London to build 'sex museum'
07/10/2005 19:23 - (SA)

London - Developers announced plans on Friday to open a multimillion-pound sexual "theme park", near London's Piccadilly Circus, home to the much-photographed statue of the Greek god of love.

Backers said the London Academy of Sex and Relationships, due to open next spring, would not be a sleazy sex museum, but an educational multimedia attraction that would teach visitors to become better lovers and provide valuable information about disease and sexual problems.

Located within the Trocadero entertainment centre - just about the corner from Soho, London's red-light district - the $8.3m project would feature unspecified "high tech and interactive exhibits".

Alex Rayner, a spokesperson for the project, said it was "committed to avoiding the sleazy image that the sex industry usually conjures".

Privately funded project

He said: "Titillation is not the goal. It's meant to be educational. It's meant to be informative."

The privately funded project had support from sexual health organisations, including the Sexual Dysfunction Association and Aids charity, The Terrence Higgins Trust.

The academy's director of exhibits Dr Sarah Brewer said: "It is long overdue that the UK faces up to its responsibilities in the sexual arena - we can't simply avoid mankind's leading preoccupation and the issues that go with it.

"The academy is the perfect vehicle by which to address these important matters in an exciting, amusing and yet educational way."

Several cities around the world - including New York, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Paris - were home to erotic museums.

Typically, they exhibited everything from pornography to high-minded paintings exploring local sexual attitudes and culture.