The Lovers' Guide
The Lovers’ Guide is a sex and relationships advice series, which launched with the release of the first Lovers’ Guide video in 1991. Presented by the sexologist Dr Andrew Stanway, and produced by Robert Page and William Campbell, this became the only non-fiction film to top the UK video charts; it sold 1.3 million copies in the UK and went into 13 languages and 22 countries around the world. The release caused controversy. While the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) granted the title an 18 certificate, which we would now understand to be a license for general UK distribution, this was technically merely advisory and the producer, Robert Page, faced charges of obscenity, which were subsequently dropped.
The Lovers’ Guide is distinct for using explicit video material to illustrate the instructional points being made. While the explicit nature of the visual content would usually warrant an R18 certificate in the UK, restricting sales to licensed sex shops, all Lovers’ Guide videos and DVDs have been granted 18 certificates. The brand commands a considerable degree of respect. “Sexy, sensual, moral and responsible” is how one national UK newspaper, The Independent, summed up its approach.
Lovers’ Guide programmes
- The Lovers’ Guide, 1991
- The Lovers’ Guide: Making Sex Even Better, 1992
- The Lovers’ Guide: Better Orgasms, 1993
- The Essential Lovers’ Guide, 1995
- The Lovers’ Guide: Secrets of Sensational Sex, 1999
- The Lovers’ Guide: What Women Really Want, 2002
- The Lovers’ Guide: Sexual Positions, 2003
- The Lovers’ Guide: Sex Play, 2004
- The Lovers’ Guide: Satisfaction Guaranteed: 7 Secrets to a Passionate Love Life, 2005
- The Lovers’ Guide Interactive, 2008
- The Lovers’ Guide 3D: Igniting Desire, 2011
