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Response is mixed to lap dance clubs plan

7:00pm Thursday 24th July 2008

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"SIN City" could be set for a showdown come the next election.

Theresa May, the Tories spokesman for women announced yesterday the party would make it easier for councils to stop new clubs opening if they get into power.

The head of Bournemouth council welcomed the idea - but the town's club owners saw it as "ludicrous" and unnecessary legislation.

Lap dancing clubs are currently classed in the same category as pubs or coffee shops for licensing purposes.

Theresa May said this "silenced communities" and forced councils to pass licences.

Tobias Ellwood, MP for Bournemouth East, said: "There is clear ambiguity in the law."

Richard Carr's leisure company Future 3000 which is in administration includes the lap dancing club Wiggle.

He said: "The UK keeps passing more laws but why do we need to me more controlled than our European neighbours?

"They have clubs everywhere.

"To me it seems ridiculous. If you don't like them, don't go in them."

Glen Nicie the managing director of For Your Eyes Only, opposed more legislation, especially dual licences to sell alcohol and providing sexual encounters'.

"Our business is sexy but labelling it as sexual encounters' suggests there's physical contact," he said. "Most people accept it now as harmless fun."

He said local councils could already oppose clubs through planning regulations, adding: "I have spent £45,000 in the process of getting planning permission from Bournemouth and Southampton councils."

Bournemouth Council leader Stephen MacLoughlin "welcomed" the prospect of extra powers.

He added: "Some people don't think we should have these establishments at all, but we thinking should have a balanced view."

Cllr Andrew Morgan, head of the licensing board, said: "It's a sensitive subject and there's concern in the community but we also need to remember these are legal business that operate in the law.

"We've had no applications of that sort since I came on to the board in last May. I believe the last one was an application for within the Imax building but that was withdrawn."

The number of lap-dancing clubs in Britain has doubled to around 300 since 2004.

David Clutterbuck, head of The East Cliff and Town Centre resident association, has dubbed Bournemouth "Sin City" for its four lap dancing clubs.


Your Say YourBournemouth Echo

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
9:23pm Thu 24 Jul 08

how desperate are this crowd to get into power !!- ludicrous proposal by an idiot

Mike Pickering, Bournemouth says...
11:31pm Thu 24 Jul 08

Shut them all.
I'd rather people ran around fighting and smashing each other with bottles than go in one of these places.
Roll on the great depression when noone can afford to go out, the pubs and the clubs all close because they are uselessly expensive and populated by idiots, and we can finally nail the boards up in this town, turn in all into flats and be done with it.
Bournemouth is a failure, and the end can't come soon enough.

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
5:18am Fri 25 Jul 08

Mike Pickering wrote:
Shut them all.
I'd rather people ran around fighting and smashing each other with bottles than go in one of these places.
Roll on the great depression when noone can afford to go out, the pubs and the clubs all close because they are uselessly expensive and populated by idiots, and we can finally nail the boards up in this town, turn in all into flats and be done with it.
Bournemouth is a failure, and the end can't come soon enough.
feeling a little left out,old and useless mike ?,dont you like young people to have fun ? what have you got against naked women ? i love them !!you should get out more.......try rambling in the purbecks away from it all its trully loverly out there but make sure you are home before the sun goes down because they switch on the electric bulbs and people dance and drink strange 'falling down juices'and appear to enjoy themselves and you wouldnt want to witness any of that stuff.goodness its worse some nights when really old people go to a place called 'the pavilion' to watch young people(like that man..Micheal Ball) singing and dancing and even appearing to enjoy themselves,some 'oldies' have even been seen out after 10 o'clock at night !!! when everyone knows they ought to be at home drinking cocoa, making out their wills and preparing for death ... the real world trully is outrageous.the sooner it all ends ,the better- you are so right !!!! Pickering for Mayor

Poolemaninscotland, scotland says...
7:44am Fri 25 Jul 08

Now we know why your called Muffin the Mule because you talk out of your ****!!!!! What planet do you live on and why should women be exploited for your own personal perversions. Think about that Muffin

fiona, Bournemouth says...
9:21am Fri 25 Jul 08

Yes I agree close them all down they demean the character of Bournemouth

Historically Bournemouth is a family resort these degenerate sleaze pits add nothing of value

I was pleased to hear that Richard Carrs 'Wiggle' had gone into liquidation
Lets home more of these places go bankrupt and close for good


JLC2, here says...
9:25am Fri 25 Jul 08

Last time I checked the women were there through choice and getting paid very well for it.

Just because you have your own set of strict and stuffy morals, doesn't mean the rest of us have to adhere to them. Some of us realise that you live once, and then you die. Life is short so you need to make sure you enjoy it. All of it! There's no time for worrying about some ridiculous set of self imposed morals, especially when you are concerning yourself about what other people get up to.

If sex wasn't meant to be fun, the clitoris wouldn't exist.

John, Poole says...
9:31am Fri 25 Jul 08

Poolemaninscotland wrote:
Now we know why your called Muffin the Mule because you talk out of your ****!!!!! What planet do you live on and why should women be exploited for your own personal perversions. Think about that Muffin
I think that there are more apposite reasons than you suggest as to why he is called Muffin the Mule.But then again, the answer may lie in your second sentence!

davey, bournemouth says...
10:24am Fri 25 Jul 08

I do not like these types of clubs, but I do not go in them, I fail to see them as a harm if thats the sort of thing you like.

Be interesting to see if they closed them down, how many married men would start straying from their wifes as this is the only erotic entertainment they recieve.

Nigel Blumenthal, says...
10:52am Fri 25 Jul 08

Theresa May ... announced yesterday the party would make it easier for councils to stop new clubs opening if they get into power.
...
Lap dancing clubs are currently classed in the same category as pubs or coffee shops for licensing purposes.

Theresa May said this "silenced communities" and forced councils to pass licences.

Richard Carr's leisure company Future 3000 which is in administration includes the lap dancing club Wiggle.

He said: "The UK keeps passing more laws but why do we need to me more controlled than our European neighbours?

"To me it seems ridiculous. If you don't like them, don't go in them."


Certainly, classing laptop dancing clubs in the same category as coffee shops is anomalous - they clearly attract different clienteles and are open at different times of the day. I'd love to see a coffee shop or two open into the evening, maybe till 1:00am, but the thought of Wiggle at 10:00am really doesn't do much for my psyche.

But the whole point, and it's one that Carr ignores, is that his precious customers are not the only people who are affected by what goes on between his hallowed pillars. Everyone else in town has to deal with the sickening and inconsiderate behaviour of his customers after they leave. It's not a case of "if you don't like it, don't go". How does that help those of us whose sleep is disturbed every weekend by drunken yelling at 3:00 am, and by people whose driving licences must have come as a free gift in a packet of cereal?

I'm not suggesting that they shouldn't exist, but some kind of community responsibility and control is called for.

JLC2, here says...
11:06am Fri 25 Jul 08

Oh dear...did you make the mistake of buying a flat in the centre of town?


The point is, there is no difference between the clientelle leaving a stirp club to that leaving a bar. They display no more "sickening behaviour". In fact, if anything, they are probably better behaved, because the nature of strip clubs means that bouncers are very visible all of the time and poor behaviour is not tolerated at all.

Christopher, Wallisdown & Winton West says...
11:18am Fri 25 Jul 08

Whether one uses the clubs or not, or whether one likes the clubs or not. If they are that good regardless of what goes on inside them, why are they now in the hands of the receivers/liquidator
s.



JLC2, here says...
11:32am Fri 25 Jul 08

You may have noticed that we are in a bit of an economic pickle at the moment..could this possibly have something to do with it?

Phil, Poole says...
11:35am Fri 25 Jul 08

Why's everyone getting in a flap? From what I've heard, they don't even show them in Bournemouth strip clubs!

laurie marsh, australia says...
11:36am Fri 25 Jul 08

Mike Pickering would rather see people fighting and smashing each other with bottles?
If he were to open up a "club" like that he would probably make a fortune!
Afterwards people could go to a lap dancing club to "unwind"!
Steady Mike!

laurie marsh, australia says...
1:16pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Davey,
Uh, a lot of wives might object to your comment!
Their erotic "duties" are none of your business!
I suggest that you never reveal your true name in public!
If you do you are a dead man!
This comment has to be the bravest comment ever uttered by a male heading for a life of absolute lonliness!
The priesthood looks like a good choice from here!

debbie2110, bournemouth says...
1:34pm Fri 25 Jul 08

I have nothing against these clubs and if there were one with scantily clad men parading about I’d consider using it for a birthday, hen night or fun occasion. They do however need to be regulated better and certainly should be away from residential areas.

They should also be more carefully monitored in regard to the level of bribery that goes on – Spearmint Rhino staff are permitted to park in resident only parking bays and on double yellow lines and the local authorities won’t do anything to remedy it. I was actually told by one of the ‘security’ staff that they are “untouchable” by wardens and law as they “pay their dues”! I have witnessed two traffic wardens laughing with the driver of one of the staff vehicles when I complained about their constant use of the resident parking bays, and seen the level of police assistance when I was threatened and intimidated by the ‘untouchable’ security guy (yep, if you guessed none you’re correct!).

Apparently, the reason why they get away with it is down to certain public employees getting preferential treatment when they visit the club. This kind of racket needs to stop, not the clubs – they are essentially just a bit of a laugh and somewhere for stag nights to end up so their braying and overexcitement is not forced on the majority of us. Only wish there were cheaper venues like this so all stag parties would be off the streets – and some for the hens too!

Regulate them properly and site them in out of town venues – the punters will still go and there will be less opposition if sensitive people don’t have to walk past suggestive bill boards and dancers on their cigarette breaks. The back of Castlepoint would make a good site for a super casino and strip joint – then the councillors will do something about the joke of traffic flow and access roads!

As for Wiggles and Richard Carr – his personal cash flow and wealth have only been affected slightly and this liquidation was a dot on the cards when he declared his likelihood of moving to Florida! Nothing to do with the club not making money, as I’m sure the subsequent owner will attest!

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
2:06pm Fri 25 Jul 08

debbie2110 wrote:
I have nothing against these clubs and if there were one with scantily clad men parading about I’d consider using it for a birthday, hen night or fun occasion. They do however need to be regulated better and certainly should be away from residential areas.

They should also be more carefully monitored in regard to the level of bribery that goes on – Spearmint Rhino staff are permitted to park in resident only parking bays and on double yellow lines and the local authorities won’t do anything to remedy it. I was actually told by one of the ‘security’ staff that they are “untouchable” by wardens and law as they “pay their dues”! I have witnessed two traffic wardens laughing with the driver of one of the staff vehicles when I complained about their constant use of the resident parking bays, and seen the level of police assistance when I was threatened and intimidated by the ‘untouchable’ security guy (yep, if you guessed none you’re correct!).

Apparently, the reason why they get away with it is down to certain public employees getting preferential treatment when they visit the club. This kind of racket needs to stop, not the clubs – they are essentially just a bit of a laugh and somewhere for stag nights to end up so their braying and overexcitement is not forced on the majority of us. Only wish there were cheaper venues like this so all stag parties would be off the streets – and some for the hens too!

Regulate them properly and site them in out of town venues – the punters will still go and there will be less opposition if sensitive people don’t have to walk past suggestive bill boards and dancers on their cigarette breaks. The back of Castlepoint would make a good site for a super casino and strip joint – then the councillors will do something about the joke of traffic flow and access roads!

As for Wiggles and Richard Carr – his personal cash flow and wealth have only been affected slightly and this liquidation was a dot on the cards when he declared his likelihood of moving to Florida! Nothing to do with the club not making money, as I’m sure the subsequent owner will attest!
if you want to go and see naked men ,the VERY popular ADONIS show at BUMBLES will surely fit you in .ladies are not excluded from any of this and in fact i know they REALLY enjoy themselves - isnt that disgusting eh !!! go for it girls

laurie marsh, australia says...
2:20pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Muffin the mule,
According to Wikipediea your name translates to a "fairly tastless, sterile, hybrid"!
Seems like you chose well!
Your serve!

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
2:22pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Phil wrote:
Why's everyone getting in a flap? From what I've heard, they don't even show them in Bournemouth strip clubs!
well ...your wrong !! as a local taxi driver i take many of these girls to and from work ,they do it very willingly they earn a lot of money some nights and i dont hear any complaints so why should it trouble any of you if you never go through the door you'll never see anything so how can you comment. its critism for the sake of it and totally unfounded

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
2:27pm Fri 25 Jul 08

laurie marsh wrote:
Muffin the mule,
According to Wikipediea your name translates to a "fairly tastless, sterile, hybrid"!
Seems like you chose well!
Your serve!
and i thought it was a form of **** ,glad it amuses you,have you set yourself up as my stalker? can you remember the last time you got and erection? or is such a mucky thing not allowed in your god-forsaken life

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
2:28pm Fri 25 Jul 08

laurie marsh wrote:
Muffin the mule,
According to Wikipediea your name translates to a "fairly tastless, sterile, hybrid"!
Seems like you chose well!
Your serve!
and i thought it was a form of **** ,glad it amuses you,have you set yourself up as my stalker? can you remember the last time you got and erection? or is such a mucky thing not allowed in your god-forsaken life

Phil, Poole says...
2:36pm Fri 25 Jul 08

muffin the mule wrote:
Phil wrote:
Why's everyone getting in a flap? From what I've heard, they don't even show them in Bournemouth strip clubs!
well ...your wrong !! as a local taxi driver i take many of these girls to and from work ,they do it very willingly they earn a lot of money some nights and i dont hear any complaints so why should it trouble any of you if you never go through the door you'll never see anything so how can you comment. its critism for the sake of it and totally unfounded
Eh? So they do reveal all?

debbie2110, bournemouth says...
3:06pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Phil, you get what you pay for! A friend of my daughters who worked in one of these clubs told me they show all in VIP area private dances! Some of the girls would even take discreet bookings for ‘dancing’ at private parties in regular punters homes – though they have to be careful management don’t find out or they loose their jobs.

Tru Belle, purbeck says...
3:10pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Richard Carr has a parachute stashed away I guess!

Trifecta, Southbourne says...
3:15pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Debbie2110, you mentioned "they loose their jobs."

I think you will find that this costs extra.

debbie2110, bournemouth says...
3:32pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Sorry, I'll clarify, if the girls take private bookings for 'extra services' or private shows in punters homes (for which they charge a lot of money) the clubs management would be very unhappy as they wouldn't get a cut of this money so girls would risk getting sacked. I understand that it's a bit of an open secret tho!

debbie2110, bournemouth says...
3:38pm Fri 25 Jul 08

And Tru Belle, doubt he'll need a parachute as it's not his personal wealth on the line here. When he upsticks to USA in the near future he will be a very wealthy man!

Mike Pickering, Bournemouth says...
3:56pm Fri 25 Jul 08

lol@muffin the mule..
If only you knew who I was or what I had done in this town (I used to be a manager in club, and worked in clubs and pubs for 10 years, back what club really were clubs..Kevin's House, Madisons, etc..)
Literally, I've had more rioutous nights and days and next nights out than you've had hot dinners, son.

john, christchurch says...
4:15pm Fri 25 Jul 08

richard carr for prime minister,he fxxked up bournemouth,why not the rest of the country,

laurie marsh, australia says...
4:19pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Muffin,
If I can call you by your fist name, (it means tasteless by the way), I did reply to your tasteless comment but it got deleted for some reason.
My comment was neither sexual (which would not be appropriate for someone who names themselves after a sterile hybrid), or about stalking since I have no wish to bring you into my sights!
As for "God forsaken", how would you know?
Does this mean that at some stage you have driven PAST some church?
Suggest you drop in some time it might straighten you out!
You obviously need help from somewhere!

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
4:22pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Mike Pickering wrote:
lol@muffin the mule..
If only you knew who I was or what I had done in this town (I used to be a manager in club, and worked in clubs and pubs for 10 years, back what club really were clubs..Kevin's House, Madisons, etc..)
Literally, I've had more rioutous nights and days and next nights out than you've had hot dinners, son.
funnily enough so did i,Chelsea Village,the Stateside Centre,The Outlook ,i lived in Glen Fern road next to the synagogue and above the then, Spanish Club so dont 'son' me ,i sensed your humour,but it would be lost on many here.i have seen Bournemouth through three and a half decades back when Richard Carr had just got off potty training ,but i love change,never want to go back to that dismal era - sure some aspects of modern society arent pleasent but that is not at my personal cost and i dont live or care about other peoples lives i'm busy living my own,so stick to the point ..Son !!

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
4:27pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Phil wrote:
muffin the mule wrote:
Phil wrote:
Why's everyone getting in a flap? From what I've heard, they don't even show them in Bournemouth strip clubs!
well ...your wrong !! as a local taxi driver i take many of these girls to and from work ,they do it very willingly they earn a lot of money some nights and i dont hear any complaints so why should it trouble any of you if you never go through the door you'll never see anything so how can you comment. its critism for the sake of it and totally unfounded
Eh? So they do reveal all?
you heard it here first so get a knife in the slot of your piggy back and hit the town Phil ,as for 'extra's' well personally i think thats a load of rubbish spoken by people who know nothing.these are not Brothels

muffin the mule, wallisdown says...
4:34pm Fri 25 Jul 08

laurie marsh wrote:
Muffin,
If I can call you by your fist name, (it means tasteless by the way), I did reply to your tasteless comment but it got deleted for some reason.
My comment was neither sexual (which would not be appropriate for someone who names themselves after a sterile hybrid), or about stalking since I have no wish to bring you into my sights!
As for "God forsaken", how would you know?
Does this mean that at some stage you have driven PAST some church?
Suggest you drop in some time it might straighten you out!
You obviously need help from somewhere!
so what point are you trying to make you silly man,its just a user name ,i understand 'muffin the mule' is a form of beas ti ality.can you relate to that bit of humour or is it to difficult for you

Mike Pickering, Bournemouth says...
4:43pm Fri 25 Jul 08

Chelsea Village,the Stateside Centre,The Outlook

Fair enough, mate.
No, it wasn't all fun and games back then, and Bmth, you'll agree, used to be grotty.
I just don't think it's improved one bit by these places.
I've have my share of fun, as I say, as have you, but as drunk or whatever as I was, I have never disrespected anyone, let alone a young girl, into paying to see her bits, or have her act a certain way towards me.
Even if the dancers in question don't mind, it is still disrespectful. You can be disrespectful to yourself, and anyone goes along with that, they too are disrespecting you.
If there's one thing that has been lost in the last 10 years it's respect - of people for each other and themselves, and I tell you what - it might look old fashioned to take a stand against disrespect, but I don't care - Im young at heart, but I've got an old soul, and I just value people's integrity too much, even when they don't.

fiona, Bournemouth says...
4:55pm Fri 25 Jul 08

They are immoral establishments

It is an abuse of women and is is ethically wrong.

I am sorry any of these clubs survive

They demean womanhood and make fools of gullible men by exploiting their ****


fiona, Bournemouth says...
4:56pm Fri 25 Jul 08


**** was l u s t


The Daily Echo censor it for some reason best known to themselves??




Wolfstan, Bournemouth says...
9:22pm Fri 25 Jul 08

A moral objective to the lap clubs is one thing, but to say that the town is a 'Sin City', that is totally over the top. I work in Bournemouth and can see the FYEO club on a regular basis, and if I catch the bus to work I walk past the Wiggle building. Ok Wiggle has a piece of female artwork out the front, but if you compare it to watch you see in the papers and in the ads for mobile phone pictures, it is nothing. None of these buildings stand out due to the artwork out front, so let shave a little bit of common sense. The only reason they stand out is because people know what goes on inside them, nothing more. I think you will find that most people who visit Bournemouth in the evening object to the large groups of drunks in the street. These are a physical presence in the street. They maybe out for fun not looking for trouble, how do you tell? If Bournemouth council wants to do something, them make Bournemouth a place for everyone, because I can tell you this, I don't go out eating in Bournemouth if I can avoid it and I'm a 6ft 5in, 21st ex secondrow. Don't want the hassle.

fiona, Bournemouth says...
10:29pm Fri 25 Jul 08

'' Ok Wiggle has a piece of female artwork out the front, but if you compare it to watch you see in the papers and in the ads for mobile phone pictures''



Yes I noticed those two distasteful sleazy images of a womans behind on the wall

I was going to make a complaint-they are/were totally innappropriate and tacky
Im suprised Mr Carr got away with putting them there to be honest

Now the place is closing down they will hopefully be chucked in a skip





laurie marsh, australia says...
3:13pm Sat 26 Jul 08

Muffin,
Beas ti ality is funny is it?
Do you mean to tell me that Muffin is a "username"?
In that case I owe you an apology!
I thought that it was your real name because it just seems to fit!

Comments are closed on this article.

Martin Lewis

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