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‘I’d finish my shift and go straight to morning lectures’: Being a part-time stripper at Cov Uni

Time to clear up the misconceptions


For all the judgemental girls who don’t know: This will educate you. For all the horny boys who only clicked on this article because they saw the word stripper: Don’t try searching for her at her work place. And to those who haven’t found their work placement yet – well, this could be an option for you.

The Coventry Tab had a chance to speak to Anna (not her real name), a Coventry student who works part time alongside her degree as a stripper. Every time Anna tells anyone how she makes extra money she is met with a million questions and opinions. So, we decided to sit her down for a little one to one chat to clear things up.

How did you start stripping, and why?

I started stripping shortly after my 20th birthday, once I had broken up with my boyfriend. I honestly just wanted to have a more interesting life and I thought the industry was really cool. I also always enjoyed pole dancing so I was just like 'go for it'. I also felt like I fit in there with all the girls. Everyone treats me like family and they’re all really open, honest, cool people.

Some of the stuff I get to do at this job is pretty amazing. The people I’ve met, the after parties I’ve been to. I also make a lot of money very quickly and I like the independence there. I’m saving it for things in the future that I want to do.

How much do you make?

A varied amount, anywhere between £200 and 1k (per shift) and I work about three times a week. My shifts are usually from around 9:30-10pm until around 6am.

Who knows what you do?

My mum and all of my friends. Honesty is the best policy.

Do you ever have sex with the customers?

No. Never. There’s a specific distance that the customers have to stay from the stripper and being paid for sex is a different profession entirely. There are also cameras everywhere so unless you want to make it big on Porn Hub, it's not going to happen.

How does it affect your dating life?

I believe in honesty. I immediately tell anyone I date because I don't want to hide anything or have it awkwardly come up in conversation.

Loads of boys have that wet dream of having sex with a stripper so not a lot of guys are put off by it. But the downside of this is that sometimes I wonder if they’re only interested in me because I'm a stripper, not in me as a person.

How do you balance uni and stripping?

It was hard to find a balance at first. Many times I would come home from my shift and go straight to my morning lectures. When I first started I had a really difficult time staying awake and studying so I’d have to take some medication just to keep going. My grades dropped a bit too but eventually you get used to the hours and develop a routine so I have it handled now.

How do friends and family react?

I’ve had a boyfriend whose family was very upper class so the stigma was definitely there. We were together for a while and I fit in quite well so I didn't want them to find out.

Like, when Christmas time would come around he had to give me my presents in secret if they were related to my job. New outfits and such. But my friends don’t care at all. It should be treated as any other job and not as something to look down on.

Who judges the most?

Girls can be super judgey – most girls I tell either make a weird face or have a passive aggressive tone when talking to me. Those girls are obviously not my friends now.

Have you had any bad experiences while working?

Well this one time I was just dancing, doing my thing. This guy – he was the generic good looking, rich, white douchebag about to take over daddy’s firm – suddenly whips out his pork sword and starts wanking off to me. He was kicked out immediately.

I've had people stalk me and follow me around the club like a puppy, and sadly they’re not all young, rich, good looking men. Even some women have tried to make out with the strippers. They all get sorted out.

Anna wants the message of this article to be that stripping is just like any other job, and should be respected as such. Do what you want and be proud of it.