UK Sex Sells News

Channel 4 aired a brand new show Open House: The Great Sex Experiment this week and a few viewers watching couldn't believe some of the scenes that aired as part of the series.

The show involves a host of committed couples staying in a luxury retreat to test whether opening up their relationship to other parties and having sex with other people can strength their connection. Throughout the series, the couples and singletons are given tasks to complete to push the committed participants towards having sex with someone other than their partner.

The Channel 4 show, which is currently in its second series, aired its steamiest episode so far when one couple hosted an after-party which resulted in a group of 15 people having sex with one another.

A few Channel 4 viewers were left 'stunned' as one tweeted:

Film on Sky finished and tv pinged onto #OpenHouse what fresh hell is this?!? I can't believe this is on normal TV.

A High Court judge has ruled that Bournemouth, Christchuch and Poole council was unreasonable to dismiss a woman's moralistic safety concerns as moralistic.

A council's policy on lapdancing and strip clubs was overturned by a high court judge, after a challenge by a sexual abuse survivor who claimed it would have a negative impact on women's safety.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council adopted a new policy in November 2021, which allowed an unlimited number of sexual entertainment venues in the area. The policy also meant there would be a presumption in favour of existing venues having their licence renewed annually.

However, a judge at the high court in London has now ruled in favour of the woman and quashed the decision to adopt the policy, concluding the council had wrongly ignored objections raised against it by dismissing them as moralistic.

Mr Justice Akhlaq Choudhury decided that the woman was deeply concerned about the impact of such venues on the wellbeing and safety of women. She believes they contribute to the objectification of women, and to a climate in which women are routinely subjected to sexual and domestic violence, harassment and discrimination. She also believes the policy would lead to a rise in the number of sexual entertainment venues, resulting in an increase in risks to women's safety and welfare and to abusive and demeaning attitudes to women that are detrimental to relations between the sexes and to sex equality in general.

JoyClub describes itself as sex-positive community for a life of love and lust.

A digital billboard ad for JOYclub, an online sex community, seen in November 2022, in various outdoor locations featured two men and three women lying on top of each other, wearing minimal clothing. At the centre of the image was a woman wearing nipple covers and high cut knickers, exposing her crotch, with each of her legs being held apart by the two men. Large text superimposed in front of the face and body of one of the women said Explore. Connect. Meet. Play. At the bottom of the ad, there was a QR code accompanied by smaller text that stated Explore your kinky side, connect in a safe, respectful space, meet new people and play out your wildest desires.

Three complainants, who believed the ad was overtly sexual, challenged whether the ad was offensive and whether it was irresponsibly targeted because it was displayed in a medium where children could see it.

ASA Assessment: Complaints upheld

The ASA was concerned by F&P GmbH's lack of response and apparent disregard for the Code, which was a breach of CAP Code (Edition 12) rule 1.7 1.7 Any unreasonable delay in responding to the ASA's enquiries will normally be considered a breach of the Code. (Unreasonable delay). We reminded them of their responsibility to provide a response to our enquiries and told them to do so in the future.

The ad was displayed in various outdoor locations in London, which were untargeted media and where the image was likely to be seen by children and adults.

The ad featured a group of men and women lying on top of each other wearing minimal clothing and the woman at the centre of the image was exposing her crotch, with her legs spread apart by the two men. The text stated Explore your kinky side play out your wildest desires. We considered that the positioning of the individuals was likely to be understood as suggestive of group sexual activity. Taking the image of the sexual positioning and the centre woman's exposed crotch, combined with the references to your kinky side and your wildest desires, we considered that the ad was overtly sexual.

We concluded that, because the ad was overtly sexual and was displayed in an untargeted medium where it had the potential to be seen by a large number of people, including children, it was likely to cause serious or widespread offence and was irresponsible. We concluded that the ad was unsuitable for outdoor display and therefore breached the Code.

The ad must not appear again in outdoor advertising.