Sex Clubs in the UK: Recreational Sex, Erotic Diversity and Geographies of Desire

Abstract

Current research has suggested that sex, sexual practices and sexual identities are increasingly being folded into people’s leisure and recreational activities. One area that has witnessed growing popularity has been sex clubs that market themselves as places that enable heterosexual casual, anonymous sexual encounters. Traditionally called swingers’ clubs, these are not strip clubs, lap dancing clubs or brothels, we have very little information about sex clubs or the people who visit them. In response, this article defines what sex clubs are, their geographical locations, and their facilities. Alongside this, through the data scraping of 6837 profiles of people who have visited clubs and left online reviews of the clubs that they have visited, this research provides the most extensive dataset available on the gender, age, relationship status and sexual preferences of sex club patrons. The findings from the study suggest that sex clubs are an emerging space for leisure sex that prioritises erotic practices that stand outside heteronormative norms and values. Whilst clubs have been traditionally associated with swinger communities, the findings in this article also suggest that sex clubs appeal to people with diverse sexual preferences. Alongside this, it highlights the potential ways in which sex clubs may be part of a broader spatialization of leisure sex. The article concludes by suggesting that in a post-Covid context, sex clubs will have increasing importance as places of leisure sex.

“It was protected, except, it wasn’t [with] a condom": a mixed-methods study of BBVs/STIs protective practices among International University Students in Sydney, Australia

“…A large-scale national survey that examined Australian secondary school students’ choices for contraception and STIs prevention showed condom was the choice contraception method among participants [ 15 ]. This finding is supported by a more recent study among a sample of predominantly young women in Australia1 [ 6 ] and by another study among a general Australian sample [ 14 ]. Watson et al reported the use of dual contraceptive methods; which involve condoms and other contraceptives such as pills [ 16 ].…”

“…Both abstinence and partner fidelity could be described as indicators of the more restrictive conservative norms around young people’s sexuality. Therefore, with greater acculturation to the more liberal and less restrictive sexual norms in Western societies [ 5 , 6 , 11 ], abstinence and partner fidelity may become weakened, while casual sex may become more attractive [ 11 , 13 ].…”

“…Though the two sub-regions of focus in this study––East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa––have diverse sexual cultures, they were targeted partly because they both share largely conservative sexual cultures. These conservative cultures are different from the more liberal sexual cultures which are predominant in Western societies such as Australia [ 4 – 6 ]. Even within the context of conservativeness, it is important to acknowledge there are differences in the sexual cultures of East Asian and sub-Saharan African countries and the sex-related experiences of international students from these countries.…”

From the ethnographers' side: escaping rocks and pitfalls in swinger research

“…Writing about swingers was another challenge we faced, not only because swingers' sexual, perhaps objectifying language and sexual practices may be shocking as well as uninteresting for the readers, but also because excluding these descriptions completely would disappoint the members of this community. The struggle to write about the swinger world appropriately would mean that ethnographers must consider topics relevant to swingers, while also toning down the explicit language and descriptions for the readers who may feel uncomfortable (see also Haywood, 2022b).…”

“…This raised questions about who was and was not a swinger and I found that there was a considerable number of people who practiced sex with multiple partners without sharing their partner or without having a partner, as well as people who practiced BDSM; people with polyamorous tendencies without being polyamorous and people in open relationships. The ambiguity of self-identification and this distance in positioning may work as an advantage in swinger research, due to our observation that swinger clubs, like sex clubs (Haywood, 2022a), may facilitate a variety of sexualities and relationship forms.…”