East London Strippers Collective organizes a stripping festival

East London Strippers Collective organizes a stripping festival to fight against moralistic squares and puritanical councils.

London Strippers Collective (ELSC), a group of dancers who have joined forces to fight against the stigma and poor working conditions that plague their industry is putting on a 10-day stripping festival in October, the first of its kind in the UK. 

“When I first began dancing, Shoreditch felt a lot freer and more open-minded,” says stripper and activist Edie Lamort who is part of (ELSC). “Social media didn’t exist. Now it’s easy to quickly whip up moral panic. People seem to be much more conservative”

Based in Red Gallery on Rivington Street, the Art of Stripping will involve an exhibition, academic symposium, workshops, talks, film screenings, pole dancer life drawing classes and a programme of performances. There will be a stripper-wear sale, stripping classes and, on the final night, a Tarantino-themed From Dusk ‘Til Dawn Halloween party, featuring performances by members of the ELSC. The group is crowd-funding the event. 

“Stigma is increased by all the incredibly damaging media representations of our world, which do us absolutely no favours and make our work-lives even harder,” says the collective’s Stacey Clare. “I hope people go away from our festival realizing that strippers are humans, with creativity and agency.”  

ELSC member Sassy agrees. “I’d like people to realise the joy in stripping,” she says. “I’d also like people to realise that the industry is full of smart, empowered women who just happen to use their sexuality to pay the rent.” 

“The nil policy pushes strip clubs further to the edges of social acceptability, leaving us more vulnerable and marginalised than before,” Stacey says. “I’d like the council to realize that and engage in genuine dialogue with us about how licensing could be improved to protect us, rather than creating a situation where strip clubs are a perceived hazard which the rest of society must be protected from.”

“It’s vital for subcultures to exist, to nurture the next thing in art, dance, music and fashion.” -she adds

The Art of Stripping exhibition will open with a private viewing on Thursday 22nd October, and will remain open to the public until Sat 31st October. You can help support the event here. 

 Lap-dancing clubs in Hull granted licences despite objections

Hull residents have hit out at the council for granting new licences to two city centre lap-dancing clubs.

The Purple Door, in Dock Street, and The Honey Trap, in George Street, were given the go-ahead to continue at a licensing committee meeting yesterday. This caused Hull residents to hit out at the council.
As a proof that their objections are groundless, representatives for Scarlet Lounge Ltd, which runs the Purple Door, said there had been no issues raised since the last application and no objections from businesses in the area or the police.

In granting the licence, councillors agreed that people barely noticed the club’s existence and there had been no issues with antisocial behaviour.

Prior to granting the licences, councillors agreed that the number of lap-dancing clubs in the city centre should be limited to two.

Hustler club has been censored over an ad of a nude woman with the words “the best view in Croydon” 

 Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club, which has been hauled before the Advertising Standards Agency on three previous occasions, was the subject of three complaints after displaying the “offensive, sexist and degrading” advert on a vehicle.

“All of the complainants challenged whether the ad was offensive, sexist and degrading to women,” said an ASA spokesman. “Two of the complainants, who reported seeing the ad in Wimbledon Village on a Saturday and on Clapham High Street and Putney Bridge on consecutive Sundays, challenged whether the ad was unsuitable for public display where it could be seen by children.”

But a club spokesman claimed the advert, showing two fully-clothed men grinning and staring at the woman’s body, was “not sexually suggestive”. Read all contact info about the Hustler club here: https://stripclubguide.com/place/hustler-club-croydon/

Dover Street strip club The Bing says it may move as it reveals plans for Towie style tv show

The Bing strip club in Canterbury could be demolished and replaced by flats designed by award-winning architect Guy Hollaway.

Enterprise Inns has sold the Dover Street building to a Surrey developer who wants to build 20 apartments over three floors.

Club owners father and son Ralph and Alastair Noel are considering their options, which include moving to another venue in Canterbury or going to another part of Kent.

 And they revealed they are also in talks with a production company over a reality TV show about the lives of its dancers.

The Bing, which opened in the autumn of 2013, has 22 years of a 25-year lease remaining and is under no obligation to vacate the building.

Ralph said: “The developer is not forcing us out.

“Should he gain planning permission, he is giving us the opportunity to explore many options.

“If he doesn’t get planning permission, then he has been discussing the idea of expanding the venue. Either way, it’s a very exciting time for us.”