0:00:02 > 0:00:06This programme contains some strong language and some scenes of a sexual nature
0:00:06 > 0:00:09- How far did you go with the girls? - All the way.- All the way?
0:00:09 > 0:00:11And, good? Good reviews?
0:00:11 > 0:00:13You seem pretty satisfied.
0:00:13 > 0:00:14Yeah, yeah. Value for money.
0:00:15 > 0:00:22The sex business is booming. It's a global multibillion pound industry.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24Hard to believe that this is a real place.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28It's like a really horny teenage boy has dreamt it up.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31And in Britain, prostitution is thriving,
0:00:31 > 0:00:35with an estimated 80,000 sex workers, and growing.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38These are men in your life using these things - it's massive.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40It goes on everywhere.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43Today, it seems many young people find nothing wrong
0:00:43 > 0:00:45with the idea of buying and selling sex.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49I'm on the side of women having the right to choose what they do with their bodies.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Buying girls drinks, having a one-night stand, I can't
0:00:51 > 0:00:55really see the difference between that and paying for a prostitute.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58And the internet is making it an easy transaction for young men.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02Just got on the Internet, found this girl, it was as easy as that.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04Within an hour, she was round.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07Prostitution is now a service industry like any other.
0:01:07 > 0:01:08It's basically having a wank,
0:01:08 > 0:01:12but you're paying for it...to come out of your lap top onto your sofa.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15And it can be equally satisfying for the women offering the services.
0:01:15 > 0:01:20I've made about £1,250 profit. I'm very happy with that.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23But are young punters aware of the risks to women?
0:01:23 > 0:01:28Why have the Government seen fit to endanger women?
0:01:28 > 0:01:30It is utterly ridiculous.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33As I journey into the world of prostitution,
0:01:33 > 0:01:37I discover what the real everyday dangers of life as a sex worker are.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41- How was she killed? - She was beaten to death.- God.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44And I bust the myths surrounding the industry.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59London's Soho, the country's premier red light district.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01What better place to start my journey
0:02:01 > 0:02:04into the world of prostitution?
0:02:04 > 0:02:07- Hi.- Billie?- Yeah. Nice to meet you.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11I'm meeting entrepreneur and part-time comedian Chris Dangerfield.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14See those two fellas talking? They're touts.
0:02:14 > 0:02:19They're the nearest it comes to a pimp in the traditional understanding of what a pimp is.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22Chris has made his home here, and has based an entire comedy routine
0:02:22 > 0:02:25around his long-standing habit of paying for sex.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31Chris is the first man to put his hand up
0:02:31 > 0:02:34when it comes to using sex workers.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Who here uses prostitutes?
0:02:37 > 0:02:42OK, that's good, that's good. Right. I do. I use them all the time.
0:02:42 > 0:02:48Who here uses porn? Right, you lying bastards. That is bullshit!
0:02:49 > 0:02:52Chris also has a history of drug addiction
0:02:52 > 0:02:56and claims he has spent over £150,000 paying for sex,
0:02:56 > 0:02:58and I want to know why.
0:02:59 > 0:03:06So, we're kind of approaching the prostitution mecca, I guess, of London now.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Is that part of the reason that you chose to base yourself here?
0:03:09 > 0:03:14I think I'd been lying if I said anything to contrary to it.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18I'd just come out of a rehab centre and I needed something to fill
0:03:18 > 0:03:23that void, really, and I didn't think it was going to be prostitution.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27I came down here, I had a massage, I was offered extras,
0:03:27 > 0:03:31the extras were fantastic, and so I had extras and extras
0:03:31 > 0:03:32and extras and extras.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35- Was that your first experience of prostitution?- No.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37What was your first experience?
0:03:37 > 0:03:40Oh, just that kind of rites of passage sort of teenage stuff.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43You come up to Soho, you have a few drinks then someone says, come on,
0:03:43 > 0:03:45let's see a prostitute.
0:03:47 > 0:03:53- I'm going to ask you again. Who uses pornography?- Yeah!
0:03:53 > 0:03:58Yeah! The way it went from nothing to yay, porn!
0:03:58 > 0:04:00Yay.
0:04:03 > 0:04:04Amazing.
0:04:04 > 0:04:09What's the difference between a sexual experience with a prostitute and someone that you love or know?
0:04:09 > 0:04:13It's not better or worse, it's just different, and what I do prefer is variety.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16What I really like about prostitution is if you weren't here,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18it could be a night like tonight, I could be walking along,
0:04:18 > 0:04:21nothing much to do, and I think, I'd really like...
0:04:21 > 0:04:26and within five minutes, I could be having her, and I'm only 80 quid down,
0:04:26 > 0:04:30and that would usually be a night out at a club or something.
0:04:30 > 0:04:32That's the thing.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35If it's so easy for people to get sex for free on a night out,
0:04:35 > 0:04:37why would anyone want to pay for it?
0:04:38 > 0:04:42My experience of a lot of prostitution is,
0:04:42 > 0:04:47it's a very wonderful, kind, giving, honest situation.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51- Yeah.- Very opposite to my experience of meeting girls in bars
0:04:51 > 0:04:56and clubs, which tend to be very manipulative, a lot of lies.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00I think the prostitution situation is very efficient, it's very honest.
0:05:00 > 0:05:01- Convenient.- Yeah.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03I like to have sex, you like to earn money,
0:05:03 > 0:05:06this can work together quite well, and it does.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09Well, let me tell you something about porn.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13The people, the actors and actresses in porn, they're prostitutes,
0:05:13 > 0:05:16they're being paid to have sex, yeah?
0:05:16 > 0:05:21The only difference between you lot and me, I f...ing pay for it.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27Chris shows me that brothels, also known as walk ups,
0:05:27 > 0:05:29are dotted around everywhere.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Models. They're not models, are they?
0:05:31 > 0:05:34They're sex workers.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37This one's advertising two whole floors.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39More models.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43It might be surprising that Chris likes to draw so much attention to it.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46You know, it's like a theme park, it's like Sex World.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50But he says more men than I would expect visit sex workers.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53Who uses them?
0:05:53 > 0:05:54Lots of people.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58These are men in your life using these things.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00It's massive - it goes on everywhere.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04It is the only thing around here that seems to be succeeding. All the other shops are going out of business.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10Chris was quite a character, wasn't he? I
0:06:10 > 0:06:16feel like he gets away with saying quite a lot of stuff
0:06:16 > 0:06:19that would infuriate people under normal circumstances,
0:06:19 > 0:06:22but there's something very, very charming about him.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26I think that when you're talking about people who use prostitutes,
0:06:26 > 0:06:28Chris might be a quite extreme case,
0:06:28 > 0:06:31but he seem to think that everyone's done it.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35I want to find out if that's true, and if it is true, then why?
0:06:40 > 0:06:42I'm starting with a trip abroad to try
0:06:42 > 0:06:44and find some young British men to speak to,
0:06:44 > 0:06:48where they might be more relaxed and unguided about their sex lives.
0:06:50 > 0:06:55The medieval city of Prague is one of Europe's tourist hotspots.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01And it's become a top destination for thousands of British stag paries each year.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06I'm about to find out for myself now what it is that brings
0:07:06 > 0:07:08all of these young guys to Prague.
0:07:14 > 0:07:15One reason is obvious.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19You can get cheap flights from Edinburgh,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22the hotels and that are cheap, and the beer's cheap and the food.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25But the beer's not the only thing on tap.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31Strip clubs, girls and bare flesh are all in good supply.
0:07:33 > 0:07:34Where better to find a stag?
0:07:37 > 0:07:40Prague's tolerant attitude to prostitution gives me
0:07:40 > 0:07:43a chance to find out why young men want to pay for sex.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52How many out of you have slept with prostitutes since you've been here?
0:07:52 > 0:07:54- Since we've been here?- Yeah.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57Out of 17, about five.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01Is that what attracts you to come here, then,
0:08:01 > 0:08:06- the fact that it's really easy to get girls?- I think so.
0:08:06 > 0:08:10I think that's why we came as a stag party.
0:08:20 > 0:08:25And he's not alone. I then find a few other guys willing to talk.
0:08:25 > 0:08:31- What are you doing here?- We're here for a stag do, that's all I can say.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33- How far did you go with the girls? - All the way, me.- All the way?
0:08:33 > 0:08:38- All the way.- And, good? Good reviews? You seem pretty satisfied.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40Yeah, yeah. Value for money.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44- Cool.- Without a doubt.- What brings you to Prague in particular?
0:08:44 > 0:08:47- The best man picked it out.- Right.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49Why do you think he chose this place?
0:08:49 > 0:08:52- Because it's full of dirty whores.- Do you see prostitutes back in England?
0:08:52 > 0:08:55- Now and again.- Now and again? - Not as nice as over here, though.
0:08:55 > 0:09:00- Have you had any fun with them? - No, I haven't myself because I've got a girlfriend.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03- Are you going to tell your friends back home...- No.- No?
0:09:03 > 0:09:06- What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.- Right.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09What happens in a stag do stays on a stag do. That's it.
0:09:15 > 0:09:16The next day,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19I go to meet one of the main players in Prague's sex industry.
0:09:22 > 0:09:26I've been invited today to a gentleman's nightclub called K5,
0:09:26 > 0:09:29and I have seen a flyer of this place.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32There were a couple dotted around the city last night,
0:09:32 > 0:09:36and it does look spectacular, so I've decided on this glorious day
0:09:36 > 0:09:41to take up the owner on his offer of a behind-the-scenes tour.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44I want to grill him about his British clientele, if he's got any.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48I think this is it.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57- Hi.- Hello.- I'm Billie.- Hi, Billie. Nice to meet you.- Nice to meet you.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01- Thank you for having me. - Welcome to K5. Relax.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03As you know, K5 is a nightclub,
0:10:03 > 0:10:07and I'm going to show you now what we have.
0:10:07 > 0:10:13- Behind this door this is heaven for gentlemen here in Prague.- OK.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16- This.- Wow.- Yeah.
0:10:16 > 0:10:21Fabio regularly gives TV crews the K5 tour.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26What is nice here at K5 is this touchscreen where all the customer
0:10:26 > 0:10:30can have a look at the girls
0:10:30 > 0:10:33that are working tonight, so look.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38Customers select the girl of their choice to spend time alone with.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40Behaviour - passionate.
0:10:40 > 0:10:46You can get even special...er...special fantasy girls.
0:10:46 > 0:10:53- I mean, our girls can be dressed as, er...- A ladybird.- Yeah.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57- Such attention to detail, Fabio. I'm impressed.- Yeah.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02And in the next room, another of the club's unique services
0:11:02 > 0:11:05that caters for many stag parties.
0:11:06 > 0:11:07As you can see,
0:11:07 > 0:11:13we prepared over there one girl with food on top of her.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16They can eat on the girl.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20- This is Paula. Hi, Paula.- Hi.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24- She is from Brazil.- Nice to meet you, Paula.- Nice to meet you, too.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28I'm guessing that the stags don't do hand to mouth.
0:11:28 > 0:11:29It's more of a sort of face...
0:11:29 > 0:11:32Yeah, yeah. They do it, they do it, yeah.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34- Want to try?- Try what?
0:11:34 > 0:11:40- Instead of Paula?- Oh! No, I'm all right, actually.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Thanks, though.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47There seems no limit to what you can get up to at this club.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49Please follow me.
0:11:49 > 0:11:57We have here maybe three, four, five guys and five girls.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00- A whole stag group, then, potentially?- Yeah, yeah. Together.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Yeah, yeah. Look at this.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07- Two or more girls waiting for the guys.- Hello.
0:12:07 > 0:12:12It almost feels like a sort of weird computer game or something
0:12:12 > 0:12:16- like a really horny teenage boy has dreamt it up.- Yeah.
0:12:16 > 0:12:17You know what I mean?
0:12:17 > 0:12:20I mean, we make our customer dream a little bit
0:12:20 > 0:12:25and K5 can be the right place to do this.
0:12:27 > 0:12:33- This is the Alaska room.- Wow. Oh, my god!
0:12:33 > 0:12:34You can try if you want.
0:12:34 > 0:12:40It this like an erotic fantasy of many people, Alaska?
0:12:40 > 0:12:42Yeah, it can be.
0:12:42 > 0:12:47I mean, we try to create some different atmosphere,
0:12:47 > 0:12:50- different rooms.- It's amazing.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52Is it shoes off or is that fine?
0:12:52 > 0:12:54I'm sure you've had worse.
0:12:56 > 0:13:01It's quite... Yeah.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06- This would never happen in England. - Yeah.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08I didn't think it would happen anywhere, to be honest.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12Maybe like Vegas, but not Czech Republic.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16I can imagine British guys would be in their element here.
0:13:16 > 0:13:21- Here we have as well sauna.- Nice. - And steam bath.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Got it all.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26What's the average K5 customer like? Are they young, old?
0:13:26 > 0:13:29Oh, we have basically everything.
0:13:29 > 0:13:35I mean, we have customers from 18 years old to 70 years old.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Wow.
0:13:37 > 0:13:42- Many Brits?- Yeah, we have a lot of British customers.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46Every week, we have something like two or three stag parties here,
0:13:46 > 0:13:47and especially tonight,
0:13:47 > 0:13:52you should come, stag parties from Ireland, Irish guys, yeah.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58I wonder what it would be like to work in a place like this.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05And we have here waiting for you Lara.
0:14:05 > 0:14:09I have asked Fabio to introduce me to one of the women who works here.
0:14:09 > 0:14:14- I'm Billie. This room is beautiful. - Yeah, is beautiful. Very nice room.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16- I'll let you alone.- Thank you. - Bye.- Bye.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21Do you get lots of people from Britain coming here,
0:14:21 > 0:14:24- like young British guys?- Yeah.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26What do you think of them?
0:14:26 > 0:14:30- Yeah, they are funny. Drinks a lot.- Yeah.
0:14:30 > 0:14:35I think they are too much drunk and always they cannot do nothing.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37Oh, so you don't even end up having to do anything
0:14:37 > 0:14:39because they're too wasted?
0:14:39 > 0:14:44How many guys do you maybe seen in a day? On a busy night?
0:14:44 > 0:14:50It depends, but I think like four, three, four, five.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54Is it difficult to enjoy it when you're having to sort of spend
0:14:54 > 0:14:58time with a guy that you think is really nasty?
0:14:58 > 0:15:05I cannot enjoy but must be expected to spend the time with him
0:15:05 > 0:15:09and don't show to him you don't like him.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12Does that ever make you want to quit and do something else,
0:15:12 > 0:15:16having to be sort of intimate with people that you don't really like?
0:15:16 > 0:15:21No. Because every work you'll make, you make money.
0:15:21 > 0:15:26But I have a son and he get older and I don't know one day
0:15:26 > 0:15:30he come here and see me.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34- He is now 13.- He doesn't know?
0:15:34 > 0:15:35No.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39- Where does he think you work? - In bar with restaurant.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43- But maybe it's just a job for you at the end of the day.- Yeah.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47So you're able to sort of emotionally detach yourself from it?
0:15:48 > 0:15:55I finish work here and I switch off and I go home and I live my life.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02Lara's work is not without its difficulties, and I think
0:16:02 > 0:16:06she's brave to do what it takes to make a good living for her and her son.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13I have to say, after visiting a place like K5,
0:16:13 > 0:16:18it's really not difficult to understand why swarms of
0:16:18 > 0:16:20young British man want to come to Prague.
0:16:20 > 0:16:25It's certainly a far cry from the basement in Soho with little "models" signs.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31Young men can put their inhibitions to one side paying for sex abroad,
0:16:31 > 0:16:35but is it giving them a taste for it when they get back home?
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Back in London, I wanted to find young people willing
0:16:46 > 0:16:49to talk about paying for sex.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52Kevin is a 20-year-old student.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55He's meeting up with some of his friends.
0:16:55 > 0:17:00Emily, Jesse and his girlfriend Maddie, after the summer holidays.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06Some of my friends went to Portugal recently.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10One of them paid to have sex and one of them paid to have oral sex.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15The last time I paid for sex was in Amsterdam, the red light district.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18I was a bit greedy, I had to pay for two of them,
0:17:18 > 0:17:21- so it was like a threesome.- Really? - How much did you pay?
0:17:21 > 0:17:25It was something like 120 euros or something.
0:17:25 > 0:17:29And then I was out with my friends in an East London casino
0:17:29 > 0:17:33and we walked past this sauna and it was like, by the way, that's a brothel,
0:17:33 > 0:17:38and, quite horny, and you go in and they give you like a raffle ticket,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41and there's all these women sitting around and you go up to the door
0:17:41 > 0:17:45and you hand it to her, then you they take you in a room.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48- Did the girls have a good time? - Yeah, of course they did.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50Do you genuinely think they did?
0:17:50 > 0:17:54The one in East London, yeah, I think she was enjoying it more than I was.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57- The one in Amsterdam, the two in Amsterdam.- Bold statement.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00Shut up, man! The one in Amsterdam, the two in Amsterdam...
0:18:00 > 0:18:02It was just so fake.
0:18:02 > 0:18:06- Do you regret it?- I don't regret it, because...- He had a great time.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08It wasn't great, it's not like the best sex
0:18:08 > 0:18:10I've ever had or anything, it was just standard sex.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13It was one at a time, that was my only option.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16The guys are comfortable with the idea of paying for sex.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20- You haven't, have you?- Me? No, mate.- Would you?- Yeah.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22- Why haven't you already, then? - I haven't had the chance.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25I was going to go to Amsterdam with some mates.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28But it's not something the girls can so easily understand.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30Why do you want to pay someone for sex?
0:18:30 > 0:18:34- Why not just meet someone and then...- Why not do both?
0:18:34 > 0:18:37But why would you pay when you can get it for free?
0:18:37 > 0:18:40The friends might not share the same opinion on Kevin's exploits
0:18:40 > 0:18:43but they all agree that sex is a big part of their lives.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45Older people would frown upon it because...the way
0:18:45 > 0:18:48they've been raised, in a way, because it's way more open for us.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50Like, you have TV shows about people going on about sex and...
0:18:50 > 0:18:54- Sex is everywhere.- Yeah, literally. It's so promoted.
0:18:54 > 0:18:56- In our generation we talk about sex openly.- Yeah, definitely.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58Like you're playing a drinking game or something,
0:18:58 > 0:19:01- like "have you ever"... Every single thing is like...- Sexual related.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05Like having a threesome or taking it up the bum and shit like that.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10Kevin's not sure if he'll use sex workers again.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14But for two friends in Cheshire
0:19:14 > 0:19:17paying for sex has become a part of their normal leisure time.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Declan is 22 and a former soldier.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25His friend Adam is 23 and runs a newsagent's.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29- Thanks for having me.- Cheers. No problem.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32This is a very clean house for two boys.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34His ex-girlfriend used to live here.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38I've come to find out what's behind their decision to pay for sex.
0:19:39 > 0:19:41I met my girlfriend and two, three months later
0:19:41 > 0:19:43she told me that she was an escort.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46So she was sleeping with other guys while you were in a relationship?
0:19:46 > 0:19:50- Yeah, and I didn't know for a few months.- Did it bother you?
0:19:50 > 0:19:51At first, yeah.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54But then, er...not so much, cos she had quite a lot of money,
0:19:54 > 0:19:57and I was young and it was quite a nice little touch.
0:19:57 > 0:19:59What's the first experience with, er,
0:19:59 > 0:20:01an escort other than your girlfriend
0:20:01 > 0:20:03who you didn't know was an escort?
0:20:03 > 0:20:05About six months in we'd split up.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08I'm still friends with her now but it wasn't going to work.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10And her friend who I'd met who also did it,
0:20:10 > 0:20:14that was the first time that I paid for it.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17And she don't know that, so...that will go down well.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20And what about you?
0:20:20 > 0:20:23Is he the one who got you on it and he recommended that you tried it?
0:20:23 > 0:20:25Erm, I had a few times before.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28He was the one that got me, like, into it seriously.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31How regularly do you both see prostitutes?
0:20:31 > 0:20:32Every three or four months.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34It's not, like, an every-week thing,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37it's if there's money there to do it, I think.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41So you go to, like, brothels, or have escorts come to your house?
0:20:41 > 0:20:45Erm, I've done both. Erm...
0:20:45 > 0:20:47I'd rather them do out calls and come to me,
0:20:47 > 0:20:50because you just feel a bit more comfortable.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53- If they come to you it's like they're trusting you to be in your house.- mm.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55So you've got to trust them.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Cos if you go to these brothels anything could happen.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01'Declan and Adam can make sure they get what they want...'
0:21:01 > 0:21:03Question is if it's got battery.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05'..by using websites that list sex workers
0:21:05 > 0:21:07'and the services they provide.'
0:21:07 > 0:21:10You can see how quick it is, you go female, escort,
0:21:10 > 0:21:14county area - Cheshire - search. And there's one within seconds.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17You can pretty much find, you know, anything that you're looking for
0:21:17 > 0:21:20- and you can have a scan through and look at the pictures and...- Mm.
0:21:20 > 0:21:22Hello.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25- Hello. Busy later, Adam?- Mate.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28And she could be, you know, porn-star stunning
0:21:28 > 0:21:31and have a read and think, "No, thanks, I'll carry on searching."
0:21:33 > 0:21:37- Cos something might put you off. - What would put you off?- Er...
0:21:38 > 0:21:41Unprotected sex, oral without, things like that.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44- Things that make you sort of think...- No, thanks.- Yeah.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46I don't want to wake up with syphilis.
0:21:46 > 0:21:50- Ah, there's a nice face pic. - See, beautiful.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53You know, you can't get women like that, can you, if...
0:21:53 > 0:21:55I'm going to message her.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57Out at pubs, you know, you're not going to get that, are you?
0:21:57 > 0:22:00Big plump fake boobs like that, you know.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03It's basically having a wank, but you're paying for it
0:22:03 > 0:22:06to come out of your laptop onto your sofa, aren't you?
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Do you think that it's something that, you know,
0:22:08 > 0:22:11- people are becoming less ashamed of? - Yeah.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14I think porn's got a big part to play in it.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18If you watch a porno, you are not going to get that down the town.
0:22:18 > 0:22:19You're just not,
0:22:19 > 0:22:22you're not going to get a woman that's going to do that stuff.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24'The internet has brought the top shelf to life for
0:22:24 > 0:22:28'Adam and Declan, bringing fantasy women into their homes.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35'The sex industry has been revolutionised by going online.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38'And it's the biggest factor in opening up the world of buying
0:22:38 > 0:22:40'and selling sex to us all.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43'Everyone knows that porn is really easy to find on the net
0:22:43 > 0:22:48'and a lot of it's free, but what I've realised is that online porn
0:22:48 > 0:22:52'is the gateway for many young people to find sex and sell sex.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56'So if you want more than virtual sex it's just another click away.'
0:22:56 > 0:23:01If you just type in, say, "escort in Leeds",
0:23:01 > 0:23:04loads and loads of sites come up.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08'The site Adam and Declan use is one of the most popular, AdultWork.
0:23:08 > 0:23:13'It has over 20,000 members to tempt you, catering for all budgets.'
0:23:15 > 0:23:20There's an ex-porn star here who's £1,000 for an overnight.
0:23:20 > 0:23:25There's a girl here who offers a £30 "quickie" hand relief.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28You guys have no problems, like,
0:23:28 > 0:23:31picking up girls at bars or whatever, you just sometimes find
0:23:31 > 0:23:35- the experience with escorts preferable to that?- Yeah, exactly.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38You know, if you want to go and sleep with a bird who looks like
0:23:38 > 0:23:40she's come out of Nuts magazine,
0:23:40 > 0:23:42if you're going on a night out, you've got, like,
0:23:42 > 0:23:45a one in a million chance of running into someone, haven't you?
0:23:45 > 0:23:49If you're paying for it she drives down to your house and there she is.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52Have four nights out a month spending like 50 quid a night
0:23:52 > 0:23:54or just have one night and spend 150.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Save yourself money, get yourself a girl.
0:23:57 > 0:23:59'But the guys admit that sleeping with escorts
0:23:59 > 0:24:01'affects their relationships.'
0:24:01 > 0:24:04Has that been a problem for you in your relationships,
0:24:04 > 0:24:07that you can't get the porn-star experience from all of your girls?
0:24:07 > 0:24:11- Or at least not all the time?- Yeah, it's once in a blue moon, I find.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13- Erm...- Once you're drunk!
0:24:13 > 0:24:17When they do it, yeah, they're good, but then you think,
0:24:17 > 0:24:18why not all the time?
0:24:18 > 0:24:22I think I push my luck all the time and you feel like a right wanker afterwards.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25cos you don't want your girlfriend to feel like, you know,
0:24:25 > 0:24:27pressured into doing things, do you?
0:24:27 > 0:24:29- Yeah.- It puts you off. It really puts you off.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31When you're with prostitutes,
0:24:31 > 0:24:34they can do it there and then, they do it every night.
0:24:34 > 0:24:36Then when you're with your girlfriend,
0:24:36 > 0:24:38who supposedly loves you, who'd NEVER cheat on you,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41and they can't do it every night, what are you...
0:24:41 > 0:24:43It's like, what are you doing wrong?
0:24:45 > 0:24:50I think that young people do speak openly about sex,
0:24:50 > 0:24:53I speak openly about sex with my friends,
0:24:53 > 0:24:56but it is surprising to see that men...
0:24:58 > 0:25:01..don't feel like it's going to bruise there ego,
0:25:01 > 0:25:04the fact that they're openly admitting to paying for sex.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08Cos I assume that many...people would take that as meaning that
0:25:08 > 0:25:10they can't get sex unless they pay for it,
0:25:10 > 0:25:14but they, you know, were very black-and-white about the fact that
0:25:14 > 0:25:16they can, they just prefer to.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18They find it easier.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22And...cheaper quite often.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29I know the guys' side of the story now, but what's in it for the girls?
0:25:29 > 0:25:32Well, the internet's also made it easy
0:25:32 > 0:25:36and convenient for young women to offer their services.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38Charlotte is a 27-year-old sex worker
0:25:38 > 0:25:40who's exploiting the internet to the full.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43- Thanks for having me. - That's all right.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46'I've come to meet her to find out more.'
0:25:48 > 0:25:51How did you get into all of it?
0:25:51 > 0:25:53Erm, I've been in the adult industry since I was 18,
0:25:53 > 0:25:55I started lap dancing.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57And I worked for an insurance company at the same time,
0:25:57 > 0:26:01and I was getting kind of bored of it when I got to the age of 22,
0:26:01 > 0:26:04and then I kind of discovered the webcamming and the fact that
0:26:04 > 0:26:08I could work from home and things like that, and work when I wanted.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14On a normal day I do, like, 10 till two and then I do a couple
0:26:14 > 0:26:18of hours in the afternoon and then maybe at night if I'm free as well.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22So long as I've got an internet connection I can work wherever.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24Charlotte is one of the thousands
0:26:24 > 0:26:26operating through the AdultWork website.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29So, yeah, that's... I'm all logged on now.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32She just waits for the men to get in touch.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34Doing what I do, I need to look after myself,
0:26:34 > 0:26:37so the better I look the more I'm going to make.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40And lunchtime is a good time for business.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43For about the price of a pint, men can log on for a sexual kick.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46ELECTRONIC CHIME Ooh, that's my pinger going.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48He's going to see my lunch.
0:26:48 > 0:26:49Hello.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52Hello there. What's your name?
0:26:52 > 0:26:55I can't hear the people, but they're typing,
0:26:55 > 0:26:59so every time it beeps, like, they're saying something, so I just reply.
0:27:00 > 0:27:03It's Jordan. And where are you from, Jordan?
0:27:03 > 0:27:07I look amazing? Ahh, thank you. Shall I show you what I've got on?
0:27:09 > 0:27:11Look, I thought I'd go a bit casual today.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15Just with my shorts and that.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18Normally Charlotte will do a full strip for a customer
0:27:18 > 0:27:20but Jordan checks out early.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24You can't take things like that personally, really, not when...
0:27:24 > 0:27:27And as well sometimes you've got to think, I can't see him,
0:27:27 > 0:27:30so his wife might have walked in, his girlfriend might have walked in.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33Not all Charlotte's customers are prepared to go face-to-face.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36I always ask them if they've got a webcam.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39It's a lot easier and it's a lot more fun for me
0:27:39 > 0:27:42to be able to see them, because I can be dancing around,
0:27:42 > 0:27:45doing whatever, and I don't know if they're enjoying it.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47At least if I can see them wanking I know.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Yeah, I find it quite interesting.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51I mean, I have a guy on here as well who,
0:27:51 > 0:27:54like, puts golf balls up his arse and it's...
0:27:54 > 0:27:57So sometimes it can be really fun to watch 'em.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01Hello. How have you been? It's been a while.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04We have fun on webcam. I know. Are we going to have some fun today?
0:28:04 > 0:28:07I haven't seen you do anything naughty for ages.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09Oh, he's gone now.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13That was the guy, erm, who puts golf balls up his arse.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15Yeah. It's hilarious.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20The user-friendly nature of the site has made it easy for Charlotte
0:28:20 > 0:28:22to take the next step.
0:28:22 > 0:28:26What about the sort of leap from doing stuff on webcam
0:28:26 > 0:28:28to actually escorting?
0:28:28 > 0:28:32I started doing boy-girl webcam and I was working with a guy
0:28:32 > 0:28:34and it wasn't really that profitable.
0:28:34 > 0:28:37Now, if I'm going to sleep with other people,
0:28:37 > 0:28:38I want to maximise what I'm making.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41Er, the website that I webcam on you can escort through as well,
0:28:41 > 0:28:45so I just sort of did a blog saying I was thinking about it,
0:28:45 > 0:28:47got quite a lot of interest, and it's sort of gone from there,
0:28:47 > 0:28:50and I'm really enjoying it.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54TWO ELECTRONIC CHIMES
0:28:56 > 0:28:57Right, the phone.
0:29:02 > 0:29:04I've got an escort booking tonight actually.
0:29:04 > 0:29:07It's predominantly, like, a foot fetish booking, so I'm quite
0:29:07 > 0:29:11looking forward to it, it should be a...it should be good fun.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16He wants me to sort of wear kind of like a secretary kind of thing,
0:29:16 > 0:29:20so I've got a few bits upstairs I'm going to bring.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24Charlotte has worked as an escort selling sex for a year.
0:29:24 > 0:29:30I limit myself, bookings-wise, to normally three,
0:29:30 > 0:29:34maybe four at a push, cos I want everyone to get 100% out of me
0:29:34 > 0:29:38as well, I don't want any of the guys to sort of tell that I'm tired
0:29:38 > 0:29:41or anything like that, so... I mean, I know girls who see,
0:29:41 > 0:29:45like, 10 people in a day and things like that, and that's not my...
0:29:45 > 0:29:48That's not, like, 10 hours, they'll be 15 minutes
0:29:48 > 0:29:52and half-hour bookings, but, yeah, as much as obviously
0:29:52 > 0:29:56I do this for the money, I'm not going to...burn myself out.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01Have you had friends and family or, you know,
0:30:01 > 0:30:06- boyfriends who have had an issue with what you do?- Erm, not really.
0:30:06 > 0:30:10I mean, my family obviously don't particularly like what I do, but...
0:30:10 > 0:30:12- What do you mean? Like... - They...
0:30:12 > 0:30:15They can't understand why I can't just use my brain
0:30:15 > 0:30:18and work in an office, but I've done that and I didn't like it, so...
0:30:18 > 0:30:20They just don't think it's kind of...
0:30:20 > 0:30:23I don't know, they don't think it's acceptable to do,
0:30:23 > 0:30:25but my friends and that, they're just like, "I can't believe it,
0:30:25 > 0:30:28"you don't ever work and you make all this money."
0:30:30 > 0:30:32A lot of my job as well, a lot of it is Twitter.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36'Charlotte uses a different name for her sex work
0:30:36 > 0:30:39'and social media is a key part of her business strategy.'
0:30:40 > 0:30:43This morning when I was getting ready
0:30:43 > 0:30:44I just took a picture of my bum.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47It means people are looking and interested,
0:30:47 > 0:30:51and then everyone who's looking and interested is a potential customer,
0:30:51 > 0:30:55you know, someone who might want to come and actually see me.
0:30:55 > 0:31:00- How much do you earn, then?- Erm, it depends really...- But a good month.
0:31:00 > 0:31:04In a good month, OK, well, webcamming I try and make £1,000 a week,
0:31:04 > 0:31:09and then, when I escort, around sort of another two grand on top of that.
0:31:09 > 0:31:11So, like, six grand, I guess.
0:31:11 > 0:31:13That's a good month and that's...
0:31:13 > 0:31:17You know, it can be anything from four to seven, it just depends.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21- But not bad. I get by! - Four grand a month is a lot.
0:31:23 > 0:31:29So I'm sitting in, I guess, a room that lots of men have paid to see.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32- Yeah.- It's an honour!- Yeah, that's my wallpaper, so, yeah, I'm always...
0:31:32 > 0:31:34This is where I work.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36So I advertise it...
0:31:36 > 0:31:39'I want to know more about how Charlotte uses the website.'
0:31:39 > 0:31:42This is the site that I work off of.
0:31:42 > 0:31:47So it's kind of like a social networking site for sex workers.
0:31:47 > 0:31:49Let me see your profile.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54- All natural. I'm impressed!- Yeah!
0:31:54 > 0:31:58- I thought your boobs must be fake, because they're perky.- No, no.
0:31:58 > 0:32:01- It's a good bra!- I was wrong.
0:32:01 > 0:32:03See, I've got my profile, my free gallery.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06Private gallery, people have to pay to view it.
0:32:07 > 0:32:10'Charlotte also takes her business out on the road.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14'She arranges hotels and apartments and men can book a time to see her.'
0:32:14 > 0:32:16I have them all here, up until...
0:32:16 > 0:32:19- So everyone knows where I'm going to be.- So it's like a tour date.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Yeah, it's kind of like a tour, yeah.
0:32:21 > 0:32:25So I've got all of these bookings to come. So they submit a booking...
0:32:25 > 0:32:29Wait, so it's 400... Oh, right, £300 for an hour.
0:32:29 > 0:32:32Erm, yeah, that's because he's having what is...
0:32:32 > 0:32:35It's like called the porn star experience, just means...
0:32:35 > 0:32:37It's just a little bit different.
0:32:37 > 0:32:39The girlfriend experience is a lot more relaxed,
0:32:39 > 0:32:42whereas that will be more sex than what I normally do, so...
0:32:42 > 0:32:43yeah, it's more money.
0:32:43 > 0:32:48- Have you had, like, young, hot guys come and see you?- Not...
0:32:48 > 0:32:52I've had a couple of younger guys but generally the best types
0:32:52 > 0:32:55are the older guys because they're just nicer and more respectful.
0:32:55 > 0:32:59Like, the younger guys will just want to treat you like you're a whore,
0:32:59 > 0:33:00and I'm like...
0:33:00 > 0:33:03It specifically says on my page, don't see me if you think
0:33:03 > 0:33:06you're going to spend the whole hour, like, ploughing through me.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09Doesn't work like that. I'm a human, I'm not a machine.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12Is it something that you'd recommend to people, do you think?
0:33:12 > 0:33:15It's not for everyone, cos not everyone can,
0:33:15 > 0:33:17like, mentally deal with it.
0:33:17 > 0:33:19You know, you do sit there and I think,
0:33:19 > 0:33:21"I'm having sex with these people for money
0:33:21 > 0:33:24"and people are seeing me naked for money,"
0:33:24 > 0:33:27but I can deal with it. I love it. I enjoy it, so...
0:33:27 > 0:33:29But I know a lot of people who've come in the industry and left
0:33:29 > 0:33:31because...I don't know, they just can't deal with,
0:33:31 > 0:33:35so it's only for a particular type of person.
0:33:35 > 0:33:36It's really, really quite crazy
0:33:36 > 0:33:39what you make in such a short amount of time.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41'Charlotte's business is legitimate.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43'She's got an accountant and she pays tax too.'
0:33:44 > 0:33:49- People go, why do you do it? You look at that.- Oh, my God.- Yeah.
0:33:51 > 0:33:54It was incredibly eye opening to meet Charlotte and just to hear
0:33:54 > 0:33:57how much money there is to be made in this industry.
0:33:57 > 0:34:00Charlotte's made 90 grand from webcamming alone
0:34:00 > 0:34:03in the past two years, which just blew my mind,
0:34:03 > 0:34:06and I think that that figure speaks for itself,
0:34:06 > 0:34:10in that it's not hard to see why so many girls would
0:34:10 > 0:34:14get into this industry, just because it can be so, so lucrative.
0:34:14 > 0:34:17There's no law stopping Charlotte from earning a living
0:34:17 > 0:34:21selling her body, but not all aspects of prostitution are legal.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23I want to know exactly what the laws are on buying
0:34:23 > 0:34:25and selling sex in Britain.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29I've been looking at the law on prostitution and it's pretty complex.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31It is legal to sell sex
0:34:31 > 0:34:34but it's illegal to do it on the street in public.
0:34:35 > 0:34:38And with brothels it's really complicated.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41They're illegal. At least it's illegal to run one.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44But it says here it's actually not illegal to work in one.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52Is it just me that finds the law complex, contradictory
0:34:52 > 0:34:54and hard to understand?
0:34:54 > 0:34:58I want to know how much other people know on the laws on prostitution
0:34:58 > 0:35:00and whether they think they work.
0:35:04 > 0:35:05Here we are.
0:35:07 > 0:35:11So this is the venue for my pub quiz today.
0:35:12 > 0:35:14Come in! Enter!
0:35:14 > 0:35:18I have invited a group of 20 people, including Kevin, to take part
0:35:18 > 0:35:22in my quiz on the very complicated law regarding prostitution.
0:35:23 > 0:35:26And it is an issue some of them are very comfortable with.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31I am generally on the side of women having the right to choose what they do with their bodies.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33A lot of people when they go out,
0:35:33 > 0:35:36and they are drinking in the club and getting blind drunk,
0:35:36 > 0:35:39buying girl drinks, having a one-night stand, not even remembering
0:35:39 > 0:35:43her name, from a guy's point of view I can't really see the difference
0:35:43 > 0:35:46between that and just cutting to the chase and paying for a prostitute.
0:35:46 > 0:35:50But how much do they know about the law?
0:35:50 > 0:35:56Welcome to our prostitution pub quiz. Can I hear the blue buzzer?
0:35:56 > 0:35:58RINGING
0:35:58 > 0:35:59- And red. - KLAXON
0:35:59 > 0:36:05OK. The first scenario... It is...
0:36:05 > 0:36:08A guy paying a girl for sex.
0:36:08 > 0:36:12Is this legal or illegal?
0:36:12 > 0:36:13RINGING
0:36:13 > 0:36:14Illegal.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19- It is actually legal. - Really?- Yes.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22The law does allow one person to pay another for sex.
0:36:24 > 0:36:26So you are surprised by that, aren't you?
0:36:26 > 0:36:28I guess obviously you can give someone money
0:36:28 > 0:36:31but I think when you first think about paying for it the thing
0:36:31 > 0:36:34that springs to mind is illegal.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37- What now?- My mind is broke!
0:36:37 > 0:36:41Will you go out and celebrate? How many people knew the answer to that?
0:36:41 > 0:36:42Honestly.
0:36:44 > 0:36:46So half and half?
0:36:46 > 0:36:48I didn't know.
0:36:48 > 0:36:51Next up...
0:36:51 > 0:36:53A prostitute and a dude in a car. One person...
0:36:53 > 0:36:55RINGING
0:36:55 > 0:36:59- That's illegal, That they know, that is curb crawling, curb crawling is illegal.- Correct.
0:36:59 > 0:37:03It's against the law for a man to solicit sex
0:37:03 > 0:37:05and for a women to loiter in public selling sex.
0:37:06 > 0:37:13- The next scenario, a sex worker is advertising her services online. - KLAXON
0:37:13 > 0:37:16- I haven't finished the question. Go on, then.- I think it is illegal.
0:37:16 > 0:37:21- It's legal!- I think it is illegal. - You have to decide as a group.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23THEY TALK AMONGST THEMSELVES
0:37:23 > 0:37:26- Wait, give me an answer. - Illegal.- It is legal.- OK.
0:37:28 > 0:37:32It is legal to advertise sexual services in newspapers or online.
0:37:32 > 0:37:37As long as the service itself is not illegal.
0:37:37 > 0:37:42For a bonus point, is there anywhere that it is illegal to advertise?
0:37:42 > 0:37:44RINGING
0:37:44 > 0:37:47- Go on, then.- Telephone boxes, public places.- Yes.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51Final scenario, prostitute with a guy,
0:37:51 > 0:37:55and there is another prostitute with a guy next door as well.
0:37:55 > 0:38:00- Legal or illegal? - Legal!- It is illegal.
0:38:00 > 0:38:06If there is one prostitute in the household being paid for sex that is legal
0:38:06 > 0:38:12but as soon as more than one are in the same building then it is classed as a brothel, so, that is illegal.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15It is illegal to run or to help run a brothel,
0:38:15 > 0:38:19but as I found out earlier it is not actually illegal to work in one.
0:38:19 > 0:38:21I understand why they are illegal
0:38:21 > 0:38:24because they do not want it to be big business and have pimps
0:38:24 > 0:38:28and madams and stuff, but I think that it is a really vulnerable
0:38:28 > 0:38:32position to be in, you can be a victim of violence or rape, so,
0:38:32 > 0:38:35it would be really important I think to allow people to
0:38:35 > 0:38:38live in brothels, as long as it was regulated.
0:38:38 > 0:38:40So that it was not exploitative, maybe.
0:38:40 > 0:38:44OK, does anyone know who is at fault in that situation?
0:38:44 > 0:38:45KLAXON
0:38:45 > 0:38:47Yeah? Go on.
0:38:47 > 0:38:48It is the bloke.
0:38:48 > 0:38:50Blokes get caught going to these brothels,
0:38:50 > 0:38:53they are the ones in the wrong and they will get prosecuted.
0:38:53 > 0:38:56Actually, men are only committing a crime
0:38:56 > 0:38:59if the women who have sex with has been forced or trafficked.
0:38:59 > 0:39:01Otherwise they are off the hook.
0:39:01 > 0:39:04The person at fault is the one running the brothel.
0:39:04 > 0:39:07That's the end of the quiz. So, applause...
0:39:07 > 0:39:09APPLAUSE
0:39:11 > 0:39:12Did you enjoy it?
0:39:12 > 0:39:14ALL: Yeah!
0:39:16 > 0:39:20But many of the quizzers seem unhappy with the way the law works at the moment.
0:39:20 > 0:39:22All of us are confused about laws,
0:39:22 > 0:39:24not one person here everything correct.
0:39:24 > 0:39:26I am sure the whole British public is like that,
0:39:26 > 0:39:29so, I think it should be cleared up and set straight, the laws,
0:39:29 > 0:39:31rather than have it contradict itself.
0:39:31 > 0:39:33The law does need to be reviewed, it is a two way thing.
0:39:33 > 0:39:35They are both participating in this act.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39Why should the woman be victimised and be made out to be the criminal
0:39:39 > 0:39:40and the man can get away with it?
0:39:40 > 0:39:46If they changed the law with prostitution and give more rights to prostitutes
0:39:46 > 0:39:49I think it will promote it and more women will go into prostitution.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52Which I completely disagree with.
0:39:54 > 0:39:59We have found reports of 93 raids on brothels by police in 2013.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02I want to know more about brothels to understand why
0:40:02 > 0:40:05they are illegal but it's proved impossible to get into one.
0:40:07 > 0:40:11Madam Becky Adams, though, has agreed to help me out.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14She ran several brothels in the Home Counties for 25 years
0:40:14 > 0:40:17until she retired in 2009.
0:40:17 > 0:40:18Becky is going to show me
0:40:18 > 0:40:20what is really involved in running a brothel.
0:40:25 > 0:40:28So we have come to an apartment I have hired on her advice.
0:40:30 > 0:40:34- Here we are.- Excellent.- Where the magic is about to happen.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36Fantastic.
0:40:37 > 0:40:42- Is this all right? - I think this is perfect, really.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45Why is it good to rent an apartment like this?
0:40:45 > 0:40:49A serviced apartment is a mixture between a very smart hotel
0:40:49 > 0:40:54room and renting your own apartment. But it is serviced like a hotel.
0:40:54 > 0:40:57It's not always a good idea to have somewhere you are renting
0:40:57 > 0:41:00on a six-month lease, you can be shut down tomorrow.
0:41:00 > 0:41:05At least with a serviced apartment it means we can take our bits and pieces,
0:41:05 > 0:41:09we can set up for the day and then we can go and be somewhere else tomorrow.
0:41:12 > 0:41:14Here we are.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16Becky checks over the apartment...
0:41:16 > 0:41:17It is brilliant, perfect.
0:41:17 > 0:41:19..that will become my brothel.
0:41:19 > 0:41:21We've got some kinky mirrors.
0:41:21 > 0:41:24That's really nice, plenty of room.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27It turns out the action starts in the bathroom.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30So you don't have to have a smelly customer we offer them
0:41:30 > 0:41:35an assisted bubble bath, and you will give him a nice wash.
0:41:35 > 0:41:37Just a wash? Nothing else?
0:41:37 > 0:41:39Normally what would happen is you would watch his back
0:41:39 > 0:41:44- and have a game of hunt the soap. - Right.- You see what I mean.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47And then I will come in with a tray of tea and put
0:41:47 > 0:41:51the tray of tea on the loo seat, so he can have a little
0:41:51 > 0:41:55drink of tea or a cold beer or something while he is lying in his bath.
0:41:55 > 0:41:57We always had a tray of biscuits.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00Ginger nuts or a nice bit of shortbread.
0:42:00 > 0:42:04If I had known that sooner I would have gotten ginger nuts.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06You can have a good brothel without a ginger nut, dear.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09- We've to get some ginger nuts. - I am learning so much.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12It is all these little essentials, you see.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14You thought it was all about the sex but it is all about the biscuits.
0:42:17 > 0:42:19Becky then takes me through the essentials...
0:42:19 > 0:42:22It's like Christmas, isn't it?
0:42:22 > 0:42:24..that every self-respecting Madam needs.
0:42:26 > 0:42:29You can never ever have enough troubles in a brothel.
0:42:29 > 0:42:34If they do their activities on top of the bed, on top of towels.
0:42:34 > 0:42:40Baby wipes are an essential part of massage parlours and working flats.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44They help clean the customers when they have finished.
0:42:44 > 0:42:48Obviously condoms. Always, always, always. Safe sex.
0:42:48 > 0:42:52To use a condom for sex and oral sex as well.
0:42:52 > 0:42:5418 won't last very long.
0:42:56 > 0:43:00Next, Becky wants to show me how to get the bedroom ready for action.
0:43:03 > 0:43:09So, I will just show you really quickly how to sort of fold the towels.
0:43:09 > 0:43:13Does it always start with a massage or does it ever just go straight into sex?
0:43:13 > 0:43:15Normally a customer would be front down,
0:43:15 > 0:43:19so he will have a nice back massage and then when the customer is
0:43:19 > 0:43:25ready he turns over and it can be a front massage and moving into sex.
0:43:25 > 0:43:29Kind of by now you are probably half an hour into your hour's booking.
0:43:29 > 0:43:35And... Although gentlemen like to think that they are paying for
0:43:35 > 0:43:38and hour's booking and they will have an hour's sex,
0:43:38 > 0:43:42and people have this perception that prostitution is all about sex,
0:43:42 > 0:43:47I think we all know that gentlemen normally can't last that long
0:43:47 > 0:43:50so out of an hour's booking probably about 30 seconds of it will be sex.
0:43:50 > 0:43:52Then it is all done and finished.
0:43:52 > 0:43:56By running brothels Becky was breaking the law, she was raided
0:43:56 > 0:44:00and closed down by the police six times, although never prosecuted.
0:44:01 > 0:44:05If you obey the unwritten rules which are no drugs,
0:44:05 > 0:44:08no underage girls, no alcohol, no coercion,
0:44:08 > 0:44:12and the girls are paying their sort of tax
0:44:12 > 0:44:16and national insurance then the police always knew where we were,
0:44:16 > 0:44:21they always kept an eye on us and as long as we weren't making, or
0:44:21 > 0:44:26being a nuisance or causing trouble then the sort of left us alone.
0:44:26 > 0:44:30I was always aware that we were breaking the law but to me
0:44:30 > 0:44:36I didn't feel as if I was doing anything wrong. My moral sense.
0:44:36 > 0:44:40I was just helping girls and helping customers stay safe
0:44:40 > 0:44:43and in a controlled environment.
0:44:45 > 0:44:47Set the ambiance, there, dear.
0:44:47 > 0:44:50Becky believes that brothels provide the safest place for sex workers
0:44:50 > 0:44:53and campaigns for them to be decriminalised.
0:44:56 > 0:45:01Why do you feel that the law has ignored then the fact that lots
0:45:01 > 0:45:05of girls will be putting themselves at risk if they do abide by it?
0:45:05 > 0:45:07The law is ridiculous.
0:45:07 > 0:45:09But sex workers do not really have a voice
0:45:09 > 0:45:13and they certainly don't have a voice that anybody particularly listens to.
0:45:13 > 0:45:18So...I don't know the answer to that.
0:45:18 > 0:45:23Why have the government seen fit to endanger women?
0:45:23 > 0:45:25It is utterly ridiculous.
0:45:26 > 0:45:32I really do feel properly equipped to run a brothel now.
0:45:32 > 0:45:34Considering it.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38Just talking to someone who it's affected first-hand makes it
0:45:38 > 0:45:43all so much more real than hearing about brothels are illegal.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47And it just makes me confused about why they are,
0:45:47 > 0:45:51because someone like Becky running a brothel just
0:45:51 > 0:45:54seems like it would be such a safe smooth running business.
0:45:59 > 0:46:04Around 10% of the sex industry is street prostitution.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06It's the smallest section of the industry
0:46:06 > 0:46:09but it's the one that grabs all the headlines.
0:46:09 > 0:46:13Many street workers start before the age of 18.
0:46:13 > 0:46:17We do regular outreach sessions, three or four nights a week.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20I've come to Liverpool to spend the evening with Shelley Stupes
0:46:20 > 0:46:22who works for the local NHS trust.
0:46:22 > 0:46:27She regularly visits the city's 200 street sex workers.
0:46:27 > 0:46:30We would go around, see the women, giving them condoms.
0:46:30 > 0:46:33We operate a needle exchange and a listening ear
0:46:33 > 0:46:35if there are any problems they need help with.
0:46:36 > 0:46:42We might be the only person who stops and has spoken to them like a human being.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45Most street workers are coping with addiction.
0:46:47 > 0:46:52Out here, they're also selling sex where the risks and dangers are highest.
0:46:53 > 0:46:57We have often been on outreach and come across women being attacked.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00People throwing eggs and throwing stones at the women,
0:47:00 > 0:47:05people attacking them when they can't follow through on the act.
0:47:08 > 0:47:12140 sex workers have been murdered in Britain since 1990.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16Shelley has brought me to one of the main areas
0:47:16 > 0:47:20favoured by Liverpool's street workers, but it's also the site of a murder.
0:47:21 > 0:47:25So this is where Anne Marie Foy was murdered in 2005.
0:47:26 > 0:47:31Anne Marie was just doing her normal business and working as normal.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34What happened was, the next day, one of our other clients found her
0:47:34 > 0:47:37just propped up against the tree there.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43Anne Marie was a 46-year-old mother and grandmother.
0:47:46 > 0:47:50- How was she killed? - She was beaten to death.
0:47:50 > 0:47:53It's heartbreaking.
0:47:56 > 0:48:00Yes, it is. We're talking about people here, not about headlines.
0:48:02 > 0:48:05Anne Marie was a woman and she was someone we cared about,
0:48:05 > 0:48:08so it's about that and everybody belonging to somebody.
0:48:08 > 0:48:11It's weird to think that they're still working around here.
0:48:11 > 0:48:15It must be a constant reminder of the danger there is.
0:48:15 > 0:48:19Yeah and the women come here to kind of remember Anne Marie.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22You'll often see them popping up and putting flowers there.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24Their children come here.
0:48:24 > 0:48:28Very much a reminder of all the women we've lost here in Liverpool.
0:48:28 > 0:48:31- Far too many lives, far too many. - Yeah.
0:48:38 > 0:48:42The next day, I go to the Armistead Centre in Liverpool,
0:48:42 > 0:48:45a place that supports street sex workers.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Shelley has arranged for me to meet a woman
0:48:47 > 0:48:49who worked in street prostitution from the age of 24.
0:48:50 > 0:48:52Like many street workers,
0:48:52 > 0:48:55she was driven by a need for money to fund addictions.
0:48:56 > 0:48:58Thanks so much for coming to talk to me.
0:48:58 > 0:49:01Liz is 33 and a mum of two children.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04She doesn't want to reveal her identity.
0:49:04 > 0:49:06Tell me a bit about your story.
0:49:06 > 0:49:09- You used to be a sex worker, right? - Yeah.
0:49:09 > 0:49:14I'm from a loving family. No problems at all.
0:49:15 > 0:49:21But I had a serious drug addiction and a serious alcohol problem.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25The desperation I had as soon as I opened my eyes in the morning,
0:49:25 > 0:49:29to get up and get dressed and get out on the street
0:49:29 > 0:49:32to earn a few bob for my alcohol and drugs.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34What was your life like?
0:49:34 > 0:49:37It's something quite difficult for me to get my head around,
0:49:37 > 0:49:41what it's like, the act of being paid to do something like that,
0:49:41 > 0:49:43or how you can deal with it?
0:49:43 > 0:49:44It's just a nightmare.
0:49:44 > 0:49:48At times, I would wake up crying in the middle of the night.
0:49:48 > 0:49:50I'd be screaming in my sleep.
0:49:52 > 0:49:53I'd wake up in cold sweats
0:49:53 > 0:49:57and see the faces of these men who absolutely violated me.
0:49:57 > 0:50:04The flashbacks and the mental damage I've been left with, even now,
0:50:04 > 0:50:09nearly three years clean and sober is untold.
0:50:09 > 0:50:14There was a lot of anger, rage, self-hatred, self-loathing.
0:50:14 > 0:50:17This belief that I was worthless.
0:50:19 > 0:50:21Despite her anguish with the job,
0:50:21 > 0:50:24it took a series of attacks for Liz to leave the streets.
0:50:26 > 0:50:31I got to a point where I had been seriously sexually assaulted
0:50:31 > 0:50:37once by four punters and then I'd been seriously assaulted by another.
0:50:37 > 0:50:39And left for dead.
0:50:39 > 0:50:46I'd had all my teeth kicked out of my mouth and then I was held in a flat for eight hours
0:50:46 > 0:50:50and repeatedly raped and beaten by another punter.
0:50:52 > 0:50:55I said, do you know what I need? I need to get out.
0:50:55 > 0:50:59Shelley organised for Liz to enter a rehab programme two years ago.
0:50:59 > 0:51:04- Were any of the people who attacked you arrested?- Yeah.- They were?
0:51:04 > 0:51:06Of course they were.
0:51:06 > 0:51:11In one case, a fella got three years for beating me up,
0:51:11 > 0:51:14and the same with the guy who kept me imprisoned.
0:51:20 > 0:51:25I've had friends and family that have struggled with drug addiction
0:51:25 > 0:51:30and it's always heartbreaking to see how much it can change people.
0:51:31 > 0:51:37It's horrible to hear about these stories of people being beaten up
0:51:37 > 0:51:43and left for dead on the street and drugs and violence.
0:51:43 > 0:51:48But hearing that made me realise
0:51:48 > 0:51:51that it's not this polarised world
0:51:51 > 0:51:58of maybe glamour, high-class escorts and then drug addicted prostitutes on the street.
0:51:58 > 0:52:03I think they both put themselves at risks in the same areas.
0:52:06 > 0:52:08Given the high risk involved in prostitution,
0:52:08 > 0:52:12I want to know what the police are doing to protect women.
0:52:12 > 0:52:14If brothels can provide greater safety but remain illegal,
0:52:14 > 0:52:16what should the police do?
0:52:18 > 0:52:21I've come to Merseyside Police Headquarters to meet the senior officer
0:52:21 > 0:52:25who takes a leading role on national police policy on prostitution.
0:52:28 > 0:52:33I've read up a bit on the law and I found it a bit confusing.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36It's not particularly hard to spot a brothel.
0:52:36 > 0:52:41Are police going and raiding them or shutting them down or what is happening?
0:52:41 > 0:52:42Where concerns are raised
0:52:42 > 0:52:45or we believe there is organised criminality sitting behind this,
0:52:45 > 0:52:48then yes, we will raid them and we will take enforcement action
0:52:48 > 0:52:51but it's about prioritising our resources.
0:52:51 > 0:52:55In the majority of cases, the individuals working within those brothels
0:52:55 > 0:52:57are doing so of their own choice.
0:52:57 > 0:53:01In many ways, they're safer perhaps than somebody working out on the street.
0:53:01 > 0:53:06Would the legalisation of brothels not make a lot of girls' work safer?
0:53:06 > 0:53:09It's a difficult debate and it does polarise opinions
0:53:09 > 0:53:12because the community might be, quite rightly, fairly outraged
0:53:12 > 0:53:18if they thought there was going to be a legalised brothel sitting on their high street.
0:53:18 > 0:53:20But you do see Australia and New Zealand at the moment,
0:53:20 > 0:53:26there are some regulated and licensed brothels operating
0:53:26 > 0:53:31and the early signs of that are that it has reduced both dependency issues,
0:53:31 > 0:53:33violent attack and they're operating in areas
0:53:33 > 0:53:36that don't appear to be provoking community backlash.
0:53:45 > 0:53:47Last time we saw Charlotte,
0:53:47 > 0:53:49she was preparing her tour dates across the country.
0:53:49 > 0:53:51Her London leg is now over.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55She has been selling sex from an apartment
0:53:55 > 0:53:57she has hired with a friend.
0:53:59 > 0:54:02I'll just let them through the front door.
0:54:02 > 0:54:04If it's my client or my friend's client,
0:54:04 > 0:54:06this is my friend's bedroom, it's a smaller one,
0:54:06 > 0:54:09I got the bigger one so she was in that room.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12She would take them through there, we would offer them some water
0:54:12 > 0:54:16and then my clients would come through to this room.
0:54:16 > 0:54:20We would do the money first. Business first, pleasure second.
0:54:21 > 0:54:25She's packing to leave after a lucrative three days.
0:54:27 > 0:54:29I made £1750.
0:54:29 > 0:54:35My outgoings were about £500 so I made about £1250 profit.
0:54:35 > 0:54:37Very happy with that.
0:54:38 > 0:54:42But in the process, Charlotte risks falling short of the law.
0:54:42 > 0:54:45I'm working with one of my friends but that technically means
0:54:45 > 0:54:48we've turned the apartment into a brothel.
0:54:48 > 0:54:52This is one of the safest tours I've done because I'm with someone
0:54:52 > 0:54:54and the law is telling me, no, you shouldn't be safe,
0:54:54 > 0:54:56you should be working by yourself.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59It doesn't even cross my mind what I'm doing is wrong.
0:54:59 > 0:55:02We're not in here trashing the place, we're not taking drugs.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05We're not doing anything really that illegal.
0:55:05 > 0:55:08It is a real job and I make far more than loads of people.
0:55:08 > 0:55:12It should be treated like a normal job and there should be things in place to make it safer,
0:55:12 > 0:55:14to make it better for us to work.
0:55:15 > 0:55:17Despite her concerns on the law,
0:55:17 > 0:55:21Charlotte has no regrets about the life she's chosen.
0:55:21 > 0:55:26The only thing I don't like is my personal life, with relationships,
0:55:26 > 0:55:32but my financial stability and financial security is worth way more than being with someone.
0:55:34 > 0:55:36It is one of the things you do sacrifice.
0:55:38 > 0:55:41But I think I enjoy money more right now.
0:55:50 > 0:55:54I've been surprised by many of the things I've learned about prostitution.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58How ordinary and everyday it is among lots of young people.
0:55:58 > 0:56:01Just how much money there is to be made in sex work.
0:56:01 > 0:56:03And that it's s a positive choice for so many women,
0:56:03 > 0:56:05rather than a desperate one.
0:56:08 > 0:56:12But whether you're a high-class escort or on the street, funding an addiction,
0:56:12 > 0:56:15the risks of selling sex from the obvious physical danger
0:56:15 > 0:56:19to the longer term effect on emotional health are high.