrew its application for a lap-dancing licence after the nutters of nearby St Ebbe's Church voiced outrage at the proposal.

Members of the church, whose entrance is 20 feet from the club, have also accused Thirst of failing to advertise the plans properly, meaning they had no chance to raise their concerns during the council's period of consultation.

Rector Vaughan Roberts said that the lap-dancing would be unacceptable not only next to our building but anywhere in our city.

Church goers predictably echoed the rector's disgust at the plans. A Hertford student attending St Ebbe's said: it's horrible. I find it really weird. It's just a massive juxtaposition to walk out of the lap-dancing club and then see the church.

Rachel Cummings, the OUSU Women's Officer, expressed her condemnation of the application. She said, lap-dancing is abhorrent; it's an activity which presents women as sexual items existing for the entertainment of men. Any club holding a lap-dancing license needs to recognise that this activity is degrading. Many customers will no longer feel comfortable attending the club on any of its nights.

This view has been echoed by Christian groups. Claire Greig, vice president of the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union said, we are saddened by the fact that the Thirst Lodge is hosting these nights which involve practices degrading to women, and we hope that the license will not be granted.

After sparking moral outrage among the local nutters, the venue decided to withdraw the application on the morning of the 27th of January. Its spokesperson said: we've withdrawn the application after consultation with the public and our neighbours from the church.

The decision about the cancellation of the licensing hearing was confirmed by the Oxford City Council.

Diamonds and Pearls, a venue promising lapdancing and fun, is set to open this weekend in a Henley-on-Thames building once used for ballroom dancing.   

The move has angered nutter councillors including the local mayor, amid ludicrous suggestions that it could turn the area into a rural Soho.

The local licensing authority, South Oxfordshire District Council, said it had no choice but to grant a licence for the venue, including permission for adult entertainment as the building, a former nightclub, had previously held a late night entertainment licence.

But members of the town council, including Gill Zakss, the mayor, insist the venue is not suitable for Henley: As a child I went to ballroom dancing in that building and I expect my teachers would be turning in their graves. I am hugely surprised. I can't believe there is a big enough catchment area, have they done their market research? I'm not one of the Mary Whitehouse brigade...BUT...I don't think it'll attract enough customers. I think in this current economic climate it will close down shortly.

Joan Bland, a fellow member of the town council, added: This is Henley, not Soho. I don't think it is befitting of Henley, we are country folk living in an historic market town and it seems very unnecessary. I expect the majority of people who will go in there will not be from the town because residents just won't use it.

But the owner Manowar Hussain, a businessman from nearby Maidenhead, Berks, dismissed the fears and said the club would make a positive contribution to the town: We are not here to wreck people's lives, we are here to provide entertainment and a bit of fun and give something back to the town. We are not going to have ladies standing outside. It is not immoral, it is a business venture.

A spokeswoman for South Oxfordshire District Council said residents had not objected during the consultation period before the licence was granted.

Update: Last Minute Change of Heart

29th January 2009. See article from news.bbc.co.uk

Diamonds and Pearls was to have opened on Saturday. The club had been given a licence by South Oxfordshire District Council, but businessman Manowar Hussain said the plans were now on hold.

Henley Town councillor Dr Barry Wood had set up a group in an attempt to close the venue. He was organising a rally for next weekend and started a petition opposing the establishment. He said: It is fantastic news. There is room for clubs and so on, but not in the centre of Henley.

Hussain, who planned to open the club, told the BBC he had surrendered his licence to another business. He revealed both floors of the building will now be used instead by Latinos nightclub, which used to be elsewhere in the town.

Update: Hussain Explains Last Minute Change of Heart

31st January 2009. See article from maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk

A strip club venture has ground to a halt after a Maidenhead businessman pulled the plug on his investment.

Manowar Hussain said that his name has been dragged through the mud after initially bankrolling the lap dancing venue in Henley-on-Thames, which roused anger among some residents in the town.

The owner of the basement venue, which was expected to open as the Diamonds and Pearls strip club on Saturday, maintains that it was not his decision to mould the nightspot into a lap dancing club, after investing about ฃ250,000 in the project.

Hussain said that he now wants nothing to do with the venue as he looks to sell it on. He admits he regrets getting involved after buying the business last year.

It’s not a moral thing, he said of stripping. I’m a family man and a Muslim and so I have taken my investment out.

Thou shalt not lie... Unless you are preaching nonsense

Church of England dioceses are to call for a government crackdown on human trafficking in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympics to prevent a repeat of the supposed mega brothels set up in German cities for the 2006 World Cup.

Nutters will discuss the matter at a General Synod next month following a motion set down by the dioceses of Newcastle and Winchester.

We do not want this same kind of thing for London 2012, said the Revd. Canon Michael Webb of Newcastle Diocese.

The dioceses called for the government, police and officials to combat the evil trade of trafficking and forced prostitution through legislation and enforcement. They pointed to the World Cup in Germany, where, they said, city officials adopted a pragmatic approach towards catering for the sexual desires of the estimated three million football fans who attended the tournament.

Sex huts for prostitution were set up, filled with 40,000 extra prostitutes, while special licences were issued allowing prostitutes to offer sex on the street, they said in a background paper.

Some studies however suggested that prostitution levels may have in fact decreased during the World Cup.

We wish to support and encourage H.M. Government to do everything in its power to ensure that nothing like this is allowed to happen in our cities, the dioceses added. [you mean like prostitution decreasing during Germany's world cup].

Britain's Home Office said initial risk assessments have recognised potential risks created by London holding the Olympic Games: We are aware that the preparations for the London Olympics in 2012 could attract criminals who seek to profit from the fact that hospitality, catering and construction workers are required as well as the risk of an increase in prostitution, including those who have been trafficked.

A stripper who dresses up as a police officer has had charges against him dropped more than a year after he was brought to court.

Stuart Kennedy, a student who performed as "Sergeant Eros" to pay his way through university, was charged with impersonating a policeman and breaching the peace in November 2007.

Police officers held him for 39 hours following the alleged incident at Tiger Tiger nightclub in Aberdeen, where Kennedy claimed he was attacked by a clubber.

Kennedy has now been told the case had been dropped. Kennedy said: This is excellent news. I was confused as to why it was ever taken to court, the CCTV evidence from the night clearly proves my innocence.

Update: Caught in Persecution of a Police Performer

21st January 2009. Based on article from independent.co.uk

Last week the latest case to be brought against the young scientist for impersonating a police officer collapsed in court after the Crown Office unexpectedly dropped the charges against him.

It was the 22nd time Mr Kennedy had appeared before the bench since his first arrest in March 2007 and he has spent 123 hours in police custody. Since his first brush with the law he has faced charges including possession of an offensive weapon – his truncheon and a fake CS spray – and allegedly fitting a flashing light to his car.

But so far none of the cases brought against him have yielded a successful prosecution and with two further court dates pending, there is mounting anger over claims that the legal actions have cost some ฃ170,000 of public money and have risked turning the police in and around his native Aberdeen into a laughing stock.

Richard Baker, Labour's Justice spokesman, said local people were growing sick of the saga of Eros. I don't see this as serving effectively as a deterrent and people regard this more as ludicrous than as a serious matter, he said.

Bill Aitken MSP, the Conservatives' justice spokesman, said it was time to stop: This is a classic instance of time being wasted unnecessarily.

Kennedy believes he may have become an unwitting target for police officers looking to settle a score, though he says he will not give up his routine even though it threatens his future – fully-clothed – employment prospects: In relation to the case which was thrown out on Friday, I was held in police custody for 39 hours even though I had, and still have, no convictions. I can only assume that the decision by Grampian Police to hold me was malicious. I have no doubt that they were trying to intimidate me after they had been made to look foolish as a result of my first high-profile arrest.

Update: Prosecuted

25th June 2009 See article from thescotsman.scotsman.com

Stuart Kennedy has been found guilty of impersonating a police officer and pulling over other drivers using flashing lights.

Kennedy fitted a white strobe light to the dashboard of his car to stop motorists on Aberdeenshire roads on 28 June, a court heard yesterday. The stripper, known as Sgt Eros, was also dressed as a police officer and had police equipment in his red Peugeot while driving on the way to work last year.

Giving evidence, Kennedy denied impersonating a police officer and insisted he used the strobe as a safety light so other drivers could see him.

But Sheriff Marysia Lewis found him guilty of the unusual offences after a three-day trial at Peterhead Sheriff Court.

Kennedy was further accused of having a genuine police uniform and equipment in his car without a satisfactory explanation. However, he claimed an entertainment supplier had sold him the items after checking his credentials as a stripper.

Kennedy was yesterday found guilty of fitting his car with a flashing light, two charges of impersonating a police officer on 28 June, and having a police uniform and equipment in his possession the following day. Sheriff Lewis deferred sentence due to the "unusual" nature of the charges until 16 July.

Update: Impersonating a Prosecution Service

29th August 2009 See article from news.bbc.co.uk

An Aberdeen stripogram facing court over an incident while dressed as a firefighter has had the case dropped.

Stuart Kennedy has been involved in several high-profile incidents due to his act. He performs as a police officer called Sgt Eros.

A Crown Office spokeswoman said after full and careful consideration of the facts, it was decided there should be no further proceedings.

The stripper was arrested on Aberdeen's Union Street in October 2008 while dressed as a fireman.

On 18 December, three police officers from Charing Cross Clubs and Vice Unit visited a flat in Romilly Street, Soho, London and issued a written notice against Ms Tracey Ramsey who works as a receptionist there, that they intend charging her with controlling prostitution for gain. Soho has been one of the safest places for women in the sex industry to work. As a receptionist, Ms Ramsey is women’s first line of defence against violent attacks and exploitation. If the police are allowed to proceed against Ms Ramsey, other receptionists will be driven away and women will be forced to work alone. Why are police targeting safe premises?

The police are familiar with this and other flats in Soho. The police notice claimed that their visit was to check the welfare of the occupants and to ensure that there are no juveniles or trafficked victims working at the location. It threatened charges such as:“to keep or to manage, or to act or assist in the management of a brothel; controlling prostitution for gain as well as causing or inciting child prostitution. No underage or trafficked women or any evidence of force or coercion was found at the premises, and none had been found during the weekly visits by the police during the whole month of September.

This is an abuse of process.

Police have objected to a bid to re-open a Blackpool lap dancing club. Wildcats was closed last year after performers were judged to have breached nutter inspired decency rules.

However, the club on Clifton Street re-opened temporarily in the run-up to Christmas.

The club is re-opening under temporary premises licences. Blackpool Police have said they would oppose the application.

Applications for a temporary events notice have been made in the club's name. Following the police objection, the application will go before a town hall licensing panel in the next week or two.

Two applications have been made for the Wildcats venue for the end of January, and the end of February. Temporary events notices cover a 96-hour period and people can apply for 15 per year.

A hotel owner has won his appeal to open a striptease and lap dancing club in New Cross.

An application by the White Hart Hotel, in New Cross Road, to open a strip club on the premises was refused by Lewisham Council in August.

More than 100 nutter letters and three petitions signed by 232 residents against the plan were received by the council, including a letter of objection from the police.

White Hart owner Ken Linwood won his appeal against the decision at Bromley Magistrates' Court. Linwood argued the strip club is the only way his business can survive.

Lap dancers are the credit crunch’s latest victims as recession-hit men tighten their belts.

The owner of one of Cardiff’s largest lap-dancing bars claims the 30 girls who vie to peel off their underwear on weekends were finding it harder to persuade punters to part with their cash.

Ian Willison, who owns Fantasy Lounge, said: We have our regulars but the credit crunch is affecting more professional people like bankers and solicitors, the traditional white-collar workers and high-flyers.

People are still going out but they are being a bit tighter with their money, that’s what everyone in the industry has found.

The volume of customers through the doors is the same, but people aren’t spending as much. The girls definitely have to work harder to get someone to pay for a dance, because everyone is jostling for custom.

I’ve been talking to owners of other lap-dancing clubs and we are all very concerned about 2009.

I think it will hit us this year if the recession is as bad as experts predict. But we have already taken steps to encompass that. Measures include half-price dances before midnight on week nights. He added: Lap dancing has always been seen as a luxury where people go every couple of months, but clubs need to be more affordable.

A teacher in the UK who was a part time porn-star has been found guilty of unacceptable professional misconduct.

Andrew Beasley - who worked at a school in east London - appeared in TV programmes and films described as having a sexual nature, but did not earn any money from the movies.

Britain's General Teaching Council says what he did was a breach of the standards of the profession.

London's Metropolitan police have admitted turning a "blind eye" to many of London's brothels and massage parlours because it believes the public would not support a total clampdown on prostitution.

Commander Allan Gibson told a committee of MPs the force knew rapidly when sex was being sold and could devote a lot more of its resources to tackling the problem, but chose not to do so.

Gibson, the officer in charge of the force's human trafficking unit, claimed this was because police felt Londoners were willing to tolerate a certain level of prostitution and a full-scale crackdown would be a very difficult thing to sell to the public. The Met insisted it was determined to stamp out serious criminality connected to brothels, such as people-trafficking.  But the admission that it allows many to operate produced an angry response from fem-Nazis. The Met's stance was revealed in evidence to the Commons home affairs select committee.

Gibson said the force only raided brothels where it believed serious offences were being committed. We could commit a lot more of our resources to prostitution. Would that be the right thing to do? It is a matter of to what extent we target our resources at this problem. There is a sense in which there is a tolerance of a certain level of prostitution in society.

Gibson added that prostitution would be a difficult problem to eradicate and conceded, when asked if the Met was turning a blind eye, that it frequently did so. However, Gibson said raids to combat people-trafficking, rape and other serious crimes were conducted regularly.

He added: If we were to focus on prostitution alone, I think you would end up in a situation of saying there is a certain amount we should do but perhaps not exhaust all our resources doing it.

Jenny Jones, a man hating member of the Metropolitan Police Authority, said many women would support a far more aggressive approach: Who are the Met to decide that we want them to turn a blind eye? This a very misogynistic view which is out of date

London MEP Mary Honeyball, who campaigns against men's rights, described the Met's stance as astounding. Giving brothels the green light so publicly is to say, 'Yes, we will tolerate violence and abuse against women so long as it's behind closed doors'.