Fetish Boudoir – Blog

Torture Garden RubberBall Special 2008
Saturday 5 September 2008 @ Mass

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Torture Garden Summer 2008
Saturday 2 August 2008 @ Mass

It is a tribute to Torture Garden, Pope of fetish parties, that even in sunny August weather it draws a crowd of dedicated pervs and fun seekers to its Summer Mass, and that it fulfills all their expectations and more.

From the flyer, you might have been forgiven for thinking the August edition of the 17 year-old club a small, quiet affair. “New smaller 3 room layout for the summer”, it said, back at Mass in Brixton. Luckily I’d been there for the Fetishistas-sponsored International Fetish Ball in May, so I was forewarned not to expect anything too poky. Luckily I avoided queuing for the Ninjattitude club night, also taking place at Mass that night, but trust the fetish club to use the underground entrance!

Some improvements had been made to the layout since the last night there, most notably in the dungeons and the opening of more seating areas, which were very welcome. This wasn’t really your average “quiet night”, however: the pulsating mixes of TG stalwarts Allen TG, Jimmy Mofo and Jimmy Mofo, along with relative (but much appreciated) newcomer Fidelity Kastrow had the crowd on their feet till closing time and past that … (especially given the state of the Tube that particular weekend) Fidelity is an habitué of Tresor in Berlin, and will be mixing at TG for the third time in September, which Josselin is looking forward to as she is extremely photogenic as well as a very talented DJ, as you can tell from his gallery.

London is one of the few cities that could support a summer party 600 perverts strong. Only in London, and possibly only TG, could draw crowds from all over Europe and even further afield: between beats (or in the more quiet areas) you could hear Spanish, French, German and Czech bandied around, and some definite transatlantic twangs. It’s easy to understand why they would make the hop, skip and a jump to come to one of the summer’s biggest and only events. While many clubs close down for the hot months, Torture Garden just keeps going and going, while planning September’s Skin Two special and its headlining event at the London Fetish Weekend in October. Though we appreciate the effort and will undoubtedly much enjoy the results, we were very glad to have something to sink our teeth into in the quiet times. London provides much kinky entertainment, but there is only one Torture Garden!

The crowd lived up to expectations, with a selection of beautiful outfits and wacky themes. Though there does seem to be a trend for cheap lingerie, the quality and the effort put in by others more than make up for it and people-watching is always one of my greatest pleasures, and it makes spotting for Josselin great fun ! Nurses, sailors, rubberdolls, marquises, military uniforms: there was something for every taste. Eclectic and open as ever, Torture Garden isn’t your typical fetish club. It’s often said as if this is a bad thing, not fetish enough maybe, but it remains that even in down time, it brings out creativity and fun. The shows, though low key, were entertaining with Ruby Blues’ strange masked nuns and Lazlo Pearlman’s sailor-themed show : less “Rum, Sodomy and the Lash”, more “Popeye goes to Thailand”. Amrita and Kumi also provided some lycra-clad suspension bondage.

All in all, less about the spectacular on the stage, more about the atmosphere in the crowd, which was great. The fun was efficient, more socializing than play-focused, though issues in the Couples’ Room were swiftly taken care of, and of course you could argue that play is socializing … As ever, a huge thank you to the dedicated TG team, and see you next month !

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TG Birthday Ball 2008
Saturday 3 may 2008 @ SeOne

To step into SeOne on Saturday 3rd May was to step into a different world … and everybody knew it and eagerly looked forward to it as they queued for Torture Garden’s 2008 Birthday Ball. Already well warmed up by a fantastic party the night before at the International Fetish Ball (co-hosted by Tony Mitchell’s The Fetishistas) the queue was shivering with anticip…ation rather than the cold, helped by unusually forgiving weather in London that weekend – not that the rubberwearers mind a little rain, but that deep under London Bridge, they wouldn’t even have felt it.

The anxious queue grew more anxious still as, when they finally reached the hallowed halls, they were hustled into a nightmarish warzone where they were stripped, bullied and hassled by latex clad army sergents. Noone seemed to mind being pushed into a (de)contamination room to change, nor loath to drop their pants and take a beating from the fiercely lovely officers. Most seemed to quite enjoy it (pervs !) and as ever, the crowd set the carnival mood.

Pared down to their party wear, they were allowed to move on and discover the delights that awaited them this year at the fabulously decorated SeOne. From Pre-war Berlin to extravagant New Orleans, the TG team had put in a fantastic effort and created seven different atmospheres, with something to cater for every taste. The uniforms seemed to congregate in the Salon Kitty Bordello, where they only added to the magical impression of being transported back to a more glamorous age, when women were real rubber-clad sirens and men were real uniform-clad gentlemen (or maybe the opposite). From projections of Bob Fosse’s Cabaret it was only a short step easily taken to the live entertainment of Anke Landeau, Lady Ane Angel and Roxy Velvet, which the crowd enjoyed sipping their drinks on gold cane chairs or lounging on leather sofas. Lady Ane and Roxy Velvet later reappeared on the stage of the Voodoo Ballroom where the hep cats and the swinging ladies had been rocking and rolling along to DJ sets from Torture Garden’s own David, the Broken Hearts (or are the Broken Dolls, as listed on the onsite maps ?) and Pandora’s Jukebox. Photographer Maxime Avet was certainly looking very dapper as he swung his partners round. A new performance by Emily Marilyn and Ruby Luster, the presence of Sefi Snake Dancer in the cage and Urban Voodoo Machine’s concert only served to remind that New Orleans voodoo is not only spicy, but can be downright dangerous … A fact which the bravest could verify by venturing into the Hellfire Club and Dungeon Room where strange sex-magic rituals were led by Temple T. It was hard to get near enough to see through the crowd, but the scents of strange incense hinted at lustful mysteries.

The several bars were well staffed and there were enough sofas and chill-out areas for everyone to recover (which is no mean feat with a crowd of 2600), and the luckiest received candy from a skipping nurse. Less compassionate medical staff repaired to the Hospital Playroom, which featured a water-torture performance by Kumi Monster and Amrita. Nurse Amrita waited until Kumi was firmly bound down in a white rubber straightjacket to shave her head, but the worst torture was probably the tickling she endured at the end ! We are happy to say that she seemed entirely recovered as she prowled playfully around the stage later wearing a leopard catsuit in the HWdesign show.

The main stage in the Propaganda Club Arena hosted all the night’s fashion shows : Torture Garden Clothing’s new Virgin Queen inspired collection, Austria’s HW Designs, and the UK’s http://www.prettypervy.com/ Pretty Pervy, all set off by great lighting. Torture Garden Clothing’s newest offering seemed to step from the pages of some strange alternative history book, with a dominant theme of asymmetrical black, red, white and gold. SadEast received her customary ovation as she stepped out, looking beautiful as ever in a white corset with a puffed sleeve, belted in black. HW Designs formed a complete contrast with 1940s and 50s style designs in unusual leopard-print rubber, and Pretty Pervy’s glamorous Martian gowns and strange creatures showed just how much you can stretch to with rubber.

The shows and the dancers owed a lot to Fidelity Kastrow’s DJing handiwork, which was thoroughly fantastic, and almost as beautiful as the lady herself. Josselin was very sorry to see her leave, and everyone missed her beats, but kept on dancing till the lights came on, all too soon, at 6am. Stumbling out into the streets and realising it was already light wasn’t even enough to bring the crowd down, and neither were the dozens of cabdrivers hustling outside the venue doors. Instead there was a stampede of fantastical creatures as they opened the gates at London Bridge tube station, dispersing the last of the Birthday Ball magic into the city. Wandering rather dazedly towards the trains, we decided that despite a lost lensehood and a broken battery pack (Josselin), sore feet and aching limbs (Sarah) and a lot of sleep to catch up on (both) we’d definitely be back to more the next night. Or should that be later that day, since we left at 7:30am ?

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International Fetish Ball
Friday 2 may 2008 @ Mass

Returning to one of its favourite haunts, Torture Garden opened its 2008 birthday festivities with the International Fetish Ball at Mass, in Brixton. As a warm-up event, rather than the big Birthday Ball, it was only using two rooms : one as a dancefloor / performance stage and the other as a dungeon / chill-out / couples’ room. For a smaller event, it had plenty of attractions, and before the doors even opened the queue was forming. It was a pleasure to finally meet Charlotte TG on the door, after many exchanged emails, and Josselin was very grateful to receive his photopass.

As the event was co-hosted by The Fetishistas, Tony was in attendance, keeping an eye on the studio spot (the first pictures are up on the site already), and waiting for the dancefloor to fill up was the perfect time to catch up with old friends from the “French Team” : Maxime Avet, Whisper, SadEast and Frankfrançois. It was great to see Kippiepoo, Viktoria De Luxe and Andy again, and meet Liz, Calamity Amelie (in a sky-high fascinator) and Veronica. The place filled up fast, and by the first show, the dancefloor was packed.

VonLivid’s label House of Bias opened the festivities, with a three-fold collection of latex clothing. Emily Marilyn and Ruby Luster then gave a “Once Upon a Time in the West” style performance, showing us how they do it in America no doubt, and probably everyone in the room wanted to be in one or the other of their places as Emily’s lasso turned into a shibari net round Ruby’s body.

We unfortunately missed the performance by transsexual star Buck Angel but were able to catch the later projection of the film Schwarzwald from the dance floor, where DJs Ritual and Sota Suzuki alternated to keep the crowd moving … and coming back for more between shows. It was however very difficult to catch even a glimpse of Ancilla Tilla’s first UK performance … I think it involved a haughty lady being taught a lesson by her maids, and what could be seen looked great. The crowd in front certainly seemed to think so.

It was around this time that Josselin’s camera suffered the first of the weekend’s series of accidents. The flash was the first casualty, and though Jan was kind enough to give some detailed adviced about where to get it fixed, Josselin ended up pulling a MacGyver and fixing it himself later … with a hairpin. Don’t ask. He didn’t let it spoil his fun though, and it was already light by the time we tore him away from his friends and stumbled onto a night bus, to recover a little and mostly prepare for that night’s Birthday Ball.

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