UK Sex Shop News

MPs trying to spice up their marriages by buying their spouses treats from Ann Summers have been foiled by Commons puritans.

The sex shop's website has been blocked on Westminster computers, appropriately, by Parliament's men in tights, who oversee such things.

Worthing's sex shop will shut its doors for the last time this Christmas Eve.

Taboo, in Rowlands Road, is closing due to a lack of trade, with one staff member to lose his job.

The shop was taken over from Pillow Talk in March. Its owner, Tim Richardson, said he was sad to have to close down, but had always feared it might be the outcome when he decided to take it over. He said:

We took it over from the previous owner who had gone into liquidation. We thought there might be a possible market, but we were always a bit unsure.

I run three very successful shops in Brighton, but that's a very different bag. We took it on on a 12-month temporary basis, to see if it was worth it, but I have come to the conclusion that there is not the demand for it.

Just because there isn't a sex shop in a town doesn't necessarily mean there is a demand for one.

Sam Roddick has sold Coco de Mer, a well known erotic boutique, to Lovehoney, a major sex toy internet retailer. The price for Coco de Mer has been undisclosed, but is expected to be above £2m.

The business, which markets itself as an upmarket, ethical sex shop, selling lingerie and toys has two shops in Britain: in Covent Garden and Brompton Cross in London, and one in Los Angeles.

It was set up by Sam Roddick, the daughter of Anita Roddick, the founder of Body Shop, which during the 1980s was one of Britain's fastest-growing retail chains. However, the business appears to have been hit by the consumer downturn. Sales in the year to February 2010 increased from ?940,000 to £1.2m, but the company recorded a pre-tax loss of £200,000 following on from a £482,000 loss the year before.

But Lovehoney appears to be in rude health. The company, which is based in Bath and set up by a former journalist Richard Longhurst and a former DJ Neal Slateford, increased its sales from £10.4m to £13.4m in the year to March 2011, and its profits from £1.5m to £1.7m.

Miss Roddick is staying on as an adviser.  Lovehoney said it would keep the Coco de Mer brand separate from Lovehoney.

Historically, collectors of old porn have remained underground, afraid that showing an interest in the world of sex would bring shame and mockery to them or their families. That's still often the case, but as porn becomes more mainstream --- due in part to its near inescapable presence online, more people are becoming comfortable in owning a part of its history, which is driving up the value of those collectibles.

It is, in fact, the factory-like production of much of today's porn that has made some collectors appreciate items of the past.

For the moment , particularly collectible items are one-sheet movie posters and press books (promotional kits with photos and press releases) for porn films from the 1970s and early 1980s.

Most collectibles hover in the $200 to $500 range, but rare items, such as the original poster for 1972's legendary film Deep Throat, sell for up to $5,000.

Lingerie firm Ann Summers have unveiled their first ever television advert. The commercial, aired this week, stars ten women who are competing to become the new face of the undies store.

They all show off their curves in Ann Summers' skimpiest outfits, and the public get to vote for their favourite.

Company boss Jacqueline Gold said: We received an overwhelming response to this campaign.

There's one Hitachi product you won't see at the company's trade shows and conventions - its Magic Wand massager. The Hitachi Magic Wand was originally designed in the 70s as a two-speed muscle massager, but it soon became clear this mains-powered electric vibrator was incredible for intimate, as well as deep-tissue, massage. Renowned as one of the most powerful vibrators ever invented, it quickly made its way into bedrooms the world over. However, Hitachi shy away from promoting or featuring the product.

In a further blow, the product has now been banned by miserable EU bureaucrats on the grounds that it has now CE kiitemark. Trading SubStandards have been searching sex toy warehouses and stopping the sale of the appliance within the entire EU.

LoveHoney have taken advantage of the ban and produced their own UK-friendly version.

The Lovehoney Mains Powered Magic Wand Vibrator is now available to soothe and stimulate. What's great about this wand is that it has a UK plug, meaning it's perfectly designed for totally safe use in the UK with no loss of power. Stylishly designed with a quality build, this toy is a brilliant way to experience the iconic magic wand sex toy for yourself.

The Lovehoney Mains Powered Magic Wand Vibrator delivers intense stimulation to your intimate spots with its range of delectable vibration speeds. Designed to access those hard-to-reach areas with a flexible head, this new legend delivers pleasure on demand.

The Lovehoney Magic Wand Vibrator is part of the new Lovehoney own-brand range of sex toys.

A nutter is calling for a commemorative brick to be removed from the Adult Pit Stop  sex shop which he claims is an insult to the late Sir Jimmy Saville's death.

Ken Lynch, parish councillor for Sandy said:

I protested against it and tried to get the brick removed. People might say I'm being unreasonable. When Sir Jimmy was alive I couldn't really publicise it but now that he's gone I am demanding it be taken out. I hold Sir Jimmy in great esteem and I feel it's an insult to him and the way he lived his life. There's no reason for it to be there. I will fight to get it removed. Sir Jimmy was a wonderful person.

The brick was part of the Stick a Brick fundraising campaign that raised thousands of pounds for the spinal unit at Stoke Mandeville hospital in 1981 and which was organised on behalf of the Jimmy Saville Charity Appeal. Around 100 limited edition bricks made bearing the fleur-de-lys crest of the Prince of Wales were specially created to commemorate the International Year of the Disabled.

A charitable donation was made, the brick was bought and built into a Happy Eater restaurant which later became the Adult Pit Stop sex shop.

Martin Cobban, manager of the Adult Pit Stop said that he'd be happy to talk to Lynch if he could give him a valid reason why the brick should be removed.

An Aberystwyth man has described as offensive a shop window display in the town which features one half of a female mannequin with red cloth to suggest entrails hanging out and fake blood smeared on the window.

In a letter to the Cambrian News, Tom Payne said: I wondered recently whether the Hallowe'en window display at 'Nice N Naughty' had caused offense to anyone else?

It's not that I am particularly offended by the presence of the shop itself, nor am I squeamish when it comes to Hallowe'en...[HOWEVER]...the sight of a female mannequin chopped in half with her entrails hanging out is probably a window display too far. It looked like the scene of a particularly brutal murder.

A couple have opened a new shop selling lingerie in Wellingborough's town centre.

Lace on Silver Street is the first high street shop in the UK to offer the baci range of lingerie which comes from Miami.

Shop owner Chantal Barnett said:

I think some people think we are a sex shop but that's not what it is at all, we offer a range of luxury lingerie at sensible prices.

Everything here is priced between £6 and £50 – I won't sell anything for more than that.

Some of it is sensible and some if it is more raunchy, and we do offer customers the chance to order from our catalogues if there is something that they want but can't see in the shop.

But it isn't Ann Summers, we aren't licensed and we don't sell toys or anything like that.

There is a real range of underwear here – from knickers to underwear sets, corsets as well as handmade jewellery.

It seems that Vivienne Pattison has switched sound byte from the Daily Mail to the Sun.

The Sun reports that a few This Morning viewers were left spluttering their tea and biscuits over an Item on Monday's show. It featured golden oldies demonstrating a sex position.

Host Phillip Schofield told astonished viewers: We are going to be demonstrating positions, showing sex aids and discussing intimate details.

The sex surgery item included various sex toys, including remote-controlled and glow-in-the-dark vibrators. Meanwhile a pair of pensioners in pyjamas  performed on a double bed accompanied by cheesy music.

Psychologist Jo Hemmings told viewers: You don't need to be an Olympic athlete for this. They seem to be enjoying it, it's brilliant!

A few 'shocked' viewers took to Twitter to express their feelings. Chris Roberts tweeted: I can't believe my eyes #ThisMorning talked about sex positions and vibrators with over 60s models.

While Marktharparms added: Oh how TV has changed. Phil Schofield and Holly Willoughby on @itvthismorning discussing vibrators and sex positions for the over-sixties!

Vivienne Pattison, director of MediaWatch UK, said: Lots of people were offended.

But only four viewers phoned ITV to complain directly.

Offsite: And even those few 'outraged' tweets, weren't so 'outraged' after all

23rd October 2011. See article from markjdaniels.blogspot.com. Scooped in article from mediasnoops.wordpress.com

Oh how TV has changed, I wrote on Twitter, as the topic moved on to comfortable sex positions for the over sixties: Phil Schofield and Holly Willoughby on ITV This Morning discussing vibrators and sex positions for the over-sixties!

Now, let's get one thing straight: I'm no prude. I am one of the most open-minded, liberal individuals you are ever likely to encounter and I found the fact that a Sir Stirling Moss looky-likey, in blue silk pyjamas on a studio double-bed being straddled by an excited looking granny, highly entertaining. In fact, I was close to tears with laughter.

My tweet referred to the fact that not that long ago such shenanigans would have been frowned on if they'd been shown after the 9pm watershed, let alone at 11am on a Monday morning.

I'm quite aware that the things I say on Twitter might occasionally get picked up and used in the media, but the Daily Mail -- that harbinger of doom for the pub trade -- wrote a shock-and-awe piece on yesterday's This Morning and detailed how horrified members of the public were expressing their disgust via Twitter.

My tweet was there in glorious detail, citing me -- along with two others -- as complaining about the material. I'm quite happy for the Daily Mail to have used the message, but I'd just like to clarify something: it should have been listed on the line beneath, where one tweeter was said to have found the piece amusing and commented on having had worse days than receiving sex education from Holly Willoughby.

...Read the full article

Police have said that a fire at a Bath sex shop on Friday was started deliberately.

No-one was injured in the fire which broke out at the Private Shop premises in Victoria Buildings in Lower Bristol Road.

An Avon Fire and Rescue spokesman said the fire was quickly dealt with and further investigations into the cause would be carried out later.

Update: Arrest

25th October 2011. See article from thisisbath.co.uk

A man has now appeared in court charged in connection with a fire which caused £20,000 worth of damage at a Bath sex shop.

Simply Pleasure sex shop in the centre of Northampton will be allowed to have a window, despite nutter concerns that it could offend both children and the religious.

As with all sex shops across Northampton, Simply Pleasure in Wellingborough Road currently has a blanked-out front window. But the firm applied to Northampton Borough Council for permission to show off lingerie and club wear in its window. The authority's licensing committee has now approved the plans. The plan was only approved after the chairman used his casting vote.

During a long debate, the committee was split down the middle on whether the scheme should be approved.

Councillor Winston Strachan warned that many children already passed the shop on their way to school. He said: In my opinion, the name Simply Pleasure speaks for itself. Why do they need a shop window display to go with it?

He was backed by Councillor Iftikhar Choudary, who added: Mothers and children regularly pass this area as do Muslim ladies who could find this display offensive.

But Councillor Roger Conroy said: We've got Ann Summers in Abington Street and Marks & Spencer regularly have lingerie in their window, so I don't really have a concern.

Councillor Jonathan Nunn (Con, Nene Valley) added: You can walk down Abington Street and see lingerie shops and I think when you see these sex shops at the moment, their blanked out windows can look a bit sinister.