1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:05,360 [Nathan] I'm Nathan Hill, actor, writer, traveler. 3 00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:08,720 And I'm on a world tour to uncover the sexual culture and traditions 4 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 5 00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:11,600 of people in exotic locations all over the globe. 6 00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:14,320 Sex is part of our lives, bodies and minds, 7 00:00:14,360 --> 00:00:16,280 our very existence depends on it. 8 00:00:16,320 --> 00:00:19,320 It is treated and practiced differently in every society. 9 00:00:19,360 --> 00:00:21,040 I'll encounter the extraordinary, 10 00:00:21,080 --> 00:00:24,000 the festive, the tragic, the unseen and the taboo. 11 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:26,560 It's going to be a fascinating ride. 12 00:00:26,600 --> 00:00:29,200 So join me as I lay bare the universal instinct that we all share 13 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:31,560 in sex around the world. 14 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:34,000 [upbeat music] 15 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:37,160 I've just arrived in Melbourne, 16 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:39,440 a burgeoning metropolis of over four million people 17 00:00:39,480 --> 00:00:40,800 and the second largest city in Australia. 18 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:43,360 It's known for its multicultural society, 19 00:00:43,400 --> 00:00:45,240 art precincts, sporting communities, 20 00:00:45,280 --> 00:00:47,880 and exceptional coffee culture, which I hope to sample. 21 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:49,560 I'm told the people here are laid-back 22 00:00:49,600 --> 00:00:51,880 in their attitude towards life, work, 23 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:55,880 and their attitude to sex. In fact, the locals here refer to this island continent 24 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,520 as a lucky country because of the great weather, 25 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:01,360 beautiful beaches, accessible health care, 26 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:03,080 and their opportunities for education. 27 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:04,840 I'm here to explore how the laid-back attitude 28 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:06,720 extends towards sexual behavior, 29 00:01:06,760 --> 00:01:08,480 and how the abundance of erotic stores, 30 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,600 strip clubs, and prostitution has affected this society. 31 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:13,120 I'm going to talk with sex workers, 32 00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:15,600 swingers, a brothel madam, a male escort, 33 00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:18,520 bondage dominatrix, and even local teenagers 34 00:01:18,560 --> 00:01:20,760 to unearth all of Melbourne's sexual culture. 35 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:24,360 And I'm going to start here at the inner city suburb of Richmond, 36 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:26,360 the Passion Fruit Sensuality Shop. 37 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:28,680 It's part of a growing trend, a new type of sex store 38 00:01:28,720 --> 00:01:32,120 that doesn't hide in a dark alley behind black windows. 39 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:33,840 In fact, it's right smack bang in the middle of 40 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:35,800 one of the city's most popular fashion strips. 41 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:37,480 And sure, it's about sex, 42 00:01:37,520 --> 00:01:39,560 but it doesn't run from it and embraces it. 43 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:42,720 [Nathan] The manager, Michelle has agreed to show me around. 44 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:44,800 So, the women that come in are probably women 45 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:47,840 that haven't been into sex shops much before, 46 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:50,040 and would refuse to go into a sex shop. 47 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:51,800 And women need to feel comfortable, 48 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:54,360 they need to, you know, have a nice sort of, 49 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:56,560 a nice shop to browse in and have a look at, 50 00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,360 and maybe not something that's just about sex, 51 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:02,120 that's something that really involves, you know, 52 00:02:02,160 --> 00:02:03,920 everything to do with sex, 53 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:06,400 and that sort of, to me, is more sensual, sort of. 54 00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:08,040 -So, less intimidating... -Yeah. 55 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:10,440 ...as far as your sort of classic sex shop goes. 56 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:12,400 That's part of the philosophy as well, 57 00:02:12,440 --> 00:02:15,240 where sex is more than just the act, 58 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:19,280 it's the anticipation, it's the, you know, 59 00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:21,720 the mind, humor, everything like that. 60 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:24,360 And sensuality, soft things, 61 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:25,680 and lingerie, that kind of thing. 62 00:02:25,720 --> 00:02:27,400 And what have you got out the back? 63 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:29,280 And then we ask people to come and have a look 64 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:32,240 in our back room, so we part the little curtain here. 65 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:33,880 Part of the philosophy too, 66 00:02:33,920 --> 00:02:37,360 was that women should be able to look and feel 67 00:02:37,400 --> 00:02:41,160 before they buy. It's one of the most personal products they'll ever buy. 68 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:44,040 Can you tell us a little bit in more detail how these work? 69 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,680 So I notice you've got-- they call that the rabbit, don't they? 70 00:02:46,720 --> 00:02:49,240 Yeah, these are called the rabbit vibrators. 71 00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:53,840 For example, they have a vibrating clitoral stimulator 72 00:02:53,880 --> 00:02:56,640 and a rotating internal shaft. 73 00:02:56,680 --> 00:02:58,520 So you can use the shaft internally 74 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:01,280 and that generally rotates with beads inside 75 00:03:01,320 --> 00:03:03,080 for a little bit of extra stimulation, 76 00:03:03,120 --> 00:03:06,680 and then you get a little, um, clitoral vibrator here. 77 00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:09,080 So you're getting internal penetration 78 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:12,160 and clitoral external stimulation at the same time. 79 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:14,000 -[Nathan laughs] -So, that's pretty much everything. 80 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:17,560 And this is probably, really where the whole industry 81 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:20,120 is going, towards more luxury toys made 82 00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:21,960 by really good designers. 83 00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:23,480 These are all rechargeable as well, 84 00:03:23,520 --> 00:03:25,080 so there's no need for batteries anymore, 85 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:26,880 you can just charge them up like your phone. 86 00:03:26,920 --> 00:03:29,720 It's beautifully made, you know, it looks gorgeous, 87 00:03:29,760 --> 00:03:31,600 that really makes a big difference to women, 88 00:03:31,640 --> 00:03:33,000 -the look of it. -Okay. 89 00:03:33,040 --> 00:03:34,600 And something like this for example, 90 00:03:34,640 --> 00:03:36,200 which is just a clitoral stimulator. 91 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:38,360 It just looks so lovely, 92 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:40,720 looks like a little massage stone or something, 93 00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:42,760 just hold it in your palm 94 00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:44,680 and you can use it to, um... 95 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:46,960 And men like these as well. 96 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:49,080 -Right. -Yeah, but just to use 97 00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:51,000 while you're having sex, over the clitoris. 98 00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:52,760 Yeah, it's fantastic, quite beautiful, 99 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:55,080 -as well as effective. -[both laughing] 100 00:03:55,120 --> 00:03:56,800 [Nathan] These toys were fun, 101 00:03:56,840 --> 00:03:58,400 but I really wanted to find out from Michelle 102 00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:00,000 what she thought the benefits of the passion 103 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:01,840 for its store were for Melbourne. 104 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:03,800 Well, there's the obvious physical, 105 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:05,600 emotional, spiritual, benefits, 106 00:04:05,640 --> 00:04:08,760 but I just think, um, a healthy sex life 107 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,520 and growing up with a healthy attitude towards sex 108 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:14,600 just probably gives you a bit more respect 109 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:16,160 for yourself and for your partner. 110 00:04:16,200 --> 00:04:18,640 And that's going to lead to better decisions 111 00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,240 and a better person that you'll be. 112 00:04:21,280 --> 00:04:22,760 And that sort of leads to a better, 113 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:24,520 more nourishing society, I guess. 114 00:04:24,560 --> 00:04:26,560 [Nathan] Indeed, sex stores have now entered 115 00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:28,280 the mainstream in Melbourne. 116 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:31,280 The leading example of this mainstreaming of sex shops 117 00:04:31,320 --> 00:04:34,640 is the blossoming 12 store empire known as Sexyland. 118 00:04:34,680 --> 00:04:37,440 In fact, Sexyland describes itself as a department store 119 00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:38,680 where one would normally go in and buy 120 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:40,720 furniture or kitchen goods, 121 00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:43,200 but I'm sure there's nothing as boring as that in there. 122 00:04:44,240 --> 00:04:45,680 -Nice to meet you. -Good to see you. 123 00:04:45,720 --> 00:04:47,320 -Thanks having us. -Not a problem at all. 124 00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:49,800 -Can you give us a tour? -Certainly, come through. 125 00:04:49,840 --> 00:04:52,520 Basically, what it's based on, it's based on 126 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:56,360 very open, and friendly environment, and fun environment. 127 00:04:56,400 --> 00:04:59,280 So, we're talking about, um, first-timers, 128 00:04:59,320 --> 00:05:01,960 and starting out using products in the store. 129 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:04,200 You said that the oils were a good starting point. 130 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:06,880 That's right, oils and body chocolates as well. 131 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:08,760 So you can-- that's chocolate paste, 132 00:05:08,800 --> 00:05:11,880 -you can actually lick off. -Yeah, either sauce, 133 00:05:11,920 --> 00:05:13,600 or this one, which has a little brush, 134 00:05:13,640 --> 00:05:16,280 and you actually paint it on and then eat it off. 135 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:18,480 -Cool. -[both laughing] 136 00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:19,720 Okay, so new products, 137 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:21,960 we have the Tickler Treat, 138 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:23,840 can you go into a bit of detail? 139 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:26,680 Basically this is a range of dongs and anal toys, 140 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:29,400 um, they're made out, um, of silicon. 141 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:31,720 Basically what that means is that the toy's non-porous 142 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:33,720 and it's very safe for your body. 143 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:35,960 So just looking at the star performer series here. 144 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:37,280 -Yeah. -Um. 145 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:39,280 Women actually use these? 146 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:41,640 Well, we don't actually ask these things, 147 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:43,320 what they do with them once they buy them. 148 00:05:43,360 --> 00:05:45,200 Right, okay, so these have intrigued me. 149 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:48,600 You've got nearly $600 for Bree Olsen's 150 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:51,720 Cyber Skin Doggy-style Vibrating Pussy and Ass. 151 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:53,800 -That's right, that's right. -Interesting, 152 00:05:53,840 --> 00:05:56,480 so, we're talking-- what are these made out of, are they latex? 153 00:05:56,520 --> 00:05:58,280 Uh, no, they're actually made out of cyber skin, 154 00:05:58,320 --> 00:06:00,040 -exactly what you said. -Right. 155 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:02,680 And it's a really, really, uh, nice feeling material. 156 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:05,200 It feels as close to human skin as possible. 157 00:06:05,240 --> 00:06:07,880 -My goodness. -And that one's actually been molded off Bree Olson 158 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:09,400 who's an adult star. 159 00:06:09,440 --> 00:06:11,120 As far as customer demographics go, 160 00:06:11,160 --> 00:06:12,520 is it more men than women? 161 00:06:12,560 --> 00:06:15,000 Really with the age group, 162 00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:19,120 anything from young adults right up to elderly. 163 00:06:19,160 --> 00:06:20,720 -Okay, really, wow! -I had a couple who was 164 00:06:20,760 --> 00:06:22,400 -over 70, so I would say... -Okay. 165 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:24,640 ...that's elderly, yeah, and everything in between. 166 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:27,120 Given that the business is booming, um, 167 00:06:27,160 --> 00:06:29,920 in your opinion does, does Melbourne have a 168 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:33,840 more liberal or conservative idea to the industry? 169 00:06:33,880 --> 00:06:37,120 Yeah, I think everyone is really welcoming, 170 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:38,880 um, even when I say where I work, 171 00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:40,600 people are really happy to know, 172 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:42,880 and they're really intrigued, and they want to know. 173 00:06:42,920 --> 00:06:44,920 And most people are happy to come into the store. 174 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:46,920 -This is much more like a supermarket. -Correct. 175 00:06:46,960 --> 00:06:48,520 -It's white light... -This is quite a bit different. 176 00:06:48,560 --> 00:06:50,600 -...everyone is open about it. -That's right. 177 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:52,720 Are customers like that? They come and they're very open? 178 00:06:52,760 --> 00:06:55,000 Absolutely. They're very open about it and they're comfortable 179 00:06:55,040 --> 00:06:56,720 because it is exactly what you explained, 180 00:06:56,760 --> 00:06:58,600 that it is bright and it's, 181 00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:00,960 um, well, it's not dark and dingy, 182 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:03,440 and it's not blacked-out windows. I mean, we have 183 00:07:03,480 --> 00:07:05,800 latest lingerie fashion in our windows. 184 00:07:05,840 --> 00:07:08,520 No newspapers blacking out the windows, no. 185 00:07:08,560 --> 00:07:11,680 There's-- all these items are basically creative, 186 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:14,760 and they're here to help people in their relation-- 187 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:19,080 Relationships are really hard to maintain, so any little bit helps. 188 00:07:19,120 --> 00:07:21,520 So, what do you think the benefits are of having a Sexyland 189 00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:23,320 where people can come in and buy these products? 190 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:24,680 What are long-term benefits 191 00:07:24,720 --> 00:07:25,600 of having an establishment like this? 192 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:27,120 The more happy people, 193 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:30,240 probably the better for the community. 194 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:34,040 I'll likely sell mostly things that would make people happy, 195 00:07:34,080 --> 00:07:37,400 whether they're on their own or whether they're as a couple. 196 00:07:38,360 --> 00:07:41,520 I think, probably the more happy people the better. [chuckles] 197 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:44,240 So, if sex really is all around, becoming more prevalent, 198 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:45,840 how do Melburnians feel about it? 199 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:47,720 What is the social impact? 200 00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:49,000 I'm here to meet with local writer 201 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:50,760 and sex expert, Claire Halliday. 202 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:52,920 Hopefully she can shed some light on the subject. 203 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:56,680 I think we're kind of secretly, sexually conservative, 204 00:07:56,720 --> 00:07:59,720 and we're sort of forced to live in a society that, um, 205 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:01,680 wants us to believe that we're sexually liberal. 206 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:03,560 So we do have this plethora of, you know, 207 00:08:03,600 --> 00:08:06,840 sex stores, and brothels, and things like that, 208 00:08:06,880 --> 00:08:08,800 but, you know, try asking somebody 209 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:10,680 if they've been to one, or, you know, 210 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:12,360 and get an honest answer. 211 00:08:12,400 --> 00:08:14,880 They might be there, but nobody wants to admit 212 00:08:14,920 --> 00:08:17,040 that they, you know, utilize the services. 213 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:20,120 So in that way, we're sexually conservative, I guess, 214 00:08:20,160 --> 00:08:21,520 obviously people are using them. 215 00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:23,480 They wouldn't be on every corner 216 00:08:23,520 --> 00:08:26,080 -if they weren't making profits. -Sure. 217 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:29,080 But I think, you know, nobody's really going to own up to, 218 00:08:29,120 --> 00:08:30,480 you know, visiting a brothel. 219 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:33,440 Are you shocked at the, uh, information 220 00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:35,920 that's so available to your own kids? 221 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:37,840 I'm not particularly shocked by anything anymore, 222 00:08:37,880 --> 00:08:39,560 because I've spent a lot of years 223 00:08:39,600 --> 00:08:41,600 researching different aspects of the sex industry, 224 00:08:41,640 --> 00:08:44,280 and I've seen and heard all kinds of things 225 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:46,640 that make me kind of unshockable at the moment. 226 00:08:46,680 --> 00:08:48,120 But in terms of my own children, 227 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:50,200 I think there is a lot of information out there 228 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:53,480 that, um, I'm disappointed in, that, you know, 229 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:56,360 like I said, the articles in "Girlfriend," 230 00:08:56,400 --> 00:08:58,040 teaching you how to have safe anal sex. 231 00:08:58,080 --> 00:09:01,280 I don't want my daughter to read that when she's 13. 232 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:03,320 So, they're making it more acceptable 233 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:05,200 or look like it should be the norm. 234 00:09:05,240 --> 00:09:07,880 Yeah, and obviously that's been sold to them, 235 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:11,440 you know, on a societal, on a broader societal level, 236 00:09:11,480 --> 00:09:13,680 I guess, from, you know, the stream 237 00:09:13,720 --> 00:09:15,920 of sexualized material that is just in your face, 238 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:17,600 especially in the last ten years. 239 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:20,960 We're giving kids today so much sexualized material, 240 00:09:21,000 --> 00:09:23,080 yet sex education in schools is lacking, 241 00:09:23,120 --> 00:09:25,480 so we're throwing all this sexualized material at them, 242 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:26,840 we're not giving them the context 243 00:09:26,880 --> 00:09:28,840 to properly understand it. 244 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:31,040 and while we're teaching them the nuts and bolts of the mechanics 245 00:09:31,080 --> 00:09:33,680 of what goes where, I don't think we're teaching them 246 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:37,960 the emotional, um, aspects and, you know, 247 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:42,200 how to make good choices, and respect, and things like that. 248 00:09:42,240 --> 00:09:44,440 So, Claire, just on a final note, 249 00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:46,240 what do you hope your book, 250 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:48,400 "Do You Want Sex With That?" um, will achieve? 251 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:51,520 So I'm hoping that anybody reading the book, 252 00:09:51,560 --> 00:09:53,200 it might just make them think more, 253 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:55,480 it might just make them look at what's going on, 254 00:09:55,520 --> 00:09:58,000 you know, around us as a society, 255 00:09:58,040 --> 00:10:00,200 and question whether they think it's gone too far. 256 00:10:00,240 --> 00:10:02,920 And if they do think that then, you know, what do we do next? 257 00:10:02,960 --> 00:10:05,440 I just want people to look more closely 258 00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:06,960 at what we're being fed, 259 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:09,240 and maybe question if it's the right thing, 260 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:10,920 and what we can do about it. 261 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:12,560 [Nathan] Claire painted a picture of Melbourne 262 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:15,560 as very confused about its sexual identity. 263 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:18,040 But in a city that considers itself sophisticated, 264 00:10:18,080 --> 00:10:20,560 cosmopolitan, and intellectual, is it compatible? 265 00:10:20,600 --> 00:10:23,000 But here on King Street in the middle of the CBD, 266 00:10:23,040 --> 00:10:24,280 there are mega strip clubs that cater 267 00:10:24,320 --> 00:10:26,240 to thousands of men every night, 268 00:10:26,280 --> 00:10:30,480 with names like Showgirls Bar 20, Club X, Crazyhorse, 269 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:32,960 even the international franchise, Spearmint Rhino. 270 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:35,960 I'm told it's built on a long entrenched party culture 271 00:10:36,000 --> 00:10:39,160 of after works drinks and pre-wedding bucks nights. 272 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:41,880 [Nathan] Stripper, or exotic dancer if you prefer, Honey, 273 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:43,360 has agreed to talk with me. 274 00:10:43,400 --> 00:10:45,520 [Nathan] Why did you choose this as a job 275 00:10:45,560 --> 00:10:47,760 compared to, you know, other jobs? 276 00:10:47,800 --> 00:10:50,000 Well, sort of the pay, 277 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:53,000 because I'm living on my own with my younger brother, 278 00:10:53,040 --> 00:10:54,960 and I have to raise him and everything. 279 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:57,920 so, I just thought I'd start 280 00:10:57,960 --> 00:10:59,680 doing this stripper job, it's good money. 281 00:10:59,720 --> 00:11:01,040 How did you feel when you did 282 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:02,880 your first dance live on stage? 283 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:05,480 Well, I felt a lot of butterflies, 284 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:08,120 and I'm like, "Oh, my God, what am I doing up here? 285 00:11:08,160 --> 00:11:12,400 How am I going to do this?" Like, you know, you've got so many people watching you. 286 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:14,720 But I just said, "Okay, I got to be confident," 287 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:16,840 and one of the other strippers that was teaching me said, 288 00:11:16,880 --> 00:11:20,360 "Just be confident, do the job, and you'll get through it." So, yeah. 289 00:11:20,400 --> 00:11:22,640 Do you make a lot of money in this profession? 290 00:11:22,680 --> 00:11:24,480 Like, at the end of the week, do you go, "Hmm"? 291 00:11:24,520 --> 00:11:26,480 Are you satisfied with the cash, with cash pot? 292 00:11:26,520 --> 00:11:29,160 Yeah, yeah, I am satisfied with the cash that I'm getting, 293 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:31,480 um, but it does go, it's not like-- 294 00:11:31,520 --> 00:11:33,840 everyone's like, "Oh, you're a stripper, you're rich." 295 00:11:33,880 --> 00:11:36,200 And it's like, "But it does go on things," 296 00:11:36,240 --> 00:11:39,040 do you know what I mean? Like, you've got to buy your make ups, 297 00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:42,480 and you got to cut off the products that you need for yourself. 298 00:11:42,520 --> 00:11:44,800 Do your family and friends, and I bet this, I mean, obviously, 299 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,440 -your younger brother, he knows what you do? -Yeah, my younger brother does. 300 00:11:47,480 --> 00:11:49,880 Do your friends know, or do you have friends that have got no idea? 301 00:11:49,920 --> 00:11:51,640 [Honey] I've got a few friends that know and a few 302 00:11:51,680 --> 00:11:53,800 friends that have no idea and I won't tell them. 303 00:11:53,840 --> 00:11:56,000 I know which ones will stick by me, 304 00:11:56,040 --> 00:11:57,960 and which ones understand, and which ones don't. 305 00:11:58,000 --> 00:12:00,200 So the ones that do understand that, I'll tell. 306 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:02,760 So there is a stigma then, because there's some people you won't tell 307 00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:04,000 because you're scared of their reaction? 308 00:12:04,040 --> 00:12:05,280 -[Honey] Exactly, yeah. -Okay. 309 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:06,960 And my parents don't know either, so. 310 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:08,040 -They don't? -No. 311 00:12:08,080 --> 00:12:09,320 How do you find the customers, 312 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:11,160 the males, how do they treat you? 313 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:13,840 Um, you get a lot of-- I've had a lot of respect for, like, 314 00:12:13,880 --> 00:12:17,080 guys that haven't tried to do anything to me, or anything, or disrespect me, 315 00:12:17,120 --> 00:12:19,160 but you get, sometimes you get sleazes in there 316 00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:20,880 trying to take photos of you. 317 00:12:20,920 --> 00:12:22,520 -Oh, yeah? -So that's the part 318 00:12:22,560 --> 00:12:24,360 -where it's-- -On their mobile phones, 319 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:26,080 and trying to shoot a video or something? 320 00:12:26,120 --> 00:12:28,880 -Yeah. -Do the customers proposition you for sex 321 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:31,120 after a show or during the night? 322 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:33,120 Do you get guys coming on to you? 323 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:34,720 Yeah, yeah, I've had a few guys that ask, 324 00:12:34,760 --> 00:12:36,160 "Do you want to come hang with me? 325 00:12:36,200 --> 00:12:37,520 A thousand dollars, two thousand," like, 326 00:12:37,560 --> 00:12:38,960 you know, your money's not worth it, 327 00:12:39,000 --> 00:12:40,800 it's only the dance, do you know what I mean? 328 00:12:40,840 --> 00:12:44,040 It's like, that's as far as I'll go, a dance, so. 329 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:45,400 So you don't cross the line there? 330 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:46,800 No, [chuckles] no way. 331 00:12:46,840 --> 00:12:49,240 What about your long-term career prospects? 332 00:12:49,280 --> 00:12:51,000 Like, do you want to stay here until finish uni? 333 00:12:51,040 --> 00:12:52,480 Is this the sort of job you'll keep going? 334 00:12:52,520 --> 00:12:54,040 Yes, I want to keep going, 335 00:12:54,080 --> 00:12:56,720 so I want to keep, like, doing this, 336 00:12:56,760 --> 00:12:59,120 but I want to pay, like, help it pay off 337 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:00,920 my studies and everything. 338 00:13:00,960 --> 00:13:02,960 [Nathan] Honey is a dancer at Maxine's, 339 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:04,440 an establishment that belongs to 340 00:13:04,480 --> 00:13:06,160 the queen of Melbourne's adult industry 341 00:13:06,200 --> 00:13:09,360 and a high-profile social identity, Maxine Fensom. 342 00:13:10,440 --> 00:13:14,160 In a business dominated by men, Maxine bucks the trend. 343 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:16,280 Not only is she the city's biggest provider 344 00:13:16,320 --> 00:13:18,480 of private strip services and dancers, 345 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:22,240 she also runs five erotic websites, an escort service, 346 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:24,560 started the Australian adult industry awards, 347 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:27,120 and even campaigned for Parliament. 348 00:13:27,160 --> 00:13:28,760 But perhaps she'd like me to introduce her 349 00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:31,480 in the words she uses to describe herself, 350 00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:33,520 the Queen of pussy. 351 00:13:33,560 --> 00:13:35,000 [Nathan] Maxine you have a fascinating story, 352 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:36,720 please share with us some of your journey. 353 00:13:36,760 --> 00:13:38,840 Well, basically, I fell into this business, 354 00:13:38,880 --> 00:13:40,440 and if anyone said that I was going to work 355 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:42,000 in this sort of industry I would have said, 356 00:13:42,040 --> 00:13:44,760 "No, I don't think so." So, I saw an ad in the-- 357 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:47,120 one of the papers and they wanted a topless waitress, 358 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:49,520 and I, "Umm'd" and, "Ah'd" for about three weeks. 359 00:13:49,560 --> 00:13:52,840 I eventually plucked up the courage and went for an interview. 360 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:55,640 I had to show this dirty old man my boobs, 361 00:13:55,680 --> 00:13:58,640 and of course I got the job, stayed there a week. 362 00:13:58,680 --> 00:14:01,320 And he was doing like, these like, these lunches, 363 00:14:01,360 --> 00:14:05,240 and I thought, "God, I could do that." And I could do it, you know, kind of nicer. 364 00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:07,920 And I knew lots of men, so that's how Maxine started. 365 00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:10,200 Then I started, like, a stripping agency. 366 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:12,080 And then prostitution became legal, 367 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:13,960 so then I applied for a license. 368 00:14:14,000 --> 00:14:17,040 I was one of the first people to get an escort agency license, 369 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:18,880 so then I did that, 370 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:21,040 and then I started doing lots of events as well, 371 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:26,480 like Dildorama, Miss Nude, Miss Dream Girl, Miss Erotica. 372 00:14:26,520 --> 00:14:28,520 I founded the Adult Industry Awards 373 00:14:28,560 --> 00:14:30,120 which is 11 years strong. 374 00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:31,560 I've been here for three and a half years, 375 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:33,400 great girls, good staff, good management, 376 00:14:33,440 --> 00:14:35,120 all female management too, I might add. 377 00:14:35,160 --> 00:14:38,000 And to be honest, that's why I like it, um. 378 00:14:38,040 --> 00:14:39,920 But it's, it's a family atmosphere, 379 00:14:39,960 --> 00:14:42,400 it's a very friendly environment here. 380 00:14:42,440 --> 00:14:44,960 What state is the adult industry 381 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:46,480 in, in Melbourne, do you think? 382 00:14:46,520 --> 00:14:48,560 Well, I think we're all sort of struggling 383 00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:49,920 just to keep our head above water, 384 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:51,120 just on a political level. 385 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:52,280 The police are fairly, 386 00:14:52,320 --> 00:14:53,600 have been fairly heavy-handed 387 00:14:53,640 --> 00:14:55,440 with the adult industry. 388 00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:57,520 And I think that's the struggle for all of us 389 00:14:57,560 --> 00:14:59,000 on a day-to-day basis, 390 00:14:59,040 --> 00:15:01,600 and just the red tape and the bureaucracy 391 00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:04,040 of running at this sort of legal business. 392 00:15:04,080 --> 00:15:07,400 People have no understanding, particularly politicians about 393 00:15:07,440 --> 00:15:09,920 how this business is, they're afraid, 394 00:15:09,960 --> 00:15:13,120 they don't want to know about it, so they kind of penalize us. 395 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:16,600 You know, it's hard when, you know, we're open-minded people 396 00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:19,600 and we just want to run our business, and then you've got people who don't understand 397 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:21,200 our business, and all they want to do 398 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:23,200 is, um, basically close it down. 399 00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:25,040 So as far as the adult industry is concerned, 400 00:15:25,080 --> 00:15:26,200 do you believe it has a positive 401 00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:27,760 or negative effect on society? 402 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:30,840 I think, um, myself it's positive. 403 00:15:30,880 --> 00:15:32,080 Well, you know, it's employment, 404 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:34,440 it's a legally run business, 405 00:15:34,480 --> 00:15:37,360 uh, it's run by a woman as far as my business. 406 00:15:37,400 --> 00:15:39,240 And I think, you know, girls can come in here 407 00:15:39,280 --> 00:15:41,400 and make a lot of money as long as they're focused, 408 00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:43,080 and, you know, give yourself five years, 409 00:15:43,120 --> 00:15:44,720 and make some money and buy, you know, 410 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:47,800 a portfolio of houses and set yourself up. 411 00:15:47,840 --> 00:15:50,000 [upbeat music] 412 00:16:01,160 --> 00:16:02,680 You only have to spend a night in Melbourne 413 00:16:02,720 --> 00:16:05,080 to realize it as an energetic party scene. 414 00:16:05,120 --> 00:16:07,360 You see, alcohol is available from age 18. 415 00:16:07,400 --> 00:16:09,760 And every weekend, teenagers and 20-somethings 416 00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:12,760 pour into the city to drink and dance the night away. 417 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:14,760 Some of them even end up at recovery parties, 418 00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:17,680 which might seem like a contradiction, but I'm assured it's not. 419 00:16:17,720 --> 00:16:20,640 But you see Melbourne is also a maze of lane-ways, 420 00:16:20,680 --> 00:16:22,440 and alleys, and sometimes it's hard 421 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:24,160 to find the right club to go to 422 00:16:24,200 --> 00:16:25,960 unless you're in the know. 423 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:28,240 But luckily tonight for us, we're in the know 424 00:16:28,280 --> 00:16:30,880 and we're heading off to trendy Baroque House. 425 00:16:32,080 --> 00:16:33,920 [club music] 426 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:48,840 What's a normal Saturday night like here 427 00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:52,800 as far as, um, meeting someone's concerned, or picking up? 428 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:54,400 -Picking up? -[laughing] 429 00:16:54,440 --> 00:16:56,840 I don't know, there's a lot to choose from here. 430 00:16:56,880 --> 00:16:58,560 There's a lot more girls though, isn't it, than guys? 431 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:00,200 -At the moment, yes, yeah. -Yeah. 432 00:17:00,240 --> 00:17:02,360 Which is probably a good thing, you know. 433 00:17:02,400 --> 00:17:05,120 So, what time does this place go till? 434 00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:07,880 I don't know, maybe, like four, four-thirty. 435 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:09,160 And you're here every Saturday? 436 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:10,320 -Yeah. -Yeah. 437 00:17:10,360 --> 00:17:11,640 Yeah, awesome! 438 00:17:11,680 --> 00:17:13,360 How do you find the sexual culture 439 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:14,920 in Melbourne as a whole? 440 00:17:15,840 --> 00:17:17,720 I would-- Melbourne's very liberated. 441 00:17:17,760 --> 00:17:21,120 And is picking up the main thing here at Baroque House? 442 00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:24,720 Uh, you would think so, if you look around tonight, 443 00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:26,480 there's plenty of women here for the men. 444 00:17:26,520 --> 00:17:29,520 And, uh, I think 90% of people, what they come out for 445 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:31,280 is to pick up ladies, 446 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:32,800 and they got ladies to pick up the guys, so. 447 00:17:32,840 --> 00:17:34,440 To have more sex and have more fun, 448 00:17:34,480 --> 00:17:37,000 that's what I would say, that's all! [laughs] 449 00:17:37,040 --> 00:17:40,400 [club music] 450 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:53,200 -How you going? -Hi! 451 00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:54,760 -What's your name? -Paula. 452 00:17:54,800 --> 00:17:56,080 -Paula? -Yeah. 453 00:17:56,120 --> 00:17:57,320 -How are you? -Good, how are you? 454 00:17:57,360 --> 00:17:58,440 -I'm great. -What's your name? 455 00:17:58,480 --> 00:17:59,560 My name's Nathan. 456 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:00,880 Can you tell me what you think 457 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:02,400 about sexual culture in Melbourne? 458 00:18:02,440 --> 00:18:07,320 I think these days people are sluts, like real bad. 459 00:18:07,360 --> 00:18:09,920 Like, you buy a girl two drinks and she's like, 460 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:12,200 "Yeah, I'll bang you," but, like, 461 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:14,280 it's fucking wrong, yeah? Yeah. 462 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:17,040 That's interesting. How many guys do you have hit on you 463 00:18:17,080 --> 00:18:18,640 when you go out on any particular night, 464 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:20,440 -like, on a Saturday night? -Countless. 465 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:21,640 -Yeah? -Yeah. 466 00:18:21,680 --> 00:18:24,200 Do you think that alcohol and drugs 467 00:18:24,240 --> 00:18:27,400 plays a big part in sexual culture in Melbourne? 468 00:18:27,440 --> 00:18:30,600 'Cause once you're high, free love! 469 00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:31,880 Yeah! [laughs] 470 00:18:31,920 --> 00:18:33,880 Thank you so much for your time. 471 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:36,160 Thank you, nice to meet you. 472 00:18:36,200 --> 00:18:38,040 What do you think about same-sex picking up? 473 00:18:38,080 --> 00:18:40,000 Like, do you know, like, do many of your girlfriends 474 00:18:40,040 --> 00:18:41,320 or yourself ever pick up girls? 475 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:43,960 I think when girls go out together 476 00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:45,680 they're more affectionate than guys, 477 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:47,200 so they kind of fool around and that, 478 00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:48,520 and it's just for kicks, 479 00:18:48,560 --> 00:18:50,560 like, they don't, you know, 480 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:52,640 it doesn't usually mean anything. 481 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:55,680 But then again it is awkward when you kiss a girl 482 00:18:55,720 --> 00:18:58,760 and they are a lesbian, that's a little bit awkward. 483 00:18:58,800 --> 00:19:00,560 -The kind of people-- -[Nathan] I also had a chance 484 00:19:00,600 --> 00:19:03,640 to talk to Darren, who is organizing tonight's club event, 485 00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:07,000 and ask him about the sexual culture in Melbourne. 486 00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:10,000 ...you know, that's the environment that we're running here. 487 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:12,320 It's making sure that everyone can meet who they want to meet, 488 00:19:12,360 --> 00:19:14,360 and make sure they can have fun while they do it, 489 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:16,320 but certainly there's a lot of that sexual activity 490 00:19:16,360 --> 00:19:19,000 in Melbourne, it's just whether you know about it or not. 491 00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:21,560 People are out there every week and they're meeting new people. 492 00:19:21,600 --> 00:19:23,760 I think people are a lot more active than they let off. 493 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:26,280 Do you think alcohol and/or drugs 494 00:19:26,320 --> 00:19:29,000 is a big influence towards a sexual culture, 495 00:19:29,040 --> 00:19:31,680 and sexual exploration that goes down in the city? 496 00:19:31,720 --> 00:19:33,400 Yeah, well, another great question. 497 00:19:33,440 --> 00:19:36,920 You see, there's a lot of guys who are into the drugs 498 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:39,080 and a lot of girls follow that about them, 499 00:19:39,120 --> 00:19:42,880 so, you know, it's sometimes sad to see what some people would do 500 00:19:42,920 --> 00:19:44,200 to be part of that experience, 501 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:45,960 but I'm think it does by a huge part, 502 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:47,560 probably more than we think, 503 00:19:47,600 --> 00:19:50,280 but, um, certainly, you know behind closed doors, 504 00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:51,520 anyone can do what they like. 505 00:19:51,560 --> 00:19:53,360 [club music] 506 00:20:06,920 --> 00:20:09,040 [Nathan] The idea of teenagers bumping into each other 507 00:20:09,080 --> 00:20:10,240 on the dance floor is a little too tame 508 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:12,000 for some people's tastes. 509 00:20:12,040 --> 00:20:13,560 You see, there's a thriving underground 510 00:20:13,600 --> 00:20:15,080 swingers culture here in Melbourne 511 00:20:15,120 --> 00:20:17,240 that dates back to the 1960s. 512 00:20:17,280 --> 00:20:18,640 So, we're going to head out into the suburbs 513 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:20,480 to talk to the host of Club True Blue, 514 00:20:20,520 --> 00:20:23,560 one of Melbourne's longest-running swingers clubs. 515 00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:25,320 -Welcome, Nathan. -Thanks, guys. 516 00:20:25,360 --> 00:20:28,120 This is where we hold our parties, Club True Blue. 517 00:20:28,160 --> 00:20:30,680 Can you tell us about the club itself and how it began? 518 00:20:30,720 --> 00:20:35,160 Well, we started the, uh, parties back in, well, 2000 now, 519 00:20:35,200 --> 00:20:36,760 so it's ten years or so. 520 00:20:36,800 --> 00:20:38,440 So you obviously enjoy it because-- 521 00:20:38,480 --> 00:20:40,080 -the length it's been going. -[laughing] 522 00:20:40,120 --> 00:20:41,960 It looks like it actually has to be couples? 523 00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:45,240 -Yeah, it's only couples that we... we run for, yeah. -Okay. 524 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,040 -Just for swinging couples. -I suppose the history of swinging is couples. 525 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:49,520 -It is couples. -Yeah, yeah. 526 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:51,200 I mean, we occasionally as in singles, 527 00:20:51,240 --> 00:20:53,120 single ladies but not single men. 528 00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:55,360 You seem to attract all sorts of people 529 00:20:55,400 --> 00:20:58,200 from all different walks of life and, uh... 530 00:20:58,240 --> 00:21:00,000 Yeah, there's nothing really specific 531 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:01,840 that you'd say that there's a certain type of person. 532 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:03,880 But you guys are obviously comfortable, 533 00:21:03,920 --> 00:21:05,920 but perhaps more comfortable even physically 534 00:21:05,960 --> 00:21:07,360 than a lot of other people. 535 00:21:07,400 --> 00:21:11,000 After speaking for a female perspective, um, 536 00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:13,680 you know, a lot of women, they have body issues, and all the rest of it. 537 00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:16,760 The parties have really helped me overcome that, 538 00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:18,840 because everyone, sort of, when they dress down, 539 00:21:18,880 --> 00:21:20,440 they're walking around in lingerie or nothing. 540 00:21:20,480 --> 00:21:24,160 And no one cares what you look like, um. 541 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:26,480 -So there's not pretentiousness-- -No, not at all. 542 00:21:26,520 --> 00:21:28,280 It's a comfortable environment, and everybody here 543 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:30,280 -are thinking the same way. -Exactly. 544 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,040 I suppose, the best way, for when I describe it to first timers, 545 00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:35,400 is like going to a friend's place for a party. 546 00:21:35,440 --> 00:21:37,360 All very friendly, very relaxed, very casual, 547 00:21:37,400 --> 00:21:39,000 just obviously with the added extra. 548 00:21:39,040 --> 00:21:40,440 -Yeah. -Yeah, yeah. 549 00:21:40,480 --> 00:21:41,680 [Nathan] I really wanted to find out 550 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:43,240 why couples engage in swinging, 551 00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:45,000 and to answer this, David and Julie 552 00:21:45,040 --> 00:21:47,480 took me to their bedroom. 553 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:49,040 Because I think it's a natural part of life, 554 00:21:49,080 --> 00:21:51,040 as in, we all enjoy the sex, 555 00:21:51,080 --> 00:21:53,560 and, um, for the fact that you can 556 00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:55,120 experience it with your partner, 557 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:56,880 we all have different fantasies and so forth. 558 00:21:56,920 --> 00:22:00,640 One partner might not be able to, um, provide all that, 559 00:22:00,680 --> 00:22:02,520 where-- and then you get people that are cheating, 560 00:22:02,560 --> 00:22:04,360 and have affairs, and go behind our backs, 561 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:05,880 and have all these secrets and things 562 00:22:05,920 --> 00:22:07,800 to try and live that life, whereas you don't, 563 00:22:07,840 --> 00:22:10,360 you don't need to in this sort of lifestyle. 564 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:12,000 You can enjoy everything you want. 565 00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:13,400 It's all very open and honest. 566 00:22:13,440 --> 00:22:15,760 So, if you could run us through a normal, 567 00:22:15,800 --> 00:22:17,040 normal night here for the events, 568 00:22:17,080 --> 00:22:18,760 how they unfold from start to finish. 569 00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:21,360 What would we expect if we came down on our first time? 570 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:24,760 When people first arrive, either David or myself will show people into the house. 571 00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:28,440 We'll show them around, um, introduce them to all the other people that are here, 572 00:22:28,480 --> 00:22:30,120 and then usually for about the first hour, 573 00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:31,960 hour and a half, very social. 574 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:33,680 People have a few drinks, mix and mingle. 575 00:22:33,720 --> 00:22:36,640 We've got a spa set up out in our garage. 576 00:22:36,680 --> 00:22:39,840 Um, then after that time people will dress down, 577 00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:41,040 whatever they're comfortable wearing, 578 00:22:41,080 --> 00:22:43,040 lingerie, erotic gear, 579 00:22:43,080 --> 00:22:45,480 and head off into the rooms for a bit of fun. 580 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:47,840 Then about-- and after an hour or so, 581 00:22:47,880 --> 00:22:49,960 people will come up for some fresh air... [chuckles] 582 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:52,160 ...have a few drinks, sort of freshen themselves up, 583 00:22:52,200 --> 00:22:53,960 and then the evenings usually finish up 584 00:22:54,840 --> 00:22:56,240 one thirty-ish, thereabouts. 585 00:22:56,280 --> 00:22:58,160 How is it that you are strong enough 586 00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:02,440 and are able to overcome the, uh, feeling of jealousy? 587 00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:05,520 For one, we have a very open and straightforward relationship. 588 00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:08,520 There's no, no need to have any, any doubts, 589 00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:10,680 or secrets, or anything like that. 590 00:23:10,720 --> 00:23:13,960 So, for me, I can talk to Julie about anything, 591 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:16,040 and I think for most people that are in the lifestyle, 592 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:17,920 I think it seems to be the same way. 593 00:23:17,960 --> 00:23:20,320 They have a very open and strong relationship, 594 00:23:20,360 --> 00:23:22,400 so the jealousies may be there, 595 00:23:22,440 --> 00:23:25,640 but they don't really, um, you know, create any issues. 596 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:27,400 I find that, you know, they're the sort of things 597 00:23:27,440 --> 00:23:30,560 that create problems for, uh, couples, 598 00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:32,120 is when you've got those sort of restrictions, 599 00:23:32,160 --> 00:23:33,560 and one doesn't match the other, 600 00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:35,320 and you're not living a happy lifestyle, 601 00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:37,480 everything's going to get in the way 602 00:23:37,520 --> 00:23:39,680 and create problems, you know. I think this way you can live 603 00:23:39,720 --> 00:23:42,080 an open and honest relationship 604 00:23:42,120 --> 00:23:44,280 that, um, you're both very close 605 00:23:44,320 --> 00:23:47,720 -and comfortable with each other. -I suppose you're not ever then 606 00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:50,080 worried that someone's going to cheat eventually. 607 00:23:50,120 --> 00:23:52,280 -No, not really. -It's not there. 608 00:23:52,320 --> 00:23:54,360 It's actually, uh, more encouraged 609 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:57,760 to, uh, have those desires and, um, fantasies, 610 00:23:57,800 --> 00:24:02,040 and experiment with them, more so than try and keep it from your partner. 611 00:24:02,080 --> 00:24:04,240 It's really about encouraging to be involved. 612 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:06,200 I think our whole culture and our lifestyles 613 00:24:06,240 --> 00:24:09,520 are starting to open up, and become more aware, 614 00:24:09,560 --> 00:24:11,960 and, uh, focused on what we want and so forth. 615 00:24:12,000 --> 00:24:14,280 And that really, I suppose, 616 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:16,080 attracts people to this sort of lifestyle. 617 00:24:16,120 --> 00:24:17,880 [Julie] Yeah, and we don't go door knocking. 618 00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:20,680 [laughs] No, we don't. 619 00:24:20,720 --> 00:24:22,480 -They'll come and knock here. -Maybe we should? 620 00:24:22,520 --> 00:24:24,320 -Well. -[both laughing] 621 00:24:24,360 --> 00:24:26,360 Thank you so much for your time guys, it's been great. 622 00:24:26,400 --> 00:24:27,720 -You're welcome, -Pleasure, thank you. 623 00:24:27,760 --> 00:24:29,160 -Lovely to talk. -Thank you so much. 624 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:30,480 My experience has taught me 625 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:31,960 that most people find the idea 626 00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:34,320 of swapping their partner for sex unappealing. 627 00:24:34,360 --> 00:24:35,760 I'm here to speak with Dr. Janet Horn, 628 00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:37,480 or Dr. Jan as she likes to be called, 629 00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:40,200 who's a clinical psychologist, relationship expert, 630 00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:42,280 and has written dozens of books on sex. 631 00:24:42,320 --> 00:24:43,720 I'm hoping she can help me understand 632 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:45,600 the idea behind swingers parties, 633 00:24:45,640 --> 00:24:49,240 and the health behind Melbourne's diverse sexual culture. 634 00:24:49,280 --> 00:24:50,800 [Nathan] What do you believe is the modern 635 00:24:50,840 --> 00:24:52,400 sexual attitude in Melbourne? 636 00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:56,200 Well, I think that sex nowadays is anything goes, 637 00:24:56,240 --> 00:24:59,560 and whereas in other, um, eras 638 00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:02,440 might have said the same in the, you know, 1920s, uh, 639 00:25:02,480 --> 00:25:04,880 nowadays women are not repressed 640 00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:06,360 in the ways that they were. 641 00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:08,520 And in fact they now say that 642 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:12,240 oral all sex is the new goodnight kiss. 643 00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:15,480 So, I'm fascinated with how young people in particular 644 00:25:15,520 --> 00:25:18,280 hook up and have sex with strangers. 645 00:25:18,320 --> 00:25:21,720 Do you think that men become addicted to sex, uh, 646 00:25:21,760 --> 00:25:23,720 because it's a good-- it's used as a stress relief? 647 00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:26,640 I think a lot of men use sex as a de-stress, 648 00:25:26,680 --> 00:25:30,000 and they will go to something like a prostitute, 649 00:25:30,040 --> 00:25:33,080 or online, or a swinging situation 650 00:25:33,120 --> 00:25:36,480 because, um, they've got no obligation 651 00:25:36,520 --> 00:25:38,760 to express themselves emotionally, 652 00:25:38,800 --> 00:25:40,280 but they get that release 653 00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:42,520 because of the sexual gratification. 654 00:25:42,560 --> 00:25:44,880 And there's release, relief, 655 00:25:44,920 --> 00:25:46,720 um, and then there's sort of some space 656 00:25:46,760 --> 00:25:48,400 emotionally for them. 657 00:25:48,440 --> 00:25:50,400 And, um, then they're on the rollercoaster 658 00:25:50,440 --> 00:25:52,160 because next time they feel the pressure, 659 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:54,840 the stress, it's like, "Aw, what made me feel good last time 660 00:25:54,880 --> 00:25:57,480 was sexual expression, let's go get it again." 661 00:25:57,520 --> 00:25:59,080 The next minute, they're addicted. 662 00:25:59,120 --> 00:26:00,480 This is different for women though, isn't it? 663 00:26:00,520 --> 00:26:03,000 Because women, uh, can we say, 664 00:26:03,040 --> 00:26:05,000 feel pleasure in perhaps a slightly different way? 665 00:26:05,040 --> 00:26:08,160 I think that, um, there really isn't, um, 666 00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:11,160 the same opportunities for women. Sure, there's online sex, 667 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:14,160 but most women would be quite satisfied with their vibrator. 668 00:26:14,200 --> 00:26:16,840 -[chuckles] -And, um, you know, even older women now 669 00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:19,560 have discovered how easy it is 670 00:26:19,600 --> 00:26:22,440 to use a vibrator to have an orgasm, so. 671 00:26:22,480 --> 00:26:26,240 You know, it's like for them, um, in the moment 672 00:26:26,280 --> 00:26:28,560 they have their own way of getting off, 673 00:26:28,600 --> 00:26:31,080 and, um, they're happy enough with that. 674 00:26:31,120 --> 00:26:33,280 They don't need the complications. 675 00:26:33,320 --> 00:26:35,600 Is Melbourne considered sexually healthy, um, 676 00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:37,200 in relation to other countries? 677 00:26:38,640 --> 00:26:41,200 Well, you know, we have the stereotypes around countries, 678 00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:43,440 you know, like in Holland, and Amsterdam, 679 00:26:43,480 --> 00:26:44,560 and the red-light district 680 00:26:44,600 --> 00:26:46,080 just being really, really, open. 681 00:26:46,120 --> 00:26:49,320 And Melbourne doesn't really have the same, 682 00:26:49,360 --> 00:26:52,280 the King's Cross that they might have in Sydney, 683 00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:54,680 but I think that particularly for young people, 684 00:26:54,720 --> 00:26:58,760 um, that hook up, um, ability, it's happening worldwide. 685 00:26:58,800 --> 00:27:01,160 Obviously with that though also comes more problems, 686 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:03,360 more STIs, more STDs. 687 00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:06,000 Well, yes, safe sex really is, you know, 688 00:27:06,040 --> 00:27:08,520 the be-all, end-all, or should be. 689 00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:10,600 But, uh, there are so many people 690 00:27:10,640 --> 00:27:12,800 who also do the bare-backing 691 00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:15,240 that could put them in, you know, 692 00:27:15,280 --> 00:27:17,680 severe, at severe health risks. 693 00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:21,280 Um, I think that, just, it's often fueled by alcohol or drugs. 694 00:27:21,320 --> 00:27:24,800 I was just about to say that. Do you think that in Melbourne that, um, 695 00:27:24,840 --> 00:27:27,560 you know, sexual freedom or experimentation 696 00:27:27,600 --> 00:27:29,880 is fueled by intoxication? 697 00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:32,920 Well, I think in Melbourne and every other place of the world 698 00:27:32,960 --> 00:27:38,640 that, you know, once it-- there's some kind of, um, substance being enjoyed, 699 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:40,560 um, then inhibitions go down 700 00:27:40,600 --> 00:27:44,240 and, um, sexual expression becomes easy. 701 00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,360 That seems to be the culture here, is that people will go out 702 00:27:46,400 --> 00:27:48,360 on the weekend after they've worked all week, 703 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:50,360 they'll drink until their tipsy or drunk, 704 00:27:50,400 --> 00:27:52,280 and then they'll have the booty calls, 705 00:27:52,320 --> 00:27:53,480 or they'll try and pick up. 706 00:27:53,520 --> 00:27:54,840 And the one-night stands 707 00:27:54,880 --> 00:27:56,640 -are quite, uh, popular. -Absolutely. 708 00:27:56,680 --> 00:27:59,160 I mean, I had a young girl, she was only 23 709 00:27:59,200 --> 00:28:00,760 and gorgeous, like a little fairy. 710 00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:02,840 She was just really, really pretty, 711 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:05,480 great figure. And she said, "I've never had an orgasm." 712 00:28:05,520 --> 00:28:07,360 And I said, "Oh well, tell me about, 713 00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:08,560 you know, your partners." 714 00:28:08,600 --> 00:28:10,440 And she said, "I've lost count." 715 00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:12,840 I said, "What happened?" She said, "I go out on Friday night, 716 00:28:12,880 --> 00:28:14,960 get drunk, and then end up 717 00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:17,640 having sex with somebody." And I said, "Why?" 718 00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:20,560 -And she said, "Well, you just do it." -[Nathan lightly chuckles] 719 00:28:20,600 --> 00:28:22,560 [upbeat music] 720 00:28:25,280 --> 00:28:27,400 American comedian Billy Crystal once said, 721 00:28:27,440 --> 00:28:28,800 "Women need a reason to have sex, 722 00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:30,400 men just need a place." 723 00:28:30,440 --> 00:28:32,200 Well, if you live in Melbourne you're in luck. 724 00:28:32,240 --> 00:28:35,280 The city has had legal prostitution since 1986, 725 00:28:35,320 --> 00:28:37,000 and illegal massage parlors 726 00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:39,080 existed for over a century before that. 727 00:28:39,120 --> 00:28:41,800 There are currently about a hundred registered brothels in town, 728 00:28:41,840 --> 00:28:43,600 and today I'm at the biggest one of them all. 729 00:28:43,640 --> 00:28:45,640 The world-renowned Daily Planet. 730 00:28:45,680 --> 00:28:47,160 It's so successful it's even listed 731 00:28:47,200 --> 00:28:48,880 on the Australian Stock Exchange. 732 00:28:51,080 --> 00:28:55,480 The Daily Planet is, um, Melbourne's, um, oldest 733 00:28:55,520 --> 00:28:58,480 and certainly among the largest registered, 734 00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:02,160 licensed brothel in the southern hemisphere. 735 00:29:02,200 --> 00:29:05,640 Um, we are registered here for 18 rooms 736 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:07,920 to be able to use for prostitution. 737 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:09,840 Okay, wow, can you give us a tour? 738 00:29:09,880 --> 00:29:11,440 We certainly can, off we go. 739 00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:15,760 -Each room has, um, a name. -Right. 740 00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:18,600 And we're just now going to see the Mediterranean. 741 00:29:18,640 --> 00:29:19,760 The Mediterranean. 742 00:29:25,600 --> 00:29:30,920 -Oh, wow, okay. -This is the largest room that we have, um, in the brothel 743 00:29:30,960 --> 00:29:33,840 with the three, um, the three beds, 744 00:29:33,880 --> 00:29:35,840 and it has the largest spa. 745 00:29:35,880 --> 00:29:38,640 -Um, we call this a party room. -Okay. [chuckles] 746 00:29:38,680 --> 00:29:42,960 It is available to just, um, a couple if they want, 747 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:47,200 but if there are, um, gentlemen wanting 748 00:29:47,240 --> 00:29:49,200 to have, you know, two ladies, 749 00:29:49,240 --> 00:29:51,280 or two gentlemen here with two ladies, 750 00:29:51,320 --> 00:29:53,480 we usually allocate them to this room. 751 00:29:53,520 --> 00:29:56,520 [Nathan] And what about the hygiene issues? 752 00:29:56,560 --> 00:30:00,480 Well, we run under very strict, um, regulations here. 753 00:30:00,520 --> 00:30:04,520 All of the towels, beds, sheets, et cetera, um, 754 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:08,560 of course are constantly changed and washed. 755 00:30:08,600 --> 00:30:10,200 And as far as infections go and stuff like that, 756 00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:12,440 are the women tested regularly? 757 00:30:12,480 --> 00:30:14,960 By law they're required to be tested. 758 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:17,480 They have, um, swabs done and have to give us 759 00:30:17,520 --> 00:30:19,440 a medical certificate every month. 760 00:30:19,480 --> 00:30:21,240 -Right. -And they also have to have 761 00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:24,000 blood for HIV, et cetera, 762 00:30:24,040 --> 00:30:26,840 and at the moment that's on a three monthly basis. 763 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:28,760 [Nathan] The Daily Planet also has a strict 764 00:30:28,800 --> 00:30:32,080 no sexual contact without a condom rule, 765 00:30:32,120 --> 00:30:36,560 to ensure the health of both its workers and its customers. 766 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:39,200 The girls each have favorite rooms, 767 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:41,360 you know, that they're-- they like to use. 768 00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:43,600 Some of them like to use the smaller ones, 769 00:30:43,640 --> 00:30:46,840 some of them are happier in, um, the slightly larger ones. 770 00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:49,200 Okay, nice shower though, nice beds, 771 00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:52,000 -and obviously a beautiful spa. -A beautiful spa. 772 00:30:52,040 --> 00:30:54,840 [Nathan] Gayle seemed a most unlikely brothel madam 773 00:30:54,880 --> 00:30:58,280 and she had an endearing sense of humor about the job. 774 00:30:58,320 --> 00:31:01,480 -Mirrors on the roof. -Mirrors on the ceiling, 775 00:31:01,520 --> 00:31:04,440 they're not necessarily always a good look. 776 00:31:04,480 --> 00:31:06,320 As you look up you probably think, 777 00:31:06,360 --> 00:31:09,640 "Good God, I didn't realize I looked that bad." 778 00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:13,280 -[both laughing] -Oh, wow. 779 00:31:13,320 --> 00:31:15,040 [Nathan] But I really wanted to find out more 780 00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:18,200 about the girls that worked at The Daily Planet. 781 00:31:18,240 --> 00:31:20,520 Gayle, how many women are working here at any one time? 782 00:31:20,560 --> 00:31:22,800 During the daytime we only, um, 783 00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:25,000 we perhaps average six to eight 784 00:31:25,040 --> 00:31:28,520 between ten o'clock in the morning till 8 o'clock at night. 785 00:31:28,560 --> 00:31:31,880 Um, of an evening we certainly have more come on duty. 786 00:31:31,920 --> 00:31:33,880 On Friday and Saturday nights 787 00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:37,040 we have 30-plus ladies on duty at any one time. 788 00:31:37,080 --> 00:31:38,920 And how long would any girl be working? 789 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:42,160 They can choose to do as many shifts as they like, 790 00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:44,160 but we watch that. 791 00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:47,120 If someone is doing a lot of shifts 792 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:49,040 and doing a lot of bookings, 793 00:31:49,080 --> 00:31:52,480 um, whereas that's great for us that they're here, 794 00:31:52,520 --> 00:31:55,560 it sometimes is not necessarily the best thing for the girl. 795 00:31:55,600 --> 00:31:58,400 -And how old? What age range are we looking at? -Um... 796 00:32:00,040 --> 00:32:02,320 Well, they range from 18, 797 00:32:02,360 --> 00:32:03,800 because it's certainly illegal 798 00:32:03,840 --> 00:32:05,560 to be here under that age. 799 00:32:05,600 --> 00:32:08,440 And I think the lady, the oldest lady 800 00:32:08,480 --> 00:32:12,960 that, um, we have that comes in, is in her early 50s. 801 00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:14,160 Hmm, okay, wow. 802 00:32:14,200 --> 00:32:16,800 [Gayle] I personally think that, 803 00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:20,480 um, it's a very difficult job that they do, 804 00:32:20,520 --> 00:32:23,040 um, and I've spoken to some of them about it, 805 00:32:23,080 --> 00:32:28,120 how do they actually manage to, um, be normal? 806 00:32:28,160 --> 00:32:30,000 -Um-- -how do they function outside? 807 00:32:30,040 --> 00:32:32,920 Function outside-- um, when you do the job that they do. 808 00:32:32,960 --> 00:32:35,360 And they have different ways of approaching it. 809 00:32:35,400 --> 00:32:39,600 Um, all the ladies that I certainly know that work here, 810 00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:44,480 um, they're very upbeat. Um, they're happy 811 00:32:44,520 --> 00:32:46,800 with what they're doing because they've chosen to do it. 812 00:32:46,840 --> 00:32:49,760 -Okay, right. -It's their choice, um, 813 00:32:49,800 --> 00:32:52,680 how they, um, conduct their lives, um-- 814 00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:54,880 Right, so you wouldn't have a girl that works here 815 00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:57,320 who comes in, who hates it, that doesn't want to be here? 816 00:32:57,360 --> 00:32:59,240 -I don't believe so, no. -Okay. 817 00:32:59,280 --> 00:33:03,120 Some of them they said, like, they really like sex. 818 00:33:03,160 --> 00:33:05,720 It doesn't serve the purposes. If she really hates it, 819 00:33:05,760 --> 00:33:09,480 it would reflect in the service that you gave to the client. 820 00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:13,080 You can hardly be really hating what you're doing 821 00:33:13,120 --> 00:33:14,680 and give good service. 822 00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:17,240 What is the most times a girl's booked clients 823 00:33:17,280 --> 00:33:19,040 in one night that you know of? 824 00:33:20,320 --> 00:33:24,040 Probably the most I've seen is 12. 825 00:33:24,080 --> 00:33:26,080 -Wow. -12 hours. 826 00:33:26,120 --> 00:33:28,600 -12, so 12 clients in 12 hours? -Yes. 827 00:33:28,640 --> 00:33:31,600 Gayle, what would you say is the future of The Daily Planet? 828 00:33:31,640 --> 00:33:33,880 Do you think this is a place that will be long-standing? 829 00:33:33,920 --> 00:33:36,560 Do you think it'll be here in ten years? 830 00:33:36,600 --> 00:33:38,840 I believe it would be here in ten years, 831 00:33:38,880 --> 00:33:41,640 in 20 years, maybe even in 30 years. 832 00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:46,520 This industry, um, and there's lots and lots 833 00:33:46,560 --> 00:33:47,960 of brothels in Melbourne, 834 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:50,840 they exist because there's a need for it. 835 00:33:50,880 --> 00:33:53,840 It's not like we make clients come in, 836 00:33:53,880 --> 00:33:56,400 they come in because they have a need. 837 00:33:56,440 --> 00:33:57,920 -Right. -Um. 838 00:33:57,960 --> 00:34:00,760 They've had the same need for a long, long time. 839 00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:02,360 And I can't see in the future 840 00:34:02,400 --> 00:34:04,280 why that will alter. 841 00:34:04,320 --> 00:34:06,720 So as they say, the longest-running profession. 842 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:09,760 -That it is, is quite correct. -Okay. 843 00:34:09,800 --> 00:34:11,360 [dramatic music] 844 00:34:15,680 --> 00:34:18,760 [Nathan] But not all sex work is as glamorous as the Daily Planet. 845 00:34:19,800 --> 00:34:23,200 Here on notorious Grey Street, in the beach-side suburb of St Kilda, 846 00:34:23,240 --> 00:34:27,360 desperate girls ply their trade nightly, risking health and safety. 847 00:34:27,400 --> 00:34:30,320 It stands in stark comparison to the sleek cocktail bars 848 00:34:30,360 --> 00:34:33,720 and expensive restaurants that are within a stone's throw of this corner. 849 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:35,160 A rather dark underbelly 850 00:34:35,200 --> 00:34:36,680 to the city's polished exterior. 851 00:34:49,640 --> 00:34:52,120 [Nathan] Of course, it's not just heterosexuals that are interested 852 00:34:52,160 --> 00:34:54,040 in paying for sexual pleasure. 853 00:34:54,080 --> 00:34:57,640 There is a booming industry here for same-sex male escorts. 854 00:34:57,680 --> 00:35:02,400 I'm here to meet with Alex, who's a male gigolo, about his encounters and experiences. 855 00:35:02,440 --> 00:35:05,360 He's agreed to do the interview as long as we meet in a public place, 856 00:35:05,400 --> 00:35:07,160 so I'm not entirely sure he's going to show up, 857 00:35:07,200 --> 00:35:08,960 but fingers crossed. 858 00:35:12,520 --> 00:35:15,360 -Alex, thanks for coming. -Hi. 859 00:35:15,400 --> 00:35:17,840 -So you're originally from Thailand? -Yes, I'm from Thailand. 860 00:35:17,880 --> 00:35:21,600 Can you tell us how you got the initial idea to become an escort? 861 00:35:22,600 --> 00:35:26,240 Um, because of my visa, it's very hard to get a job 862 00:35:26,280 --> 00:35:30,240 and get out the schools salary, or well-paid, 863 00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:31,840 because if I work in a restaurant, 864 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:34,880 like, work really hard, like, we get just like, 865 00:35:34,920 --> 00:35:38,640 uh, $10 per-- a, an hour. 866 00:35:39,640 --> 00:35:41,440 I feel like I did that before 867 00:35:41,480 --> 00:35:42,720 and then it makes me sick, 868 00:35:42,760 --> 00:35:44,240 or maybe I find something else. 869 00:35:44,280 --> 00:35:45,640 And then, "How about just sex?," 870 00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:49,400 because I like to have sex on... too. 871 00:35:49,440 --> 00:35:51,960 -[laughs] -So as far as clientele is concerned, 872 00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:55,120 what is expected of you or from you within your services? 873 00:35:55,160 --> 00:35:57,520 Definitely he expect sex from me, 874 00:35:57,560 --> 00:36:01,400 but, um, but we can't have sex like whole days. 875 00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:05,240 Uh, some clients, they're going to do like a day 876 00:36:05,280 --> 00:36:06,720 or a whole night client. 877 00:36:06,760 --> 00:36:09,960 They just like to have a good company 878 00:36:10,000 --> 00:36:12,280 with someone, and just talking, and, like, happy. 879 00:36:12,320 --> 00:36:14,160 Now we just spend a time with, 880 00:36:14,200 --> 00:36:15,680 and just make them happy, 881 00:36:15,720 --> 00:36:18,440 and then just sex just once time, that's it. 882 00:36:18,480 --> 00:36:21,240 Do you charge a lot of money by the hour? 883 00:36:21,280 --> 00:36:24,360 -How much do you charge? -I'll charge a lot because 884 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:26,000 I don't want to work that much. 885 00:36:26,040 --> 00:36:31,320 And I just up my rate to $300 for an hour. 886 00:36:31,360 --> 00:36:33,880 And do you, uh, just work in the one city, 887 00:36:33,920 --> 00:36:36,480 or do you have clients that fly you around Australia? 888 00:36:36,520 --> 00:36:39,680 I got once, I'm-- they're from Gold Coast. 889 00:36:39,720 --> 00:36:42,880 Yeah, they come to holiday here 890 00:36:42,920 --> 00:36:44,600 and then they ask me to go back with them. 891 00:36:44,640 --> 00:36:48,080 And in a Gold Coast for three days, 892 00:36:48,120 --> 00:36:49,640 and they pay me per days, 893 00:36:49,680 --> 00:36:52,240 like, 2,000 something per day. 894 00:36:52,280 --> 00:36:54,640 -$2,000 a day? -Yeah. 895 00:36:54,680 --> 00:36:56,920 And do you practice safe sex? 896 00:36:56,960 --> 00:36:58,040 Yes, always. 897 00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:02,520 Except, [laughs] I service my boyfriend's, 898 00:37:02,560 --> 00:37:04,680 he's someone I know very well. 899 00:37:04,720 --> 00:37:07,080 And your boyfriend know what you do as an escort? 900 00:37:07,120 --> 00:37:09,720 -Yes. -And he's comfortable with that? 901 00:37:09,760 --> 00:37:11,000 He's my client. [laughs] 902 00:37:11,040 --> 00:37:12,160 -Really? -Yeah. 903 00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:14,600 -Wow, okay, interesting. -[laughs] 904 00:37:14,640 --> 00:37:16,800 Um, it sounds like a weird question, 905 00:37:16,840 --> 00:37:18,320 but do you enjoy what you do? 906 00:37:18,360 --> 00:37:20,560 If you got a right client, like, 907 00:37:21,440 --> 00:37:24,640 not really old, I'm sorry, like, 908 00:37:24,680 --> 00:37:29,640 not, uh, really ugly and like still have the good, uh, sex, 909 00:37:29,680 --> 00:37:31,880 or hot sex, we still enjoy good sex. 910 00:37:31,920 --> 00:37:34,880 But sometime we have to take care, like, 911 00:37:34,920 --> 00:37:36,480 "Sorry, like, very old 912 00:37:36,520 --> 00:37:39,440 and... fat," and something like that, 913 00:37:39,480 --> 00:37:43,840 is quite, we have to force ourselves to do that, uh. 914 00:37:43,880 --> 00:37:45,480 Okay. 915 00:37:45,520 --> 00:37:47,000 [Nathan] Meeting Alex has got me interested in 916 00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:49,480 a type of gay dating scene that exists here, 917 00:37:49,520 --> 00:37:51,520 so I'm going to go and check out Wet on Wellington, 918 00:37:51,560 --> 00:37:55,080 which has been described as Melbourne's finest gay pool and sauna. 919 00:37:55,120 --> 00:37:58,000 If you're a heterosexual you probably don't even know the place exists 920 00:37:58,040 --> 00:38:00,040 and would never have seen the inside. 921 00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:02,760 We're going to go and have a look before the doors open for trade. 922 00:38:02,800 --> 00:38:05,520 -G'day, Shane. -G'day, Nathan, welcome to Wet On Wellington. 923 00:38:05,560 --> 00:38:07,960 Thank you. So can you tell us a bit about the establishment? 924 00:38:08,000 --> 00:38:09,960 Yeah, Wet On Wellington is a venue 925 00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:12,240 that's designed for gay and bisexual men. 926 00:38:12,280 --> 00:38:14,480 Uh, it's a, it's a safe house, if you like, 927 00:38:14,520 --> 00:38:16,640 where they can come and enjoy the company 928 00:38:16,680 --> 00:38:22,160 of like-minded men, um, in an area that, um, affords them 929 00:38:22,200 --> 00:38:26,200 the freedom to be able to feel good about themselves 930 00:38:26,240 --> 00:38:28,040 and enjoy the facilities. 931 00:38:28,080 --> 00:38:30,280 Our venue is probably rated as 932 00:38:30,320 --> 00:38:31,920 probably number one in Australia, 933 00:38:31,960 --> 00:38:34,560 and probably within the top five or six of the world. 934 00:38:34,600 --> 00:38:36,600 We have a 25 meter swimming pool. 935 00:38:36,640 --> 00:38:38,920 We have saunas, bar and steam rooms. 936 00:38:38,960 --> 00:38:42,640 We have in a theater room that plays, um, the latest DVDs. 937 00:38:42,680 --> 00:38:44,800 Computer area, people can come here 938 00:38:44,840 --> 00:38:46,600 and use the Internet free of charge, 939 00:38:46,640 --> 00:38:50,000 so even for $20 entry you could basically 940 00:38:50,040 --> 00:38:52,360 sit, sit down all day on the Internet if you want. 941 00:38:52,400 --> 00:38:54,880 So, if you come here and you don't find someone that 942 00:38:54,920 --> 00:38:58,520 isn't to your liking, you can jump on the Net and invite them down. 943 00:38:58,560 --> 00:39:02,040 So it's very relaxed and it's like you cater for all type of situations. 944 00:39:02,080 --> 00:39:04,080 Absolutely. Being gay and say, closeted 945 00:39:04,120 --> 00:39:06,440 where you're not out to society, 946 00:39:06,480 --> 00:39:09,760 you're quite limited to where you can go, you know, 947 00:39:09,800 --> 00:39:12,240 be it a bar or something like that, to meet like-minded people, 948 00:39:12,280 --> 00:39:14,080 even just to talk. 949 00:39:14,120 --> 00:39:17,280 You can come in here and you know that whoever you talk to, 950 00:39:17,320 --> 00:39:19,320 you're not going to get a smack in the ear. 951 00:39:19,360 --> 00:39:21,440 [Nathan] I asked Shane to show me around upstairs, 952 00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:23,600 which has quite a reputation. 953 00:39:23,640 --> 00:39:26,480 It is totally different to the downstairs. 954 00:39:26,520 --> 00:39:30,280 Uh, upstairs we have cubicles and, um, play areas 955 00:39:30,320 --> 00:39:31,800 for people to cruise around 956 00:39:31,840 --> 00:39:33,400 and do what they do best. 957 00:39:33,440 --> 00:39:34,960 -How do you say that? -[Nathan laughs] 958 00:39:35,800 --> 00:39:38,960 -Every room has condoms and lube. -Mm-hmm. 959 00:39:39,880 --> 00:39:41,480 -How many rooms are up here, Shane? -31? 960 00:39:41,520 --> 00:39:44,400 -31. -Yeah, it's not for sleeping in. 961 00:39:44,440 --> 00:39:46,840 [chuckles] Have a look at this. 962 00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:50,480 -[Shane] What about for yourself? -[laughs] 963 00:39:50,520 --> 00:39:52,640 So, a bit of role-playing goes along here. 964 00:39:52,680 --> 00:39:54,360 We call this a heavy duty room. 965 00:39:54,400 --> 00:39:57,240 All right, it does look heavy-duty. 966 00:39:57,280 --> 00:39:59,400 -It does, yeah. -Mm. 967 00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:01,840 This area here is the Suckitaurium. 968 00:40:01,880 --> 00:40:04,080 Right, and what is the Suckitaurium? 969 00:40:04,120 --> 00:40:06,120 There's only one way to tell you. 970 00:40:06,160 --> 00:40:08,000 Basically, if you go into the top area, 971 00:40:08,040 --> 00:40:09,520 shove your dick through a hole, 972 00:40:09,560 --> 00:40:11,360 and it's my head height. 973 00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:13,320 So you just want to have a look in say, the first one there. 974 00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:14,680 [Shane] See the hole here? 975 00:40:17,720 --> 00:40:19,920 -[Shane calling from outside] -[Nathan] Oof. 976 00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:22,520 -Wow. -[Shane] A large group play area. 977 00:40:22,560 --> 00:40:24,560 What's, what type of scenario-- 978 00:40:24,600 --> 00:40:27,480 what's a regular scenario that would happen in in this room? 979 00:40:27,520 --> 00:40:30,600 Um, group playing, basically. 980 00:40:30,640 --> 00:40:33,600 Just people wanting to get together in a group. 981 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:35,640 -That's quite popular. -Okay. 982 00:40:35,680 --> 00:40:37,600 Much to people's disbelief, 983 00:40:37,640 --> 00:40:39,920 -people do like playing in groups. -Yeah. 984 00:40:39,960 --> 00:40:42,200 The difference with the two porn lounges... 985 00:40:43,040 --> 00:40:47,920 is, this one we play a younger style of porn, 986 00:40:47,960 --> 00:40:50,840 and in the back one we play more of a heavy duty, 987 00:40:50,880 --> 00:40:55,960 so more of a manly type porn up there, younger type stuff here. 988 00:40:56,000 --> 00:41:00,800 We don't, um, play anything that shows bare-backing, 989 00:41:00,840 --> 00:41:02,880 in other words, sex without condoms, 990 00:41:02,920 --> 00:41:08,160 and we don't play, uh, any films that show any form of violence. 991 00:41:08,200 --> 00:41:09,320 -Right-- -It's all-- 992 00:41:09,360 --> 00:41:10,400 So, no sexual violence? 993 00:41:10,440 --> 00:41:11,840 No sexual violence. 994 00:41:11,880 --> 00:41:13,840 [Shane] We have our code of conduct here 995 00:41:13,880 --> 00:41:15,240 that people must abide by. 996 00:41:15,280 --> 00:41:16,880 And they're written in such a way that 997 00:41:16,920 --> 00:41:18,400 people are meant to understand, 998 00:41:18,440 --> 00:41:20,120 "No," means, "No." 999 00:41:20,160 --> 00:41:22,000 -Great. -Very, very simple. 1000 00:41:22,040 --> 00:41:24,040 We push the safe sex rule all the time, 1001 00:41:24,080 --> 00:41:26,080 although you can't be there watching everyone, 1002 00:41:26,120 --> 00:41:27,480 you know, it's important part of our days lives 1003 00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:29,400 whether you're straight or gay. 1004 00:41:29,440 --> 00:41:32,360 [Nathan] What sort of clients do you have come here? 1005 00:41:32,400 --> 00:41:36,040 Monday to Friday, 85% of people 1006 00:41:36,080 --> 00:41:38,200 -that don't identify as gay. -Mm-hmm. 1007 00:41:38,240 --> 00:41:42,240 On weekends, it's, uh, probably 80% 1008 00:41:42,280 --> 00:41:44,360 that do identify as gay. 1009 00:41:44,400 --> 00:41:46,240 People that party at other venues 1010 00:41:46,280 --> 00:41:49,120 and then come here for a relaxation afterwards, 1011 00:41:49,160 --> 00:41:51,520 uh, for winding down, um, 1012 00:41:51,560 --> 00:41:53,160 or people that just come here to have sex. 1013 00:41:53,200 --> 00:41:55,400 So do people class the venue as a brothel? 1014 00:41:55,440 --> 00:41:58,200 No, they don't. Um, and it's totally 1015 00:41:58,240 --> 00:41:59,960 far removed from a brothel. 1016 00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:01,880 The difference with ourselves and a brothel is 1017 00:42:01,920 --> 00:42:04,880 with a brothel, you pay for sex. 1018 00:42:04,920 --> 00:42:08,840 Here you're paying an entrance fee to use the facilities. 1019 00:42:08,880 --> 00:42:11,760 If by chance you meet someone 1020 00:42:11,800 --> 00:42:14,240 and you choose to have sex with them, 1021 00:42:14,280 --> 00:42:16,720 then that's totally void of us 1022 00:42:16,760 --> 00:42:18,560 organizing it or doing anything like that. 1023 00:42:18,600 --> 00:42:21,640 We really are running a totally straight up and down venue, 1024 00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:26,640 uh, for the benefit of gay and bisexual people just to enjoy themselves. 1025 00:42:26,680 --> 00:42:29,880 [Nathan] Wet On Wellington was fascinating, but I was about to embark 1026 00:42:29,920 --> 00:42:32,040 on an even more interesting adventure. 1027 00:42:32,080 --> 00:42:34,680 -[lighthearted music] -The famous French sexual sadist, 1028 00:42:34,720 --> 00:42:37,440 the Marquis de Sade wrote, "It is always by way of pain 1029 00:42:37,480 --> 00:42:39,080 that one arrives at pleasure," 1030 00:42:39,120 --> 00:42:40,920 and out here at this little quiet pocket of Melbourne 1031 00:42:40,960 --> 00:42:43,440 at what looks like a fairly nondescript warehouse, 1032 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:45,520 but it's far more than that. To someone walking past, 1033 00:42:45,560 --> 00:42:48,240 they'd have no idea that is in fact a dungeon. 1034 00:42:48,280 --> 00:42:51,160 So I'm going to put my inhibitions on hold and take a peek inside. 1035 00:42:51,200 --> 00:42:53,240 -Hi, it's nice to meet you. -Thanks for having us. 1036 00:42:53,280 --> 00:42:54,960 -Welcome to Fetish House. -Thank you so much. 1037 00:42:55,000 --> 00:42:56,440 And I'll give you a bit of a tour. 1038 00:42:56,480 --> 00:42:57,960 Please do, that'll be great. 1039 00:42:58,000 --> 00:42:59,600 [Nathan] Dominatrix Mistress Emmeline 1040 00:42:59,640 --> 00:43:01,600 has offered to show me around Fetish House, 1041 00:43:01,640 --> 00:43:04,360 a six room bondage dungeon that offers services 1042 00:43:04,400 --> 00:43:07,320 for the more sexually adventurous. 1043 00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:10,240 To start, we have our cross-dressing room... 1044 00:43:10,280 --> 00:43:11,960 -Okay. -...Which is kitted out with 1045 00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:13,760 pretty much every costume you could ever need. 1046 00:43:13,800 --> 00:43:16,040 -[Nathan] Oh, right. -We've got regular women's clothing 1047 00:43:16,080 --> 00:43:17,520 as well as the more fetish sort of things, 1048 00:43:17,560 --> 00:43:19,000 if you like to dress up as a schoolgirl, 1049 00:43:19,040 --> 00:43:21,440 or a police officer, or anything you like. 1050 00:43:21,480 --> 00:43:24,120 Someone will come in and they'll have a fantasy 1051 00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:27,560 about, um, being taught how to walk like a woman, how to speak... 1052 00:43:27,600 --> 00:43:30,120 -Oh, right. -...how to dress, how to walk in heels, 1053 00:43:30,160 --> 00:43:34,040 which is harder than most of them think. [laughs] And, yeah, they just get dressed up. 1054 00:43:34,080 --> 00:43:36,800 And, yeah, it's just the perfect atmosphere to get organized and girly. 1055 00:43:36,840 --> 00:43:39,160 [Nathan] Activities such as role play, torture, 1056 00:43:39,200 --> 00:43:42,560 and domination, are actively promoted and recommended. 1057 00:43:42,600 --> 00:43:45,600 And Mistress Emmeline loves every minute of it. 1058 00:43:45,640 --> 00:43:47,640 -Dungeon three. -Yes. 1059 00:43:47,680 --> 00:43:49,240 This has got the bondage bed 1060 00:43:49,280 --> 00:43:51,040 so you can actually lock people up in there, 1061 00:43:51,080 --> 00:43:52,960 make sure they don't go anywhere. 1062 00:43:53,000 --> 00:43:55,720 Um, the suspension rack in here is very popular. 1063 00:43:55,760 --> 00:43:57,600 But I like to call it the slave of fortune 1064 00:43:57,640 --> 00:43:59,440 because you can spin people around on it. 1065 00:43:59,480 --> 00:44:02,000 -Okay, the slave of fortune. -Yeah, it's a slave of fortune. 1066 00:44:02,040 --> 00:44:04,760 -Wow. -You just get strapped in and enjoy the ride. 1067 00:44:04,800 --> 00:44:08,560 -So it's very medieval. -It is, yeah, a lot of the torture and, 1068 00:44:08,600 --> 00:44:11,440 um, you know, discipline is all based around the medieval. 1069 00:44:11,480 --> 00:44:13,680 [Nathan] Don't think I want to get locked up in that! 1070 00:44:13,720 --> 00:44:15,560 Well, that's half the fun [Emmeline laughs] 1071 00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:17,840 -That's what people come in for. -You can spend some time 1072 00:44:17,880 --> 00:44:19,520 in there if you've been a bad puppy. 1073 00:44:19,560 --> 00:44:21,760 -[Nathan] Mm-hmm, alright. -This is probably 1074 00:44:21,800 --> 00:44:24,880 my favorite room. This is the medical room. 1075 00:44:24,920 --> 00:44:28,200 It's, um, all authentic, everything from the naughty nurse 1076 00:44:28,240 --> 00:44:30,280 through the suturing. And for example, 1077 00:44:30,320 --> 00:44:32,200 you can suture the skin, 1078 00:44:32,240 --> 00:44:35,440 so a man no longer appears to have a penis, 1079 00:44:36,280 --> 00:44:38,640 so that can be part of the cross-dressing 1080 00:44:38,680 --> 00:44:40,560 transformation as well. 1081 00:44:40,600 --> 00:44:42,920 Um, and you can also suture different things, 1082 00:44:42,960 --> 00:44:44,640 like, you can make the corsets on the back. 1083 00:44:44,680 --> 00:44:46,000 That's generally play piercing 1084 00:44:46,040 --> 00:44:47,320 but that's all part of it as well. 1085 00:44:47,360 --> 00:44:49,320 Yeah, lots of blood play. 1086 00:44:49,360 --> 00:44:50,480 -Right. -Which is definitely 1087 00:44:50,520 --> 00:44:52,760 an acquired taste. [laughs] 1088 00:44:52,800 --> 00:44:55,240 -[Emmeline] This is dungeon two... -Yeah. 1089 00:44:55,280 --> 00:44:58,920 -...which has got the cross, which is always good. -Mm-hmm. 1090 00:44:58,960 --> 00:45:01,400 [Emmeline] Lots of nice custom-made furniture. 1091 00:45:01,440 --> 00:45:03,720 And this is probably the most equipped room, 1092 00:45:03,760 --> 00:45:07,640 in terms of, um, the more pain inflicting devices. 1093 00:45:07,680 --> 00:45:10,080 This one's got the horse, it's got the table 1094 00:45:10,120 --> 00:45:12,200 that you can twist them into really awkward positions. 1095 00:45:12,240 --> 00:45:14,000 -Oh, okay. -Yeah, the chair. 1096 00:45:14,040 --> 00:45:17,200 -So, it's, yeah, it's a fantastic room for... -Mm. 1097 00:45:17,240 --> 00:45:19,960 -...lots of the more fetish side of things. -So, torture chamber. 1098 00:45:20,000 --> 00:45:23,600 [Nathan] All of these tools were used for what's known as BDSM. 1099 00:45:24,680 --> 00:45:28,120 [Emmeline] BDSM stands for bondage, discipline, sadomasochism. 1100 00:45:28,160 --> 00:45:30,120 -Right. -Um. 1101 00:45:30,160 --> 00:45:35,160 It usually means bondage, um, different restraints, um, 1102 00:45:35,200 --> 00:45:37,000 the dominant/submissive role. 1103 00:45:37,040 --> 00:45:40,320 -Do you have a high pain threshold yourself? -I do, yeah. 1104 00:45:40,360 --> 00:45:44,400 I've got a high pain threshold and a high bullshit tolerance. 1105 00:45:44,440 --> 00:45:47,800 -[laughs] -So, I do have to put up with a lot of it sometimes. 1106 00:45:47,840 --> 00:45:49,280 What are the customers like that come here, 1107 00:45:49,320 --> 00:45:51,800 what sort of people tend to come here? 1108 00:45:51,840 --> 00:45:54,160 Well, obviously it's not just a bit of chump change, 1109 00:45:54,200 --> 00:45:56,200 like, you've got-- it's 240 for an hour. 1110 00:45:56,240 --> 00:45:59,800 -Yeah. -And so, mostly, we do see middle-class, 1111 00:45:59,840 --> 00:46:02,280 um, white-collar employees. 1112 00:46:02,320 --> 00:46:05,960 I get a lot of, uh, police officers and firemen. 1113 00:46:06,000 --> 00:46:09,080 -Wow. -But doing that, they like to be in the submissive role, 1114 00:46:09,120 --> 00:46:10,880 I'm assuming because they like being in-- 1115 00:46:10,920 --> 00:46:12,760 they're in charge throughout the rest of their lives, 1116 00:46:12,800 --> 00:46:15,440 -so they like letting go of it a little bit... -Okay. 1117 00:46:15,480 --> 00:46:17,840 -...in their sexual life. -So it's very much psychological 1118 00:46:17,880 --> 00:46:21,560 -as much as it is physical? -Yes, often it's more psychological than anything. 1119 00:46:21,600 --> 00:46:24,440 -Right. -A lot of the play you've got to be hearty for it, 1120 00:46:24,480 --> 00:46:27,000 and you've got to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. 1121 00:46:27,040 --> 00:46:30,200 Can you go too far, can some-- can a client go too far, or? 1122 00:46:30,240 --> 00:46:34,080 You have your safe limits, and your safe words, and your hard limits. 1123 00:46:34,120 --> 00:46:37,160 Um, a hard limit is something that you won't do no matter what. 1124 00:46:37,200 --> 00:46:41,640 And so, for me, my hard limits are anything to do with children, 1125 00:46:41,680 --> 00:46:45,080 anything to do with animals, and anything to do with scat. 1126 00:46:45,120 --> 00:46:47,520 Anything else is pretty much open game. 1127 00:46:47,560 --> 00:46:50,040 [Nathan] Now that I knew Mistress Emmeline's hard limits, 1128 00:46:50,080 --> 00:46:51,520 I thought I'd take the opportunity 1129 00:46:51,560 --> 00:46:53,680 to engage in a little bondage myself. 1130 00:46:54,640 --> 00:46:57,560 So, what's this contraption? I'm guessing I sort of... 1131 00:46:57,600 --> 00:46:58,880 -It's a horse. -...bend over? 1132 00:46:58,920 --> 00:46:59,960 Yeah, I'll show you what it does. 1133 00:47:00,000 --> 00:47:01,320 [Nathan chuckles] 1134 00:47:01,360 --> 00:47:02,720 I'll give you the suede one. 1135 00:47:02,760 --> 00:47:04,040 -Okay. -[whip slaps] 1136 00:47:04,080 --> 00:47:05,800 -Like that, yeah. -Alright. Okay. 1137 00:47:05,840 --> 00:47:07,320 You just have to bend over a little bit further 1138 00:47:07,360 --> 00:47:09,280 so you're a bit more vulnerable, yeah. 1139 00:47:09,320 --> 00:47:11,320 -Okay. -[both laughing] 1140 00:47:11,360 --> 00:47:13,200 See, that's the way it works. 1141 00:47:13,240 --> 00:47:15,360 And, look, as far as the levels of hardcore are concerned, 1142 00:47:15,400 --> 00:47:17,360 obviously, like, there's so much that goes on here, 1143 00:47:17,400 --> 00:47:19,720 and there must be such a wide variety 1144 00:47:19,760 --> 00:47:22,800 of customer requests, and what you guys do, 1145 00:47:22,840 --> 00:47:24,720 but what would you deem hardcore? 1146 00:47:24,760 --> 00:47:29,160 Severe caning would have to be one of my... 1147 00:47:29,200 --> 00:47:31,040 -the ones that make me cringe. -Yeah. 1148 00:47:31,080 --> 00:47:33,240 We do get clients that come in and they want 1149 00:47:33,280 --> 00:47:35,640 you to make them bleed with a cane, 1150 00:47:35,680 --> 00:47:38,040 and to hit them that hard with a cane is very-- 1151 00:47:39,040 --> 00:47:41,200 it's not only tiring for you because your arms get sore, 1152 00:47:41,240 --> 00:47:43,800 but just the fact of watching them is tiring, 1153 00:47:43,840 --> 00:47:45,080 because you know how much it hurts 1154 00:47:45,120 --> 00:47:46,560 but they just love it. 1155 00:47:46,600 --> 00:47:49,160 Wow. So this one here looks quite severe. 1156 00:47:49,200 --> 00:47:52,200 Yeah, that one actually hurts a lot. [chuckles] 1157 00:47:52,240 --> 00:47:55,040 Usually put that around the base of someone's 1158 00:47:55,080 --> 00:47:56,720 -dick and their balls. -Mm-hmm. 1159 00:47:57,640 --> 00:47:59,400 Put their dick through there, 1160 00:47:59,440 --> 00:48:02,840 and if you get hard it'll hurt a lot. 1161 00:48:02,880 --> 00:48:05,240 [Nathan] There was one thing that I'd always wanted to try, 1162 00:48:05,280 --> 00:48:08,120 and luckily Mistress Emmeline had one on hand. 1163 00:48:09,080 --> 00:48:10,640 Um, this is a gimp mask. 1164 00:48:10,680 --> 00:48:12,560 It's used by gimps. 1165 00:48:12,600 --> 00:48:15,400 It's a really good way of de-personalizing a slave 1166 00:48:15,440 --> 00:48:17,680 or a submissive. And so we'll give you a shot. 1167 00:48:18,880 --> 00:48:20,440 We'll see the difference. 1168 00:48:20,480 --> 00:48:21,520 [laughs] 1169 00:48:23,560 --> 00:48:26,440 [Nathan] It was not the most comfortable thing I'd ever worn 1170 00:48:26,480 --> 00:48:28,840 and very claustrophobic. 1171 00:48:28,880 --> 00:48:30,200 You know, if they talk too much you can 1172 00:48:30,240 --> 00:48:31,960 just get rid of them like that. 1173 00:48:32,800 --> 00:48:33,840 Can shut them up. 1174 00:48:34,680 --> 00:48:37,320 -[Nathan mumbles] -[Emmeline laughs] 1175 00:48:37,360 --> 00:48:40,600 We'll put the dildo in there. [laughs] 1176 00:48:40,640 --> 00:48:42,440 [Nathan chuckles] 1177 00:48:42,480 --> 00:48:44,880 Yeah, now you panic. [laughs] 1178 00:48:44,920 --> 00:48:46,800 [upbeat music] 1179 00:48:51,320 --> 00:48:55,280 From everything I've seen, Melbourne has an extensive and varied sex industry. 1180 00:48:55,320 --> 00:48:59,680 Is that a good thing? What are the benefits, if any, of legalized prostitution? 1181 00:48:59,720 --> 00:49:01,640 I'm here to talk with Project Respect, 1182 00:49:01,680 --> 00:49:05,240 a sex worker support organization, to find out their view. 1183 00:49:05,280 --> 00:49:08,440 Project Respect has outreach to women in the sex industry, 1184 00:49:08,480 --> 00:49:10,840 so we visit women in brothels, 1185 00:49:10,880 --> 00:49:14,120 -Right. -We also build up understanding and awareness 1186 00:49:14,160 --> 00:49:17,080 about trafficking with other women in the sex industry, 1187 00:49:17,120 --> 00:49:19,720 so, you know, women will tell us about trafficking 1188 00:49:19,760 --> 00:49:21,560 that they know of, and even brothel owners 1189 00:49:21,600 --> 00:49:23,040 might tell us about, you know, 1190 00:49:23,080 --> 00:49:25,320 trafficking in other, uh, brothels. 1191 00:49:25,360 --> 00:49:28,120 Approximately how many brothels do you know of that are operating in Melbourne? 1192 00:49:28,160 --> 00:49:32,840 There's 90 to 95 licensed brothels, 1193 00:49:32,880 --> 00:49:36,720 and I've heard 130 unlicensed brothels. 1194 00:49:36,760 --> 00:49:38,720 As far as women that are trafficked 1195 00:49:38,760 --> 00:49:40,280 to Melbourne for sex work. 1196 00:49:40,320 --> 00:49:41,960 We estimate that there's probably 1197 00:49:42,000 --> 00:49:44,400 300 women trafficked to Melbourne every year. 1198 00:49:44,440 --> 00:49:45,920 -Right. -We'd say about a thousand 1199 00:49:45,960 --> 00:49:48,400 women trafficked to Australia every year. 1200 00:49:48,440 --> 00:49:50,200 And where were they coming from? 1201 00:49:50,240 --> 00:49:52,040 They tend to come from Asia. 1202 00:49:52,080 --> 00:49:53,760 At the moment it seems like most women 1203 00:49:53,800 --> 00:49:55,920 are coming from South Korea, 1204 00:49:55,960 --> 00:49:58,360 but in the past, Thailand has been the place 1205 00:49:58,400 --> 00:49:59,840 where most women have come from, 1206 00:49:59,880 --> 00:50:02,600 with other women from Malaysia, China, 1207 00:50:02,640 --> 00:50:04,960 uh, the Philippines, Taiwan. 1208 00:50:05,000 --> 00:50:06,440 Do we know who brings them? 1209 00:50:06,480 --> 00:50:08,840 It seems to me that there's a link with 1210 00:50:08,880 --> 00:50:12,800 ethnic groups and kind of, I guess, ethnic based mafia, 1211 00:50:12,840 --> 00:50:16,600 um, but I think, you know, Australians are also, 1212 00:50:16,640 --> 00:50:20,520 certainly Australian citizens are involved in and exploiting women here. 1213 00:50:20,560 --> 00:50:23,720 Are these trafficked women working in these illegal brothels then? 1214 00:50:23,760 --> 00:50:27,600 No, trafficked women are kept in legal brothels. 1215 00:50:27,640 --> 00:50:29,080 -In legal? -Yes. 1216 00:50:29,120 --> 00:50:30,960 Wow, okay. 1217 00:50:31,000 --> 00:50:34,800 Every case that has been investigated and prosecuted 1218 00:50:34,840 --> 00:50:38,760 in Australia of trafficking, has involved trafficking into legal brothels, 1219 00:50:38,800 --> 00:50:41,560 and all the women who we know of were kept in legal brothels. 1220 00:50:41,600 --> 00:50:45,000 [Nathan] I really wanted to ask Nina about Club 417, 1221 00:50:45,040 --> 00:50:48,760 the most famous case of prosecuted sex trafficking in Melbourne. 1222 00:50:48,800 --> 00:50:50,360 So... 1223 00:50:50,400 --> 00:50:53,920 Club 417 is a brothel on Brunswick Street in Fitzroy 1224 00:50:53,960 --> 00:50:57,160 in the heart of our cafe strip. 1225 00:50:57,200 --> 00:50:59,840 Um, it's a pretty nondescript little place, you walk past it, 1226 00:50:59,880 --> 00:51:01,720 you probably think that it's just, you know, 1227 00:51:01,760 --> 00:51:04,560 an empty shop, but it's a brothel. 1228 00:51:04,600 --> 00:51:08,480 And in 2003, the police did a raid 1229 00:51:08,520 --> 00:51:12,000 and they found five trafficked women in there. 1230 00:51:12,040 --> 00:51:14,280 They charged the brothel owner Wei Tang 1231 00:51:14,320 --> 00:51:16,520 and her manager Paul Pick 1232 00:51:16,560 --> 00:51:19,080 with possessing and using slaves. 1233 00:51:19,120 --> 00:51:21,720 They were told that they owed her debts of 1234 00:51:21,760 --> 00:51:25,760 between 45 and 90 thousand dollars 1235 00:51:25,800 --> 00:51:27,320 which they had to pay off by doing 1236 00:51:27,360 --> 00:51:28,880 prostitution in her brothel. 1237 00:51:28,920 --> 00:51:31,840 They paid it off within a few months, 1238 00:51:31,880 --> 00:51:35,240 and it means that they were doing 1239 00:51:35,280 --> 00:51:38,000 about ten clients a night, 1240 00:51:38,040 --> 00:51:41,960 every single night for three months. 1241 00:51:42,000 --> 00:51:46,520 Which in itself is an incredible, 1242 00:51:46,560 --> 00:51:48,200 you know, toll on your body. 1243 00:51:48,240 --> 00:51:50,640 It was about 800 or 900 men 1244 00:51:50,680 --> 00:51:51,800 that each of the women did 1245 00:51:51,840 --> 00:51:54,680 before they paid off the debt. 1246 00:51:54,720 --> 00:51:56,800 And again, it's one of those things 1247 00:51:56,840 --> 00:51:58,560 that if you really think about it... 1248 00:52:00,120 --> 00:52:02,800 it's-- I don't think that anyone can fail 1249 00:52:02,840 --> 00:52:07,240 to understand how corrosive and degrading 1250 00:52:07,280 --> 00:52:09,200 the experience of being trafficked is. 1251 00:52:09,240 --> 00:52:11,880 [Nathan] That led to the question, did Nina think there 1252 00:52:11,920 --> 00:52:16,280 was a difference between legal prostitution and illegal sex trafficking? 1253 00:52:16,320 --> 00:52:19,200 Having legal brothels in Victoria, 1254 00:52:19,240 --> 00:52:22,160 I think can make it easier to hide trafficked women, 1255 00:52:22,200 --> 00:52:24,440 because there is an assumption that brothels 1256 00:52:24,480 --> 00:52:26,800 are safe if they are regulated, 1257 00:52:26,840 --> 00:52:29,240 that they're, you know, that they're following 1258 00:52:29,280 --> 00:52:30,520 laws and regulations. 1259 00:52:30,560 --> 00:52:32,080 But really, what... 1260 00:52:33,840 --> 00:52:36,880 What shapes whether or not we have trafficked women, 1261 00:52:36,920 --> 00:52:40,320 is whether or not we accept prostitution at all. 1262 00:52:40,360 --> 00:52:43,760 Project Respect is adamant about the harms and costs of prostitution, 1263 00:52:43,800 --> 00:52:45,200 legal or otherwise. 1264 00:52:45,240 --> 00:52:46,800 So in order to get another opinion, 1265 00:52:46,840 --> 00:52:48,920 I've been invited to a rally for abortion rights 1266 00:52:48,960 --> 00:52:52,120 by the president of this trans sex party, Fiona Patten. 1267 00:52:52,160 --> 00:52:55,720 On a very wet, cold, rainy, Melbourne day, 1268 00:52:55,760 --> 00:52:58,920 um, we're out showing our support for 1269 00:52:58,960 --> 00:53:01,440 the abortion clinic behind us. 1270 00:53:01,480 --> 00:53:03,800 -Yeah. -[Fiona] Every third Saturday, a group of, 1271 00:53:03,840 --> 00:53:04,920 I can't remember what they're called, 1272 00:53:04,960 --> 00:53:06,560 something with the Virgin Mary, 1273 00:53:06,600 --> 00:53:10,240 come and pray, and harass some of the clients 1274 00:53:10,280 --> 00:53:12,920 who come to this clinic, um, during the day, 1275 00:53:12,960 --> 00:53:15,720 -[Nathan] Right. -And we're here to show our support for the clinic. 1276 00:53:15,760 --> 00:53:18,520 It's so important that women have that right to choose, 1277 00:53:18,560 --> 00:53:20,920 and I-- you know, we've seen that 1278 00:53:20,960 --> 00:53:23,560 when women don't have control of their reproductive rights, 1279 00:53:23,600 --> 00:53:25,040 they take it into their own hands, 1280 00:53:25,080 --> 00:53:27,040 and we see backyard abortions setting up, 1281 00:53:27,080 --> 00:53:30,560 and we see very, you know, unsafe practices. 1282 00:53:30,600 --> 00:53:32,160 Frankly, you know, it would be great if we had 1283 00:53:32,200 --> 00:53:34,120 really good sex education, 1284 00:53:34,160 --> 00:53:35,880 and that would probably mean that we would have 1285 00:53:35,920 --> 00:53:37,600 less abortions in this country. 1286 00:53:37,640 --> 00:53:40,200 But they-- it needs to remain legal and safe. 1287 00:53:40,240 --> 00:53:41,800 [Nathan] So, more money in education? 1288 00:53:41,840 --> 00:53:43,880 [Fiona] More sex education would definitely mean 1289 00:53:43,920 --> 00:53:45,600 less unwanted pregnancies. 1290 00:53:45,640 --> 00:53:47,600 [Nathan] I also wanted to ask Fiona's opinion 1291 00:53:47,640 --> 00:53:50,120 about legalized prostitution in Melbourne. 1292 00:53:50,160 --> 00:53:53,840 I am all in favor for sex workers 1293 00:53:53,880 --> 00:53:55,600 to be able to work legally and safely. 1294 00:53:55,640 --> 00:53:58,040 -[crowd chants] -Um, but I would probably support 1295 00:53:58,080 --> 00:54:01,120 a decriminalized system rather than legalization, 1296 00:54:01,160 --> 00:54:03,880 which is about treating the sex industry 1297 00:54:03,920 --> 00:54:05,480 as any other business. 1298 00:54:05,520 --> 00:54:07,960 So, whether you're a hairdresser or a sex worker, 1299 00:54:08,000 --> 00:54:10,080 you have the same rights and responsibilities. 1300 00:54:10,120 --> 00:54:13,000 What's your take on the number of legalized brothels 1301 00:54:13,040 --> 00:54:14,800 that are actually here in Melbourne? 1302 00:54:14,840 --> 00:54:16,920 Unfortunately, it's, it's actually 1303 00:54:16,960 --> 00:54:18,880 probably over regulated here. 1304 00:54:18,920 --> 00:54:21,200 And it was sort of, when they introduced the laws, 1305 00:54:21,240 --> 00:54:23,080 it was like, "Well, you know, we want to 1306 00:54:23,120 --> 00:54:25,360 protect the workers, but we don't want to be seen 1307 00:54:25,400 --> 00:54:27,080 to condone the industry." 1308 00:54:27,120 --> 00:54:29,480 So they set up very draconian laws, 1309 00:54:29,520 --> 00:54:30,920 which means that probably 1310 00:54:30,960 --> 00:54:33,040 two thirds of the industry in Melbourne 1311 00:54:33,080 --> 00:54:34,960 work-- it operates illegally. 1312 00:54:35,000 --> 00:54:37,000 So, for every one legal brothel, 1313 00:54:37,040 --> 00:54:39,880 you have two or three illegal brothels operating. 1314 00:54:39,920 --> 00:54:43,040 Uh, I certainly think a system 1315 00:54:43,080 --> 00:54:45,640 where brothels can operate legally, 1316 00:54:45,680 --> 00:54:48,360 and we have good health and safety codes, 1317 00:54:48,400 --> 00:54:52,880 and women can work without fear of, you know, exploitation 1318 00:54:52,920 --> 00:54:57,200 is a very good path. And Melbourne has gone some way to it, 1319 00:54:57,240 --> 00:54:58,960 but, you know, it could be better. 1320 00:54:59,000 --> 00:55:01,360 [Nathan] Do you believe that legalized prostitution 1321 00:55:01,400 --> 00:55:03,120 discourages trafficking? 1322 00:55:03,160 --> 00:55:06,840 I certainly do when it's well-managed and well run. 1323 00:55:06,880 --> 00:55:09,720 So, as I was saying before, I actually think 1324 00:55:09,760 --> 00:55:12,960 with a legalized system, we should actually enable 1325 00:55:13,000 --> 00:55:14,840 workers from other countries to work here 1326 00:55:14,880 --> 00:55:17,360 safely and legally. And that, I think 1327 00:55:17,400 --> 00:55:19,040 could be done through a visa system. 1328 00:55:19,080 --> 00:55:21,400 So, when you do have a legal system 1329 00:55:21,440 --> 00:55:23,400 where they're not having to work underground 1330 00:55:23,440 --> 00:55:25,880 and hidden away, you can control 1331 00:55:25,920 --> 00:55:28,280 and police the industry far more easily. 1332 00:55:28,320 --> 00:55:30,280 [Nathan] That led me to my final question, 1333 00:55:30,320 --> 00:55:32,520 which was whether Melbourne was becoming more liberal 1334 00:55:32,560 --> 00:55:34,880 or conservative in its approach to sex? 1335 00:55:34,920 --> 00:55:37,240 Well, thankfully, I think Australians 1336 00:55:37,280 --> 00:55:39,600 are becoming far more liberal in their approach, 1337 00:55:39,640 --> 00:55:43,040 and you can only see that like, in the statistics about who supports gay marriage 1338 00:55:43,080 --> 00:55:47,000 or, you know, is opposed to Internet censorship. 1339 00:55:47,040 --> 00:55:48,680 But unfortunately, 1340 00:55:48,720 --> 00:55:51,840 our politicians are going the opposite direction, 1341 00:55:51,880 --> 00:55:53,960 and I think they, they tend to listen 1342 00:55:54,000 --> 00:55:57,800 to small minority groups like the people across the street, 1343 00:55:57,840 --> 00:56:01,520 um, and kowtow to them rather than listening to the majority. 1344 00:56:01,560 --> 00:56:03,560 -Thank you so much for your time. -Thanks, Nathan. 1345 00:56:03,600 --> 00:56:04,960 -It's been a pleasure. -Thank you, likewise. 1346 00:56:05,000 --> 00:56:06,360 Thank you, Fiona. 1347 00:56:06,400 --> 00:56:08,320 [upbeat music] 1348 00:56:12,800 --> 00:56:14,160 [Nathan] It's my last few hours in Melbourne, 1349 00:56:14,200 --> 00:56:15,560 I've finally had a chance to sample 1350 00:56:15,600 --> 00:56:18,080 some of its much celebrated coffee. 1351 00:56:18,120 --> 00:56:19,960 The city is modern and cosmopolitan. 1352 00:56:20,000 --> 00:56:21,480 It has impressive skyscrapers 1353 00:56:21,520 --> 00:56:23,160 and expensive restaurants. 1354 00:56:23,200 --> 00:56:25,400 I've seen all aspects of its sexual culture 1355 00:56:25,440 --> 00:56:27,040 and it's been a real eye-opener. 1356 00:56:27,080 --> 00:56:29,520 There's a history of liberal sexual attitude here, 1357 00:56:29,560 --> 00:56:31,200 but there's clearly a debate 1358 00:56:31,240 --> 00:56:32,560 between those who want more freedom 1359 00:56:32,600 --> 00:56:34,400 and those who want to restrict it. 1360 00:56:34,440 --> 00:56:36,280 And although the sex industry, legal and illegal, 1361 00:56:36,320 --> 00:56:38,360 is all around them, Melburnians seem to go about 1362 00:56:38,400 --> 00:56:41,200 their daily lives without giving it a second glance. 1363 00:56:41,240 --> 00:56:42,520 For those involved, however, 1364 00:56:42,560 --> 00:56:44,400 it can be lucrative, exhilarating, 1365 00:56:44,440 --> 00:56:46,200 and dangerous to both body and mind. 1366 00:56:46,240 --> 00:56:47,720 It's been a fascinating journey, 1367 00:56:47,760 --> 00:56:49,000 and I'm glad I've had the opportunity 1368 00:56:49,040 --> 00:56:50,880 to experience such a unique city 1369 00:56:50,920 --> 00:56:53,000 with its own distinctive culture. 1370 00:56:53,040 --> 00:56:55,000 For now though, it's time to leave. 1371 00:56:55,040 --> 00:56:56,880 [upbeat music] 1372 00:57:24,040 --> 00:57:26,600 [theme music]