Women in Focus

Andee Rodgers is the Women In Nude Recreation (WINR) Chair for the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) and founder of the Women One Word (WoW) campaign, which promotes body positivity and self-acceptance. Based near Estacada, Oregon, she also serves as the AANR Northwest President. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I wanted to surprise my husband with a visit to a naturist resort. At the time, I had no experience with naturism and was actually very uncomfortable with my

Vian is a 55 year old mum of 4 grown up children, and one cockapoo. She is a consultant gynaecologist and certified psychosexual counsellor, originally from the Middle East living and working in the United Kingdom since 2010. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: Following my postgraduate study of a professional certificate in psychosexual counselling in 2022, I started talking about body positivity and sexuality. I got many followers from the Arabic world on multiple platforms to talk

Donna Dodd is a 48 year old single mum of 3 humans, 2 huskies, and 5 cats. She is a Nursing Associate, has previously enjoyed a career in law and has even been a croupier. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: A friend introduced me to naturism just before the global covid pandemic. I have always enjoyed skinny dipping and being naked at home and in my garden but hearing that they were organised swims and club events was a bonus. Q: Is there a difference between the two labels?

Stephanie McManus is a 30 year old nurse from New Zealand. When I originally met Steph online, she was living in Costa Rica. She was building a business called Body Freedom International which was all about being naked and body positivity, and about using nudity as a ‘healing tool’. Steph has helped a lot of people through BFI, and whilst that business didn’t really take off in the way that she hoped, she continues to empower people through building spaces for women to be authentic with themselv

Jooles is a vibrant & passionate woman dedicated to embracing the naturist lifestyle. At 42 years of age, Jooles resides in a small marina in a village by the banks of the river Soar near Nottingham. She has to live by water! Jooles wears many hats, mum to 2 children, 13 and 9, naked fitness instructor for BN, AirBnB host, and project manager for her ocean rowing campaign. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: My best friends Jenny and Mark Bass (President of BN), and close friend

Martha is 27 years old, from Somerset, and lives with her partner and 3 cats. She is a dreadmaker (a hairdresser for dreadlocks) and has been doing this for the last 7 years. She owns a patch of land in Dorset and is currently working on plans to relocate there, the ultimate goal of being ‘off grid’ and being as self reliant as possible. Martha is a body positivity campaigner and recently appeared as one of the brigade in the Channel 4 series Naked Education. Q: What got you into naturism/n

Angela De la Cruz is 32 years old from Guadalajara, Mexico and has been promoting nudism for the last three years. She travels around Mexico to learn about the nudist communities and the natural spaces that nudists can find to enjoy. She is a qualified teacher and provides clothing optional classes in English and Spanish on-line. She is an ambassador for naturism and creates content to normalise nudity on social media. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: A friend of mine invited me t

Janet Cooper is 79, married to Steven, and lives in Blackheath, London. She enjoys writing short stories, poetry and sketches and says her claim to fame is having one of her sketches performed on The News Huddlines on Radio Two. She enjoys card making and doing crosswords and in her spare time she loves to go walking through the woods naked. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: My husband has always been a naturist and as soon as he comes home, the clothes come off. Nudity has never b

Maja Penko is 50 years old and is a Tour Leader and Tourist Guide in her hometown of Ljubljana in Slovenia. She has also worked for the INF and is now the President of the Slovenian naturist federation. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I was born without clothes and shoes.  Then raised in a normal (=naturist) family. Dad and Mum and my brother were always (when we wanted) naked. Our parents never taught us to »cover up« or to »feel ashamed« of our bodies or parts of our bodies.

Emma Farrell is 41 years old and works in a secondary school as a Science Technician. She has twin daughters who are 11, and a 5-year son. She lives with her husband, Stephen, in Nottinghamshire, UK. Q. What got you into naturism/nudism? A. It was probably the experience of childbirth that quite suddenly and forcefully made me drop any hang-ups that I had about being seen unclothed. Amongst many other things about that particular morning in August 2012, I remember a midwife trying to pres

Viv Rimmer lives in Reading and volunteers for BN as their LASER regional organiser, which involves being responsible for promoting naturism in the London and SE England area. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: Like a lot of people I first tried naturism on holiday. I was walking with a group on a very hot fortnight in Southern Spain, and one day we came down off the mountains to a small beach. I was desperate to cool off in the sea but had no costume with me. Then I saw the sign ‘P

Sheila Maycock is 63 and has been married to Stephen for 40 years. They live in Devon and have 3 daughters and 2 young grandchildren. Sheila says "We’re fortunate to have 2 naturist beaches close by and enjoy accessing them on our kayak and paddleboard. We’re sporty and enjoy tennis, swimming, walking, gardening. I love baking & cooking and also stone carving as a mindful hobby. I’m semi-retired (I used to run a branch of the charity Relate) but still enjoy delivering counselling online to f

Karie Jane, 56, is a single mother of a young adult and is the proud owner of BHH Naturist Resort Fuerteventura. Previously she enjoyed a career working for The Prince’s Trust as Regional Director, and then fifteen years as a Theatre Producer in the UK and throughout Europe. She likes sailing, yoga and Padel Tennis and enjoys daily walks on the beach with her labradoodle, Milo. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I got into naturism when I started coming to Fuerteventura in the late

Dugie Eyton-Hughes is 73 years old, originally from the United States and now living near Chester. She is a journalist and shares her writing skills with BN. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I can’t pinpoint a specific event. Years and years ago, when I was still living in the States, I went with my then-husband to a nudist beach in California. I don’t think I stripped off but I also don’t remember being shocked by the fact that others were naked. And that was it for many, many ye

Anne Nisbet is an enthusiastic BN volunteer and at time of writing is standing for the position of BN International Director. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: Other than naked swimming while on family holidays, there was one particular work trip to Finland in March 2001, when I stumbled upon a municipal sauna devoted to a naked ladies-only evening. I observed a traditional ‘birch branch beating’ in the sauna and participated in a steam room session and several laps of the swimming

Helen speaks to Samantha Graham, 32, originally from North Bay, Ontario, Canada and currently living in Playa Ocotal, Costa Rica. Sam currently works as social media manager for Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park, Canada. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I've always preferred to be clothes free, around the house and especially when I sleep. Growing up there weren't opportunities to be nude in a public setting, other than the occasional skinny dip with girlfriends back in high school.

Helen speaks to Carol McLean, a 49 year old admin assistant from Aberdeen. Q: What got you into naturism? A: A combination of my boyfriend and the TV show Steph’s Packed Lunch! My boyfriend was interested in trying naturism and I wanted to support him in this. I saw a naturist spa hotel featured on Steph’s Packed Lunch, which intrigued me because I didn’t think such things would exist in the UK. So we booked a room there; perfect timing, during the heatwave; and that was it, our first natur

Helen speaks to Amanda Foster from Pretoria, South Africa. She’s 65 years old, mother of 3 adult children and has 4 grandchildren. She lives with her naturist partner, Lofty. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: My ex-husband introduced me to naturism 25 years ago, but I was often naked as a child. Q: Is there a difference between the two labels? A: Naturism is about living nude in nature whereas nudism is about going nude anywhere (especially parties). Nudism is well known but the

Helen meets Sadie Tann, conservation student and forager. Part of 'The Freewilders' group who recently rode tandems naked from John O'Groats to Lands End in aid of charity. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I've always felt more comfortable naked, and have been naked in nature from my early teens. Public nudity is more recent. Colin and I started to go to pubs and cycle through very populated areas then eventually the bike ride! Q: Is there a difference between the two labels? A

Helen meets Helen Smith, a nude life model, personal trainer, dog lover and normalising nudity campaigner from the Midlands. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I went to a naturist beach in France by accident with a previous boyfriend. Neither of us realised it was naturist until we got there, but as it was a new relationship neither of us wanted to lose face and we both stripped off as if we'd been doing it for years. I quickly realised it was a nice way to be. Q: Is there a dif

Helen meets Siobhán Hazzan, a recent naturist convert and an ordained pastor with the Christian Naturist Fellowship (CNF). Q. What got you into naturism/nudism? A. When I met Peter, he was already a naturist. As soon as I realised that I was in love with him I knew I had to try it as I wanted him to have a partner who shared his love of naturism. If that wasn’t going to be me then I wanted to let him go to meet someone else who would be. Thankfully once I tried it I realised that it wasn’

Helen met Sue May at Nudefest 2022. She lives in Hampshire with her partner Andrew, also a naturist. She’s been a naturist for about 6 years and over that time has become very passionate about promoting naturism and always takes time to speak to new or curious naturists. On holidays she always tries to stay at naturist campsites whether it’s in the UK or abroad. Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I started sunbathing topless abroad and enjoyed it so started doing in the UK... then I

Helen talks to transgender female naturist Leah Crowley Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: During weekends I would go to stay at my grandparents caravan in Worcestershire and the surrounding area was outstanding natural beauty. I was about seven years old and I would wander into the nearby fields and woodland. I felt an inner peace and comfort. This would be my escape on a regular basis. The weather was surprisingly warm at this time and it just felt natural to unclothe and lay on the

Helen talks to long-standing naturist Jenny Budden Q: What got you into naturism/nudism? A: I became a naturist many years ago in the 1970s, the summer of 1976 was very hot and my husband and I, then my boyfriend, regularly went to Studland beach as textiles, we always went well away from the crowded beach and that year as a result of the hot weather naturists were coming out of the dunes to swim etc. My husband and I were both born in Poole and there was lots of gossip about a nudist colon