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BN 196 - Summer 2013

We look back on two of our biggest and best Naturist weekends ever - the visit to Blackpool at the end of February and a new and exciting venture for BN, the Scottish weekend at Dunoon in April. There are extensive reports from both events and lots of pictures.
On a more serious note, Commercial Sales Manager Andrew Welch explains our new recruitment strategy. We at British Naturism are working hard throughout 2013 to bring in new members, from among Naturists who have never joined BN as well as from non-Naturists who we think could be easily encouraged to try out our lifestyle.
Our regular feature writer, Roni Fine, encourages everyone not to let the changeable British weather put them off Naturism and talking of which, our travel section looks at some of the best venues where you can enjoy a great Naturist Holiday in the United Kingdom. We’ve also got reports from some outstanding holiday destinations in Southern Europe.
Our summer edition always features a full listing of BN’s Big Days Out - those events around the country where BN and our regions do our best to promote Naturism at Naturist and texttile venues.
All this and plenty of reports from our clubs, a busy section of What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more.
Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.

Anti-Social Behaviour Bill, a Threat to Everyone

British Naturism, the organisation which promotes and protects the interests of the millions of Naturists in the United Kingdom, believes that proposals included in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill will be used to close down naturist beaches and even prevent naturists from sunbathing naked in their own gardens or clubs. It is not just naturists who will fall foul of this bill, but any minority group - everyone from dog walkers to kite flyers. If the council do not like it, they could prohibit it.
Ministers say anti-social behaviour could include possession of a can of spray paint in a public place, entering an area, or being drunk in public, which is true. What they don't say is that the definition is so wide, (annoyance or nuisance to anyone), that it could include just about anything and it could be used to target Naturists., Given the appalling record of some councils, we fully expect them to use this bill to harass naturists and prohibit Naturism.
Malcolm Boura, British Naturism’s Research and Liaison Officer, said: ‘If history teaches us anything, it is that if a power can be abused, then it will be abused. We have absolutely no doubt that if it becomes law as currently-worded, then it will be used to prohibit Naturism in a wide range of places. Beaches and gardens are a certainty and it may even include naturist events and clubs.’”
“The Government is claiming that this just consolidates existing legislation but it goes much further than that. It makes it harder to challenge, it lowers the standard of proof, it broadens the scope, it introduces secrecy and it introduces civil penalties. The penalties may not be criminal but it still results in a record - and that can blight a career. In the past Parliament has declared that they have no intention of making Naturism illegal and we suspect that is still the case, it is the unintended consequences of this legislation that concerns us.
On a beach, a policeman will claim that annoyance is being caused and will issue a two-day ban from the locality, which may be a very large area. That is punishment without even a charge!
Councils will be able to ban anything that they do not like and in areas where the council refuses to take a constructive approach, we will see the piecemeal prohibition of naturist beaches.
“Crucially, there is no requirement to consult with anyone apart from the police. That is neither democracy nor justice. If we don't hear about the order, we can't challenge it. That is not justice. There will be a six-week limit for challenges leaving almost no time to prepare. That is not justice.
“Challenges will only be through the prohibitively-expensive High Court. That is not justice. A local authority could impose a banning order in December in near-total secrecy and by the time that it is discovered the following spring, there would be nothing that could be done about it. That is not justice.“
Mr Boura warned: “It will lead to the creeping criminalisation of beach Naturism and an increase in body-prejudice with all the problems which that causes. An approach such as this doesn’t work - it only creates resentment among law-abiding people who suddenly find themselves on the wrong side of the law.
“The Bill is vast, yet all the provisions suffer from a lack of sensible definition. The law should be easy to understand. It should not be necessary to hire expensive lawyers to find out what it means. Yet councils and the police will use our taxpayers’ money hiring expensive lawyers trying to justify their actions.”
British Naturism is urging people to write to their local MP and express their worries.. Mr Boura said: “The Government are trying to rush this bill through the House of Commons before the summer recess on July 18. We need to act quickly so that MPs are aware of our concerns.”
- ENDS -
Contacts:
Malcolm Boura
Research and Liaison Officer
British Naturism
30-32 Wycliffe Rd, Northampton, NN1 5JF.
01604 620361
07734 964435
campaigns@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are rarely relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes.

British Naturism Magazine - BN195 Spring 2013

Did you know that British Naturism will be 50 years old next spring? That’s obviously a great cause for celebration and already we have lots of good ideas, including a major exhibition on the history of Naturism. However, we need lots of pairs of hands to make it all work and in BN 195, Philip Baker explains how YOU can get involved.
As we approach our golden anniversary, many more Naturists and Naturist clubs are coming out from behind the hedges and making themselves known to the world. Magazine editor Martin Warrillow has been speaking to one of the most active clubs in terms of winning publicity - his interview with them could give you lots of ideas which could help bring new people into the wonderful world of naturism.
There have been lots of changes for the good at BN recently and Martin has been talking to our three new recruits working at Head Office in Northampton - and he’s found that, like almost all Naturists, they are really nice people!
The spring edition also features full details of our Big Days Out calendar for 2013 and has full details of how you can book your places at Nudefest, Alton Towers and the new-look National Convention weekend which, for the first time, will host our annual general meeting.
Travel reports in this issue come from Spain and her islands with a look at some well-known venues and hidden gems, as well as how ladies are leading the way on Formentera’s clothes-optional beaches, while there is plenty of news, as always, from BN’s clubs.
All this and a positively bulging section of reports from our clubs, What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more.

INF-FNI 60th Anniversary

Naturism has a long history dating back to the 1800s and grew in differing ways in differing countries. Following the unfortunate events in the 1940s there began a trend for groups of various countries to get together either for sports events or meeting to discuss common themes. The largest of these was titled as a “World Congress” and was held in September 1951 at North Kent Club England with an International Conference of Naturist Organisations at the Cora Hotel in London. Seven different countries were represented. In some cases these were national associations, in others they were individual clubs or commercial establishments.
A second meeting was held in August 1952 at Thielle in Switzerland, this time attended by representatives of 16 countries and they agreed to the wisdom of establishing a world movement with an organisation to promote and encourage naturism. This meeting appointed three people who would draft a set of rules for such a body and this task was undertaken by Albert LeCocq of France, Dorothy Thornton from England and Erhard Wachtler from Germany.
At what was now the third World Naturist Congress held 22 and 23 August 1953 in Centre Helio Marin- Montalivet the suggested name of “world-union" had been proposed but after discussion the name “International Naturist Federation” was chosen. This enabled the title INF-FNI to encompass the name in the three languages agreed to be the working languages of the INF. These being German, English and French. The statutes were agreed and the International Naturist Federation was born.
The first President was Dr Richard Ehrmann of Austria; Vice presidents were Albert Lecocq of France, Erhard Wachtler of Germany, Eduard Frankhauser of Switzerland and Dorothy Thornton of Gt. Britain. The president appointed as his secretary Paul Neumann and as treasurer Ludwig Hruschka.
A second INF World Congress was held the following year in Vienna before the now established pattern of a Congress every second year was established.
Today the INF-FNI has 31 countries represented by federations and a further 8 by official representatives often referred to as official correspondents. INF-FNI can now claim to represent the interests of over 450,000 naturists, world-wide and the INF card is the most recognised and accepted membership card in the naturist world.
2013 marks the 60th year since the establishment of INF-FNI and it is to be marked by a celebration from 20. To 22. September 2013 in Montalivet. We want to celebrate our anniversary from the 20.9.2013 to the 22.9. 2013 in Montalivet, and it would be great if we could greet you at this ceremony.
Visit the INF Website.
Please see attached PDF files for further details.Rundschreiben 60 Jahre.pdf
Einladung 60 Jubiläum ENG 02.pdf

Skinny dip to get fit after Christmas

Organised by British Naturism, the UK’s national naturist organisation, The Great British Skinny Dip new year promotion takes place during January and February 2013 with a variety of naturist swim locations offering half price entry to newcomers.
Millions of people around the country will be making New Year's resolutions to get fit after the excesses of the festive season and to try something new. Getting involved in The Great British Skinny Dip achieves both in one go.
British Naturism's Commercial Manager, Andrew Welch said:
“There is nothing quite so liberating and life-affirming as swimming without clothes with the wonderful sensation of the water over your whole body. Millions of people around the world have discovered the joys of skinny-dipping and we want to provide an easy opportunity for many others to give it a go – and find out what they are missing. “Social nudity” is on the increase as people are far less hung up these days about seeing or being seen naked by friends and family and are realising the benefits it brings to mental, emotional and physical health, body image issues, and their ability to relax and escape the rigours of daily life."
Media attendance at many of the events is welcome. Please contact us for further information and assistance or make direct contact – find details of each venue here.
- ENDS -
Contacts:
BN Commercial Manager
Andrew Welch
01753 481527
07774 955138
commercial.manager@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are not relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes

British Naturism Magazine - BN194 Winter 2012

The winter 2012 magazine (BN 194) is a great mix of travel features, news from BN’s clubs, members of all kinds telling us how they enjoy their naturism and a look forward to a busy programme of events 2013 - including a bigger Blackpool weekend and the return of British Naturism to Alton Towers!
Young blogger Becky Stanworth tells us how discovering naturism has changed her life and how she has coped with the interest of other people - both good and bad. The Rev Bob Horrocks, chairman of the Christian Naturist Fellowship, writes about his 90 seconds of television fame and we hear how one particularly successful club is going beyond its gates to find new members,
Editor Martin Warrillow talks to new BN chairman Judith Stinchcombe about her plans for the future and we look back on a highly-successful annual general meeting.
BN’s big national events are being run in 2013 by teams of volunteers from the regions and we meet the group who will be steering Nudefest as it moves to a new date in July. All of the volunteers who are stepping up to help BN need your support, so please think: “Is there anything, however small, that I can do to help British Naturism?”
Our travel reports come from France, Greece, the Caribbean and the Far East and as always, there is plenty of news from BN’s clubs.
All this and a positively bulging section of reports from our clubs, What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more, including details of all next summer’s BN Big Days Out - with some new and exciting events.
Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.

BBC censorship

At a time when the BBC is under serious criticism for a lack of journalistic integrity, letters received by members of British Naturism (BN) show further evidence of misdeeds. The BBC has admitted to the systematic falsification of history for profit and for fear of upsetting anyone.
There are at least six falsifications in the few episodes of Andrew Marr's History of the World that we have reviewed. The facts are actually very clear, as the BBC concedes. The costumes in many of the re-enactments are either dubious or quite undeniably false. In the Exodus from Africa, Ancient Egypt, the Minoans, the Caribs, the Australian aborigines, and members of a contemporary South American tribe, the costumes were the product of the BBC censors, not history.
In the letter, Paul Kettle from BBC Audience Services, states “I’m sorry you were disappointed by the compromises in accuracy that we felt obliged to make in the production of dramatic reconstruction in Andrew Marr’s History of the World. You are of course correct in pointing out that, in reality, natives in various scenes in the early part of the series would have been naked. But in making a series like this we have to take into account the sensitivities of the widest possible world audience.”
BN’s Research and Liaison Officer, Malcolm Boura said “It is astonishing that the BBC, that once proud bastion of journalistic integrity, should be sacrificing its reputation for commercial reasons. The “world audience” referred to is overseas broadcasters paying the BBC to use programmes. We do not pay the BBC licence fee for the systematic falsification of history in the pursuit of profit. We do not pay the licence fee to be fed falsehoods intended to appease a misguided minority. The BBC is encouraging attitudes known to result in widespread and often serious harm, mainly to children and young people. The objective evidence on that is crystal clear. It is inexcusable.”
This series is not an isolated case, BBC programmes and the web site often self censor to the point of dishonesty. Most of the censorship is hidden so without specialist knowledge few people realise what is being done. Whatever happened to the BBC's high ideals of education, journalistic integrity, and honesty?
The BBC considers this conduct acceptable so we have written to the Culture Media and Sport Committee and we are pursuing this lack of honesty through to the BBC Trust as rapidly as possible.
The complaint letter is available from our website. https://www.bn.org.uk...-the-world-r190 assuming that the internet censors allow you to access it.
- ENDS -
Contacts:
Malcolm Boura
Research and Liaison Officer
British Naturism
30-32 Wycliffe Rd, Northampton, NN1 5JF.
01604 620361
07734 964435
campaigns@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are rarely relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes.

Changes planned as we look to the future

Over the last few months, the BN Management team have been looking at restructuring the office function to provide a better service into the future.
The review affects most paid employees and contractors. It is felt necessary to put emphasis onto the recruitment of new members, without whom BN would cease to exist. The Commercial Manager role is to be focussed into this area, with a consequential reduction of Andrew Welch’s tasks. The General Secretary has reduced her working hours and needs to be able to delegate aspects of her role.
In order that the many tasks undertaken by the Commercial Manager and General Secretary continue, two new roles are being created. These are Volunteer Coordinator and Office Manager. Both these roles will be located at the Northampton Head Office. The Volunteer Coordinator is a semi-voluntary position. Semi-voluntary means that it is a paid role, with the expectation that time and effort will be given to BN voluntarily beyond contracted hours.
This is a common arrangement that organisations like English Heritage and the National Trust use, although most National Trust volunteers are completely unpaid. If you visit a National Trust property, almost all the people working there are unpaid!! Also, there will be an administration role created.
All existing staff will be able to apply for all roles. It is hoped that, in particular, the Volunteer Coordinator and Office Manager roles will be filled by naturists or naturist-friendly people!
The EC will be presenting a motion to the AGM to finally complete incorporation. Incorporation will require BN to meet statutory requirements for any company, and good commercial practice is to tender contracts on a regular basis to ensure that best value for money is achieved. Consequentially, major contracts are being tendered. This is no reflection on the quality of people that fulfil those roles.
An advert for all roles appears on the News section of the community.
Officer elections have taken place for four EC members. The results are:

Judith and George have been co-opted in advance of their appointed term into vacant positions. John and Brian were previously elected into their posts. Congratulations to all.
There have been two resignations from the EC for varying reasons. They are Marion Damen as international Officer and Daryl Jones as Youth Officer. In addition, Jim Russell, Sports officer, will step down at the end of his term of office (October AGM). The EC thanks them all for their valued contributions.
Two people volunteered for the International Officer role and at the EC meeting on August 5, Nick Caunt was co-opted. Welcome Nick to the EC, please give him your support for what is a very demanding job.
To help Nick concentrate on enhancing our relations with overseas federations and the INF, Andy and Patti Wyman were asked and have agreed to become leaders of the Holiday Advice team.

Is it really true that clothes maketh the man?

POLONIUS:
“ . . . Don’t be quick to pick a fight, but once you’re in one, hold your own. Listen to many people, but talk to few. Hear everyone’s opinion, but reserve your judgment. Spend all you can afford on clothes, but make sure they’re quality, not flashy, since clothes make the man. . . . Don’t borrow money and don’t lend it, . . . And, above all, be true to yourself. . . .”
(Hamlet Act 1, Scene 3, Modern translation)
Well, who would argue with Shakespeare? I think the choice of clothes affect people’s opinion of the wearer, whether that was their intention or not!
There has been a fashion industry ever since the day of Adam & Eve’s fig leaves. I suspect, by the following day, Eve had added another type of leaf to her wardrobe followed by another, as she couldn’t possibly wear the same outfit twice! She would have insisted Adam changed his leaves too – and it’s been the same ever since!
Does a woman dress to impress men or other women? I believe she dresses to impress herself first of all, as looking good makes her feel good too. This will be closely followed by the others around her, depending on her status: it could be to attract a partner, to keep a partner happy, to show off to friends, impress employers or employees or just to look happy and pretty to one and all.
Does a man dress to impress women or other men? Now, that is harder for me to answer. I think young men dress to impress their mates, as well as to attract the girls but once they are no longer single, the majority of men don’t seem so hung up on fashion and many don’t even shop for their own clothes. They rely on their partner or gifts from their mums!
I know there are some men out there who may be ready to argue that point with me – you are probably the ones still impressing your friends and partners and you are making my point for me: clothes matter!
Or do they? I am sure we judge people on first impressions and in the textile world, we take in what they are wearing as much, or more so, than their character and temperament. Clothes must make a difference, otherwise we would all still be wearing animal skins or sackcloth of the same bland style.
Oh, how much easier it could have been; never having to worry which shoes go with which dress; which ties with which shirt – yes, that happens to us all! Imagine just grabbing a clean garment each morning and not feeling the need to look in the mirror, or ask for compliments and reassurance that we look OK before we leave the house.
Depending on the occasion, don’t you just feel better when wearing something familiar and comfortable, or something new and refreshing? Do you feel different when you don a uniform for work or to become a team player? Does the formality give you confidence, self-importance and a sense of authority or belonging? It matters to us, doesn’t it? Admit it! You care what people think of your appearance.
But being naturist must affect all of that, as it seems to instantly make us all equal. It removes this competitive nature so maybe it removes the stress of trying to look good and impressing people and you relax, safe in the knowledge that everyone accepts you as you are; in your own skin.
I have heard many stories of people on holiday finding a naturist beach and discovering that the friendly people there talked to them; but when on a textile beach, they were ignored – it was part of the reason they became naturists.
Why is this? I would have thought that if naturism was not “normal,” then clothed people would be more relaxed as they can hide behind their garments and not worry what people think about their “imperfections” and can portray whatever image they feel like projecting to people who don’t really know them.
OK, so naturists are not naked all the time and we do see each other’s choice of attire between the naturist activities but though we arrive at a club fully clothed, we tend to be casually dressed in garments that are easy to cast off and not get spoilt in a bag, or in a pile on the chair beside us. If we meet on a naturist beach or other venue, we travel in casual gear and then get naked almost immediately. We tend to aim at being comfortable and that keeps our wardrobe quite basic and not necessarily fashion-conscious.
So does this level of dressing make an impact on our emotions and moods? Do we become less formal, less uptight and more relaxed because we are as comfortable in our clothes as we are in our skins? Do they let our true selves seep through to the surface?
You could argue that we dress up for socials, but many of them are fancy-dress so, once again, we are equalled by our similarity of clothes and are having fun being in disguise. If we dress smartly for a dinner-dance, we are all making more effort for the occasion than the day-to-day clothes that we have complete choice over and which really do portray our true personality.
As naturists, we are generally in our own skin rather than displaying our financial status and comparing designer labels with supermarket specials and becoming quite materialistic and competitive with each other. This creates a much nicer atmosphere, with no-one stressing out over what they can or can’t afford and no-one casting sly glances to see what someone else is wearing and hoping they don’t turn up in the same outfit.
Well, we do turn up in the same outfit, our “Birthday Suit”; but, boy, do they all look different! Maybe this suit of skin gives us the comforting equalising feeling that a uniform gives to those who are all in the same team. Of course, we can still complement our suits with jewellery, shoes, bags, sunglasses and hats; there are still many ways to be individual but the main part of the picture is all natural and personalised to our own bodies!
When I look at the Blackthorns membership, I can see people of all ages, from all social backgrounds, with varying incomes, possibly of many religions and different countries of origin, yet if you sit on the patio there, you will hear everyone intermingling in conversation and cover such varied subjects from the very serious to the downright daft! They are always there for each other through thick-and-thin and there is a comfortable community feeling abounding.
I doubt I would ever be part of such an exchange of opinions or make such good friends so easily in other social gatherings, as this immediate compatibility does not occur. But why not? What is it about getting naked that makes people become nicer, more caring and sociable? Or is it just that only nice, caring people choose to be naturists?
I’m sorry Mr Shakespeare but I would disagree with your character Polonius; clothes do not make the man, they can often ruin one!

British Naturism Magazine - BN193 Autumn 2012

The autumn 2012 magazine (BN 193) is so busy that you wouldn’t possibly imagine it follows one of the wettest summers in modern history!
We look back on a season of Big Days Out events which had naturists all over the country determined to enjoy themselves despite the gloom.
Nudefest 2012 led the way, with a week of smiles and laughter; if you haven’t heard already, there is some important news about a change of dates for Nudefest 2013.
The Channel 5 documentary about Birmingham’s Clover Hotel and Spa has put the naturist world in the national television spotlight again. In an exclusive interview, Clover owner Tim Higgs tells us about the production process from start to finish - and how being on TV has affected his business.
Among our other features, Roni Fine takes issue with William Shakespeare (!), we have a report on what makes Wirral Naturist Club’s nights at Stoke Waterworld so special and Malcolm Boura issues a call to arms (and pens and keyboards) as the need to protect our lifestyle becomes ever more important.
Our travel section looks at long-haul holidays and Northern Europe, with reports from the Dominican Republic, the United States, two contrasting venues in South Africa and what’s on offer in Germany and Switzerland
All this and plenty of reports from our clubs, a busy section of What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more.
Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.

Life imprisonment for dressing naturally

The situation over Mr Gough has long been ridiculous but it has now become farcical. Vast amounts of public money are being spent to deprive him of his liberty and he faces yet more years in solitary confinement for nothing more than, well what exactly? That is a very interesting question which has never been answered adequately.
So what are the facts?
1. It is accepted, by even the police and prosecutors, that Mr Gough is not a danger to anyone.
2. There is not a shred of evidence that nudity causes harm to anyone of any age
3. However, the prejudiced reaction of some adults does cause harm to children and the prejudiced reaction of some adults may cause harm to themselves.
4. There is strong evidence that body-shame results in widespread and often serious harm, mainly to children and young people. The repeated imprisonment of Mr Gough is encouraging those harmful attitudes.
British Naturism advocates a less confrontational approach than Mr Gough has pursued but that does not alter the logic and principles underlying this case. Mr Gough, just like every human, has the right to be treated fairly, according to facts and evidence, not according to prejudice. It does not matter how popular a prejudice may appear to be, or how strongly that prejudice may be held, unless there is evidence of harm, it is nothing but prejudice.
Some people find burqas offensive. Should wearing a burqa result in solitary confinement for life?
Some people find turbans offensive. Should wearing a turban result in solitary confinement for life?
Some people find crucifixes offensive. Should wearing a crucifix result in solitary confinement for life?
What about two men holding hands? Should that result in solitary confinement for life?
The law being used to imprison Mr Gough has not been passed by any Parliament, it was invented by the courts and it is an excellent example of why vague law is bad law. It is wide open to abuse, it is being abused, and the law is being brought into disrepute, the police into disrepute and it alienates minority groups. It is damaging society way beyond just this case.
It is time for the Parliament of Scotland to step in, to put a stop to this absurdity, to stop this injustice, and to stop this appalling waste of public money. About half a million pounds so far. Think of the difference made to body-attitude related outcomes such as breast feeding if that money had been spent on combating body-shame instead of promoting it.
"Life imprisonment?" - a Scottish judge has made it clear that he will continue to be imprisoned until he gives in.
There are about four million naturists in the UK and the anger is growing.
- ENDS -
Contacts:
BN Commercial Manager
Andrew Welch 01753 481527
07774 955138
commercial.manager@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are not relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes

The Great British Skinny Dip 2012

The second annual Great British Skinny Dip organised by British Naturism, the UK’s national naturist organisation, takes place this weekend, Friday 13 – Sunday 15 July.
Venues include naturist clubs, holiday resorts, municipal pools, and two “wild” locations. You can skinny dip in Cambridgeshire, County Durham, Cumbria, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Lancashire and Oxfordshire.
It often surprises people to learn just how many Naturist locations there are in the UK and just how popular it is. A survey commissioned by BN in the autumn of 2011 and carried out by IPSOS MORI shows that there are 3.7 million naturists in the UK.
British Naturism's Commercial Manager, Andrew Welch said:
“Things are really changing in the culture and attitudes of the previously “buttoned-up” British population, with many more people realising the benefits of going without clothes. And we’ve not become a nation of exhibitionists – people do it for the feeling they get from the sun and breeze on their skin, and water around their whole body – plus the fantastic community sprit there is amongst people who have discovered such a wonderfully relaxing way to spend time. Naturism promotes positive body image and is good for your health, emotionally, physically and mentally. Go on, you have nothing to lose but your clothes!
- ENDS -
Contacts:
BN Commercial Manager
Andrew Welch 01753 481527
07774 955138
commercial.manager@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are not relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes

Clover Spa and Hotel raise their profile

Channel 5’s The Hotel Inspector opens a new series by paying a visit to Clover Spa, the fully-naturist spa and hotel based in Erdington, near Birmingham.
The spa, which opened in late 2010, has become very popular with Naturists in the Midlands and far beyond, with visitors travelling from all over the country for day and weekend visits.
The film features BN members who attended a garden party to mark the end of filming, including current BN magazine cover star Rachel Wieck, giving a classical music recital in Clover’s newly-redesigned garden,
The programme goes out at 9pm on Thursday July 5 on Channel 5
If you like what you learn about naturism, then come and join BN; you have nothing to lose but your clothes - and everything to gain: membership information and online joining details.
Find Out More
What is Naturism Young British Naturists Big Days Out or get in touch with with us either at headoffice@bn.org.uk or on 01604 620361

Posed or poised?

We try so hard to publicise naturism, but it is often a difficult topic to illustrate! Not only are some of us hesitant to have photos taken, but we always have to be aware of how much of the body we actually show when portraying naturists. Though we might take nudity for granted, we have to remember that not everyone is ready for such complete acceptance of the human form, so we have to tailor the photo to suit the particular audience we are dealing with.
Or do we? Should we simply declare that nudity is normal and take the stance that we shall prove it by sharing our nakedness with the public – be it on television, in newspapers or via any advertising opportunity we can access? Should we almost force it upon an unprepared public and say, “This is us, accept it!”
I would love to give you a most definite ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to this question, but I am not sure I can. When I was asked to appear on a Vanessa Feltz television programme discussing naturism, the first thing I asked was whether they expected me to be naked and, of course, they thought I was offering and almost bit my hand off, saying, “Yes please!” But I followed my own question with a statement, “I do not undress to be looked at, but to feel good so, no, I will not be naked in your studio. However, if you wish to come and film at Blackthorns, then I will strip and feel comfortable doing so.” (That last bit might have been a bit of a fib!)
I was then constantly referred to as the “prudish naturist”, which I thought was ridiculous! Their reaction convinced me that they, like many other producers of television programmes, just wanted some sensational nudity to increase their ratings, but I wasn’t going to be providing a cheap thrill, and I do mean cheap as they weren’t offering any payment!
When I invited a local newspaper’s reporter and photographer to Blackthorns to run a piece on club life and prove that a certain national newspaper had got it all wrong with their article stating that naturists were pensioners who sat around in deckchairs knitting or dozing, I had to prove that naturism was perfectly acceptable by conducting the interview in the flesh – quite literally! Having spent half an hour telling them how comfortable we are with our bodies, and the fact that it is all about body acceptance rather than body beautiful, we could hardly refuse when the photographer asked to take photos of my husband and me.
Believe me, we tried! We offered them some lovely ones we had previously taken of another couple, but no, they wanted their own proof that we meant what we had said, so there we were, strolling through the trees with a camera following close behind! So do think before you speak!
When we produced publicity leaflets for our club, we put together one which had a nice woodland scene on the front and a distance shot on the back, giving little notion of actual nudity. The photos inside include a close-up and it is obvious that the people are naked but, to save any possible embarrassment, their genitals are discreetly out of sight. You might think this is wrong, but we would rather censor the pictures a little so that they are viewed comfortably than be viewed and thrown in the bin.
It is similar with our website. Although our front page carries a warning of possible nudity, we still only post a hint of nudity with few full-frontal shots that could possibly embarrass or attract the “wrong” audience. Again, you might disagree, but I would argue that we undress to feel good, not to be looked at, so we don’t need detailed pictures of us doing so. People understand what nudity means and they’ll see plenty of it if they choose to join the club.
Mind you, others seem not to understand nudity at all. How many times have you heard a film company, television programme, newspaper or magazine brag that they are going to include full nudity: “Ooh! Naked people! Shock horror! Excitement!” And what do we get? Partially clothed people or nudity with arms across breasts and covered genitals.
I often wonder how they make these statements and seemingly don’t understand the meaning of the terminology they use? But it obviously draws in the viewers – that is their intent and although there are plenty of people complaining that there is too much nudity, you rarely get people openly criticising them for not having enough.
Personally, I think that if a storyline calls for nudity, then it is better to include it in a straightforward way than an uncomfortable cover-up that makes it look silly. For example, a couple having spent a night of passion together then get out of bed dressed or with the duvet wrapped around themselves to protect their modesty! So I am not a prude after all!
What do you think of H&E magazine, which is available to non-naturists? A long-standing problem is that it can be very off-putting for ladies faced with pages of attractive, young, slim, shapely women with big smiles and “perfect” proportions!
Whilst I don’t want to get drawn into the long-running debate over whether these models are naturists because they have removed their clothes or whether they are naked models, there is always the worry that they deter the more ‘average’ woman from attending a naturist venue for fear of comparison.
It is fine for us seasoned naturists who know it is all about body-confidence rather than body-beautiful, but novices need to gain that confidence in the first place. They may look at these magazines and think we are all perfect specimens and will not dare to join us. Oh, how wrong they would be! I have always told men with reluctant partners to leave H&E until later and show them the genuine members’ photos found in BN magazine, so that they see we are indeed all ages, shapes and sizes, that there is no competition and that they will fit in.
But now, to find a place on the shelves of a major high street newsagents, H&E have run a few editions without any full-frontal photos. When I first noticed what they had done, I have to admit I was quite pleased, although it did seem a little strange to see so many backsides! Whilst many photographs were very carefully taken and look very natural, there are some that look censored, and I began to feel they were giving the completely opposite impression. The whole concept of naturism is the acceptance of the human form without embarrassment or shame, so a cover-up is wrong. I was, therefore, pleased when they declared if other publications were getting away with featuring breasts and nipples, then they would too! They said their new restrictions were to encourage the “right kind” of customer and convince the shop that it has a rightful place on the lower shelves, rather than with top-shelf publications.
But are we holding ourselves to ransom? Would another shop agree to sell naturist material as long as there were no bums, then another demand no naked bodies at all? Would we, should we, pander to their demands? After all, the very meaning of the word naturism in my dictionary is “communal nudity or nudity practised openly, sometimes in the belief that it encourages self-respect, respect for others and a feeling of being in harmony with nature.”
We are not like the many varied industries that use naked bodies just to get noticed! We are using nudity to sell nudity, plain and simple. I like photos that depict nudity without being obvious; by that, I mean none of those shots of men who stand, legs apart, hands on hips as if to say: “Look at me, look what I’ve got!” Is it truly a natural pose for men, or is it as false as I feel it is? Maybe I am wrong and the expression “If you’ve got it, flaunt it!” is acceptable?
Neither do I favour naked females in falselooking poses; sometimes, a little erotically and supposedly in the name of art. They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder and maybe sexual connotations are too. Perhaps what I see as a sexual pose is all in my mind and to someone else, it’s an innocent artistic shot and a thing of beauty. I even wonder if it is my subconscious jealous thoughts as a female that make me see these pictures as unsuitable, as I am sure male readers do not complain about their existence.
I’m always defending naturism as a nonsexual nudity, but by printing provocative poses, we could be attracting people who are convinced we are using the guise of a naturist club to fulfil our sexual interests. There are still many who cannot differentiate nudity from sexual connotations, and I feel so protective towards the much-improved reputation of naturists that I just don’t want anything to spoil it and undo the progress we have made.
So what photos would I be happy with? Any taken in the same way you would do when clothed: happy holiday snaps, of sunny days and momentous events – not of people who look like they have quickly stripped off and posed, before hastily dressing again before they are spotted. Take photos of people and things as they happen; with them feeling comfortable with their bodies. The more natural they look, the more acceptable they become to others. But is total and full-frontal nudity necessary to promote naturism? We all have the right to decide whether we wish to share our nudity with the public, so it should never be forced and you should never feel guilty if you prefer to remain private. Should we have natural naturists or provocative poses? Let me know what you think.

YBN's Easter Weekend at Diogenes

We had all the usual fun and games putting the tents up and it was soon very clear who were the ‘seasoned’ tent-users and who was pretty useless.
We must thank Jay without whom our GS rep would have been sleeping under a pile of canvas and poles – and no, Daryl; No matter how hard you try, a king-size airbed does not fit in a two-man tent....
From the moment that we arrived we were made to feel so welcome by the members of Diogenes and especially our brilliant organisers, Steve and ‘the Andys’. As always, it was lovely to welcome new faces into our happy little family, as well as catching up with all of the older ones. As we moved into Saturday, Emma J was a welcome addition to our group and certainly deserves to be made an honorary YBNer.
Emma provided treatments to our YBN clan which were extremely well-received, as we were all feeling a little ‘delicate’ come Saturday morning! We have come to the conclusion, though, that Emma is not a ‘normal’ lady; she is a mythical being in disguise and she emanates magic from her fingertips!
Saturday saw lots of fun and games; Diogenes kindly let us take over their swimming pool and volleyball court and we also saw our first YBN AGM, which was a fun experience, to say the least. As we moved into Saturday evening, we were greeted by the most wonderful smells coming from the kitchen (thanks, Crawfords!) for our ‘curry-oke’ evening. We had a bit of a ‘mixed bag’ of themes for the evening, with everything from elegant Bollywood to giant YBN babies or simply nothing at all.
We enjoyed the delicious food and quickly moved on to the karaoke. Again, it was very clear who could sing, who couldn’t and who should probably have their vocal chords removed. As always, we were also entertained by Daryl’s legendary dancing as we partied into the wee hours.
Saturday was rounded off with the appearance of the giant YBN cheese board; the size of a small aircraft, it carried enough cheese to keep the whole of BN in their recommended daily intake of dairy products for at least a month!!
Sunday saw us learning the art of Miniten from some of the brilliant Diogenes members. It also saw a number of our YBNers joining Diogenes and becoming a part of their wonderful family.
All that is left to say is a massive thank you to Diogenes and everyone there that worked so hard to make this event a success for us. We had so much fun and we can’t wait to come back!

British Naturism Magazine - BN192 Summer 2012

The summer 2012 magazine (BN 192) continues to reflect the positive mood around British Naturism these days.
We look back on three hugely successful events; the BN Blackpool weekend, our Members’ Holiday to El Portus and the first BN National Convention.
Commercial manager Andrew Welch assesses the state of the BN nation and reports on the progress made on many fronts in recent months, while Malcolm Boura writes what he describes as ‘probably the most optimistic of my articles in a long time.’
Meanwhile, Roni Fine looks at the difficult question of how we can promote naturism through photography without being too much ‘in your face’ and we hear about the delights of naked yoga. Have you tried it? If not, we meet someone who can show you how - and one of her satisfied customers.
Our travel section looks at the United Kingdom and Southern Europe, with a series of reports from some of the best naturist venues in Greece.
All this and a positively bulging section of reports from our clubs, What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more, including details of all this summer’s BN Big Days Out - with some new and exciting events.
Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.

Return To Eden

British Naturism (BN) are delighted to announce that as part of Nudefest, their big summer event, they are hosting a Naturist evening at the Eden Project. It is not a “first” as 600 people visited - as nature intended - in 2007. It was in fact was the starting point for Nudefest, an event that has run each summer since and grown to a full week with hundreds of people attending from all across the UK.
BN’s Commercial Manager, Andrew Welch, said
“This is yet another brilliant opportunity for Naturists (and those who are Naturist-curious) to enjoy the freedom of being without clothes in a high-profile, well-known venue. Anyone who has visited on a non-naturist day and spent time in the tropical biome will know that it can get pretty hot and may appreciate the chance to wander around without their clothes.
“We’ll also be revisiting Newquay Zoo, Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium and Adrenalin Quarry at Menheniot, plus a new trip to Skinner's Brewery, Truro during Nudefest which is held at Newperran Holiday Park (www.newperran.co.uk) The days and nights at the park will be packed with activities and entertainment.
“It’s turning into a landmark year for BN. We have hundreds of new members, an expanded event schedule, a more dynamic and active youth group, a new website, a successful first National Convention, progress with our Three Year Plan, our new Central London swim, and The Great British Skinny Dip to pick out a few. A MORI-IPSOS survey we commissioned in late 2011 shows that there are nearly 4 million Naturists in the UK. Mainstream? I think so! See The State of the Nation article for all the great things happening.
Return to Eden takes place on Sunday 10 June 2012 from 7.00pm – 11.30pm. Tickets must be purchased in advance. All the details, including how to book tickets for Eden can be found at www.nudefest.co.uk.
Media attendance at Nudefest, the Eden Project and other events is welcomed. Please contact us in advance.
- ENDS -
Contacts:
BN Commercial Manager
Andrew Welch 01753 481527
07774 955138
commercial.manager@bn.org.uk
Notes for Editors
British Naturism (BN) is the UK’s officially recognised naturist organisation. It exists to support and unite naturists around the UK and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014, although its predecessors were in existence since the 1930s.
A survey conducted in the autumn of 2011 by Ipsos Mori shows that there are 3.7 million naturists in the UK
Amongst the aims of BN are to campaign for more places to be made available for naturism and to protect naturists against discrimination and Victorian attitudes to the human body.
Fact – in law, there is no offence of nudity. Various pieces of legislation and common law are often mentioned in connection with naturism but they are not relevant.
In the UK, there are over 130 sun clubs, swim clubs and holiday resorts and many beaches used regularly by naturists. Membership of BN is around 10,500 people with many more being members of clubs affiliated to BN.
YBN (Young British Naturists) has a membership of young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who get together at clubs and beaches many weekends. They represent the UK at the International Naturist Federation (INF) Youth Rally held annually
Naturism is good for you! Naturists report improvements in well-being, stress, chronic illness, self-esteem and body image. It’s also a sensible choice of dress when the weather is warm. Naturists are normal people. The only difference between activities inside and outside of naturism is the dress code.
It is a fallacy to believe that naked children are any more at risk in a naturist environment. Unaccompanied children are not permitted in naturist places and the community spirit that pervades ensures that a watchful eye is present. Despite the perception, there are far fewer problems in naturism than in more “public” places where children and adults mix. Mindful of the need to be aware of child safeguarding issues, however, BN have a robust child safeguarding policy, code of practice, and a Child Safeguarding sub-committee that meets regularly and runs workshops on the subject, sometimes to groups from outside the naturist world.
For the media, there is a dedicated “Media Centre” at https://www.bn.org.uk/media, which contains useful information for those wishing to write about naturism or to feature this wonderful world in their publications or programmes

The BN Campaign Against Body Shame (CABS)

Here's a fantastic new BN initiative that we want you all to get behind.
The BN Campaign Against Body Shame (CABS)
Raising awareness of the damage caused by 'Body Shame'
The vast majority of people feel some level of anxiety about their bodies. In extreme cases it may lead to eating disorders, or refusal to seek medical attention

Body shame may contribute to the persistence of some barbaric ‘traditions’ or other abuses inflicted on babies and children
Body shame blights the lives of many people and the CABS campaign aims to combat this

As Naturists, we are less likely to be affected by Body Shame issues and we are an ideal group to get this national campaign started

What do we want you to do?
Wear a badge with a picture of yourself, nude, during a well publicised time frame (Obviously, this would be when you’re clothed)


The badges will be small button badges (like the one above) and your picture will appear on the badge at around 18 – 20 mm (about ¾ of an inch) high

Nudefest, will be a chance to have professional quality pictures taken, for free, to be used on the badges. There’ll be plenty of opportunity to get involved if you don’t go to Nudefest

We believe that the campaign will help to build Naturism’s positive image and raise the profile of BN

Please sign up by sending an email with "I'm in" in the subject line to geoff.read@bn.org.uk. Thanks!

Why don’t we open the gates to potential new members?

If Ascot can do it, then it’s good enough for us – Let’s have a Ladies Day, says Roni Fine.
A common complaint among naturists is that there are too many men, particularly single ones: I beg to differ: the truth is there are not enough women, married or single! So what can we do about this? We need to take naturism to women, to catch their eye and interest. I have always thought the fact that BN magazines feature photos of their members is a wise move.
Prospective naturist ladies are often put off by the posed pictures of young models with slim, shapely bodies that they see in other publications. This often makes them feel inadequate. Even when magazines include ladies of all shapes and sizes, women can still be reluctant to strip off, as they think they will be judged on their looks before anything else. How wrong they are!
The naturist community is one of the few places where people are generally accepted for who they are, not for what they look like.
Anyway, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we all rate different aspects of the opposite sex when deciding if they are attractive or not, which is just as well as there would be a lot of lonely people out there if they were all waiting for the “perfect” body to make an appearance! “Love the one you’re with” is a good motto “Accept the body you are”, could be another one!
Blackthorns, like many clubs, have far more applications from men than women, but we still like to keep an equal balance of the sexes amongst our membership when we can. We are very fortunate that our numbers are made up of all ages so we have a nice, varied mix of people which goes to make an interesting social atmosphere, but we would very much like to attract more female members. So what can we do in order to achieve this?
I believe word of mouth is still the best advertising campaign (and the cheapest!), and I encourage members to broadcast what they do and where they do it and, most importantly of all to the inquisitive, why they do it! Once we get across to them the liberating feeling of being naked in the warmth of the sun, we are halfway to creating converts.
But reaching women, particularly single women, is the hardest challenge. The majority of female members have been almost dragged along to a club or event by their partner and though some will give it a go just to humour them, most will not adapt or even try to.
I understand how they feel; I told my husband when I first met him and found out he was a member of Blackthorns: “Well, don’t ask me to go there, because I am not going to!” And I meant it! But now I have a simple plan that all clubs could try out: A Ladies Day.
Think about it: there are already groups that encourage like-minded worriers and strugglers to rally together and gain in confidence by the encouragement they give each other. Alcoholics Anonymous, Weight Watchers, Keep Fit or, rather, Get Fit classes. The list goes on. Their success stems from the members helping each other through their emotions and achieving their target together. So, my simple idea is a day when I shall invite women along to give naturism a try in the company of other women who will be there to support and encourage them to find out why men are so keen to get their kit off!
I will not be closing the club to our members, because it wouldn’t be fair to stop them enjoying the sunshine, but I must admit I am lucky to have suitable grounds at Blackthorns to enable me to meet the hesitant ladies at the gate, direct them to the car parking area and then lead them through the trees to a secluded glade where men will have been asked to avoid, just for that afternoon.
Give your club layout some thought and see if you can do likewise. The ladies won’t need to see a naked man all the way there, or more to the point, a naked man won’t see them! I am also lucky to have the perfect Spring setting with primroses, violets and bluebells in abundance; I am always thrilled to show off our picturesque grounds, as the reaction is always a good one.
Of course, a good trick would be to ply them with a glass of wine to relax them, as they do at time-share seminars! However, most of them will be arriving by car, so I can’t do that; I will have to ensure my sparkling, bubbly personality will be intoxicating enough!
Enrol the help of other ladies who are good at conversation, to give advice and relay their initial worries they had to overcome when they first joined; a bit like the “Loose Women” programme on the telly. If you can include ladies of all ages, shapes and sizes, you will illustrate that we are not all super-models and of catwalk quality but everyday women, just like them. We will soon put them at ease and laugh together and I hope the self-confidence with our own nakedness, and a little warm sunshine, will encourage them to disrobe and find out what Gok Wan did for his ladies – they always felt heaps better once they had relaxed under the spell of his compliments and camaraderie. If he can do it for them, then we can do it for ourselves!
Then if they find that it just isn’t for them, they can retrace their steps back to their cars and exit the grounds without having to explain themselves to anyone! And for those who enjoyed the afternoon’s experience, there would then be the opportunity to explore the rest of the grounds and maybe even meet other naturists, including males, on our clubhouse patio by the pool and indulge in a swim or sunbathe on the lawn. For some, that might still be too soon and another visit might be needed before they feel able to mix.
The choice will be theirs with no pressure on them to do anything they don’t wish to, but with lots of encouragement to feel good about themselves. I am going to make this available on one afternoon in the week and again on a weekend, to cater or women who go out to work, or have children to care for. I want no excuses for them not to come!
Of course, I will still be methodical and ask all visitors to contact me to book their visit and to bring ID with them, just as I always do with any prospective member visiting our club.
So what do you think? Is this a simple idea that you could reproduce at your club? I do hope so. Give it a try and report back to me how it goes and I will mention your results in my next article, when I am telling you how successful I have been with my Ladies Day!
Now, if you don’t think you need to target the ladies in particular, why not hold a general open day at your club – perhaps to coincide with the Great British Skinny Dip? I frequently find people want to explore the world of naturism but are beaten by nerves time and again. Some even make an appointment and then chicken out; seasoned naturists don’t always understand why. They have forgotten, or maybe never experienced, the nervousness that can be the downfall of recruitment. You need to make your club available.
My current form of enquiry usually starts with a phone call or email and I reply promptly to make applicants feel important. I engage them in friendly chatter whilst answering their questions and finding out about them at the same time, without them even realising I am doing so! I then book them in for a set time at a weekend when Deane (my husband) and I will escort them round the club, showing them the site and facilities and introducing them to other members along the way, keeping it all very informal. Of course, I always insist they bring some ID to satisfy me they are who they say they are and I even clarify their appointment by post and ask them to bring the letter with them, to prove their home details are correct.
You could advertise an Open Day which people can attend at set times for a tour or a group meeting in a secluded part of the club, as I described for my Ladies Day. By bringing new people together for their first visit, they may well find strength in numbers and their common link might give them confidence to talk about their hopes and fears and discover they are worrying for no good reason. You could hold a question and answer forum and if no one dares to ask anything, suggest a question and supply the answer.
Once you gain their trust, I am sure they will join in. They share the common denominator: a desire to take their clothes off! Again, turn it into a social event with drinks and nibbles or, if you are lucky enough to have some good weather, ice creams all round!
I always show people round whilst clothed so that they do not feel the odd ones out amongst the naked members on a particularly hot day. I let them undress when and where they feel comfortable and then I do the same. My aim during their visit is to put them at their ease. I don’t abandon them after the initial tour but keep myself available for the remainder of the day whilst they try out the facilities, so that they know they can come back to me at anytime and always have a friend to hand so that they do not have to summon the confidence to ask a stranger. They might be grown-ups but we can all feel like a child on our first day at school when put in an alien environment for the first time and we just need a friendly teacher to hold our hand to get through that first day!
By the time you read this, it will be March and, hopefully, the warm weather is almost upon us and you have time to put these ideas into practice. Place an advert in your local newspaper; contact them as they may wish to run an article for free! Be prepared to show the reporter and photographer around your club and pose for photos.
Deane and I did this for our local press and it gave us a free half-page advertisement including an article by a reporter who had glimpsed what life in a naturist club was really like. Why not invite them to give it a try themselves! Use any free magazines that are delivered to the door in your neighbourhood and to pubs, shops, libraries, garden centres etc in your area.
The cost of advertisements in these publications vary but the good thing is they reach a wide community of could-be naturists not actively looking for naturist news. Contact your local radio station as they also love anything involving nudity and a topic that makes people tune in and listen. And we all have the perfect body for radio, so don’t be shy, conduct the interview in the nude – I always do!
So get organised, get busy and let me know how you get on.

If you are happy and you know it... you are probably a naturist!

Martin Warrillow meets an inspiring ambassador for ‘new’ naturism.
Most readers of this magazine have, of course, known it for years; naturists are happier than so-called textiles. We’re happier, more in tune with nature, with a better, more sensible and relaxed attitude to our bodies and the human body generally.
Yet we’ve never been able to prove it, other than by encouraging people to try social nudity for themselves and see what happens. Well, now we can. For the first time, proper academic research has been done which appears to show that all these things are true. People have been interviewed under proper research conditions, academic tests have been applied to the data – and it all seems to be true.
The research has been done by Emma Stokes, a psychology student from Keele University; Emma, aged 29 and from Stoke-on-Trent, knew nothing about naturism until she joined a friend who was leading an aquarobics session at our Alton Towers weekend in 2010. Now, less than two years later, she has become such an ardent naturist that she has changed her field of academic research to look more closely at the subject – and, as readers may have seen, been the subject of recent features in the Daily Express and Love It! magazine.
“It all started when I went to AT in 2010,” explained Emma. “A friend who was leading an aquarobics session asked me to go along to give some moral support and I agreed. I kept my clothes on all weekend but I was fascinated and when I came away, I started looking for areas in which I could do proper research into naturism. No-one had ever done anything like this before.”
Emma quickly came up with three areas to look into – the positive effects of naturism on body image; measuring the happiness of naturists against the rest of the population and studying groups of naturists to find out why they had taken up social nudity.
She returned to the BN Alton Towers weekend in 2011 to carry out research among the members attending and as a result, was able to prove all the hypotheses about the benefits of social nudity.
“I could have fallen flat on my face and at first, the academic staff at Keele were very against it but my supervisor has been very supportive,” said Emma. “She did say that she wouldn’t have let a 19-year-old do it and there were some problems about the ethics of doing the interviews in those circumstances – I had to keep my clothes on, for instance!”
BN members at the weekend were also extremely supportive. “Everyone was really forthcoming and I had more people coming forward to be interviewed than I knew what to do with!” she added. The results of her research have had such an impact on Emma that she has shaken off her own previous body-image issues and become one of naturism’s most ardent public supporters – and finally decided to take the plunge herself at the end of last year’s AT weekend.
“Why wouldn’t I want to live as a naturist now that I know it’s so beneficial?” she asked. “Everyone is very respectful and looks you in the eye – no-one’s looking down at you. I’ve felt for years the pressure to look a certain way and now that I don’t, it’s lovely. If I had been raised as a naturist, I wouldn’t have had the body-image issues that I did. It’s the first time in my life that I have felt really happy with my body.
“If I have children, I will be raising them in the naturist lifestyle – I’m not having them having the same body-image issues as I did.
“I’ve realised the most important thing – your body doesn’t have to be perfect, you just have to feel beautiful.” Now that Emma has become such a public supporter of naturism, she is determined to promote it among younger people and has some strong views on how BN and the movement generally can lower it's worryingly high age profile.
“Some clubs and swims and some naturists generally still don’t like people with piercings and tattoos,” she said, showing me the Japanese design on her stomach – one of four tattoos she wears.
“But to young people, these things are perfectly normal and they won’t give that up. Attitudes to things like that are going to have to change if naturism is going to bring in more young people.”
And she is also opposed to the ‘be naked all the time’ demands of some clubs. “I love being without clothes at the appropriate time but I also love being a girl and I love my clothes,” she said. “Saying to people, especially young people, that they can’t get dressed in the evenings can be very offputting. I think naturism could attract far more young single women if it was more relaxed about that.”
Emma’s visit to the Alton Towers weekend did more than allow her to finally experience the naturist lifestyle. She won the prize draw and is now off to Greece this summer for her first naturist holiday to celebrate her birthday.
“None of my friends want to come, though!” she said.

Opening a new window for naturist swims

David Ross reports on an experiment which could offer an exciting idea for the future.
A former reservoir, Shaftesbury community pool is managed by enthusiastic firefighter Sarah Wheeler. She got in touch with BN in 2010, looking for new income streams. This led to the 2011 Great British Skinny Dip swim and in turn to Shaston Swim, which starts on April 10 (7-9 pm).
If naturism is to grow, then I suggest that swimming is an obvious path to follow. We can rent other people’s assets and since failures won’t cost a lot, we can afford to innovate. Of course, the biggest prize of all would be regular naturist sessions in public swimming baths run by the proprietors. That does happen but is rare, and so this is a major coup for GBSD in its first year.
The GBSD swim was a one-off, of course, receiving support from across the region, but it was a proof of concept for Sarah and we discussed the economics. It was not hard to see that there would be enough local support for her to make money on a weekday evening and it was for purely financial considerations that she agreed to go ahead.
This said, the iconic hilltop town in North Dorset is a small place, so we agreed that as part of our support we will provide a “front”. All the financial risk stays with the pool, Naked Swim donated the £8 to register “shastonswim.org.uk” (using the ancient name that local newspapers used as shorthand) and to host a web page. Viv Jupp agreed to be local coordinator. Swimmers will pay £5 to the pool and 50p to be used for adverts in the local freesheet.
The pool is basic, but delightful, with no exterior windows but a fully glazed roof. Sadly, this is not thermally efficient so the pool only opens in the summer and the first season runs on every second Tuesdays of the month from April to September. How can we build on this achievement? I hope that others will be inspired to seek out community pools across the country. Older pools, especially, have few windows and in these straitened times, why not take advantage of the operators’ need for cash?
I hope that the 2012 season will make Shaston Swim a case study for others to follow.
As planning starts for British Naturism’s first National Convention, members of the Online Forum are being asked to contribute to a survey to list the characteristics of pools. I hope the resulting database will be a useful tool to rule out or in potential venues for naturism.
Meanwhile, Naked Swim has been enjoying a successful winter at its temporary home – the Thomas Hardye Leisure Centre in the Dorset county town. It is another spin-off from GBSD 2010, which I, as proprietor, saw as a one-off farewell to the soon-to-be-closed pool.
When LA Fitness headquarters decided (without consulting friendly local management) that we were “uneconomic”, we were ejected from our home in Poole. So seeing Dorchester out until the new pool comes into service in Spring 2012 seemed a natural thing – especially as the locals told me how much the swim there had been missed over the last 10 years.
We have just about broken even at £7 a head for a two-hour swim; the recent trend for more couples turning up has mirrored the phenomenon also seen at other local swims. Some of them have come back to naturist swimming after a break, others are naturists on holiday who haven’t swum nude in the UK before. Considering that I don’t examine ID or even ask for names and I’m recruiting completely new people to naturism, it is gratifying that my gender mix is about the same as that seen in established clubs.

British Naturism Magazine - BN191 Spring 2012

The spring 2012 magazine (BN 191) is possibly one of the most exciting editions in years!
We have a three-page special on the Channel 4 documentary, My Daughter the Teenage Nudist, which was broadcast in January to an audience of around two million and led to a lot of attention in BN and Naturism; we have three pages of news and action from the Young British Naturists, including full details of all their events throughout the coming year and we meet Emma Stokes, one of the driving forces behind YBN.
With all this positive publicity in mind, both Roni Fine and Chris Lusby-Taylor urge us all, as clubs and individuals, to start thinking more about how we can better promote naturism. Could your club hold a ladies' open day? Could you agree to be interviewed by your local media? Every little helps to show how much fun naturism can be.
Our travel section looks at Spain, with venues such as El Portus, Casa de Cinco Hermanos and the wonderful island of Formentera under the spotlight.
All this and a positively bulging section of reports from our clubs, What's On listings, swim and sauna details and much more
Don't forget that the magazine and recent past issues are also available for BN members to download in the members' area.

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