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Lap dance club could be closed
A BLACKPOOL lap-dancing club could be shut down amid allegations of live sex shows being performed.
Wildcats, in Clifton Street, is set to be hauled before the council on February 4 after being accused of breaching its licence by allowing contact between customers and dancers.
CCTV images from the club, formerly known as Too Hot To Handle, show two female dancers performing a sex act watched by two men.
The allegations come as Blackpool Council voted in tough new restrictions on adult entertainment venues.
Wildcats is alleged to have broken the terms of its licence by offering lap-dancing without CCTV cameras covering the main performance areas.
Entertainment is said to have taken place in private booths, where physical contact was observed between performers and customers.
The club is also alleged to have breached its licence by allowing an offensive billboard sign, advertising the premises, to be paraded through the town centre.
Among the penalties the club could face is the possibility of having its licence revoked or suspended.
Wildcats is part of a chain of clubs owned by Matthew Haycox who has invested around 250,000 in the premises to bring its capacity up to 500. Up to 30 dancers work at the venue which is open until 4am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Manager of Wildcats, Luci McDonnell, said: "The CCTV images were taken during my first week at Wildcats and we've been working hard to clean up the club's image.
"The two girls no longer work here and we pride ourselves on being one of the classier establishments in the resort."
Blackpool Council's licensing committee voted in favour of tough new restrictions on the number of adult entertainment venues allowed to open in the town centre and the Promenade.
It means in future, new lap-dancing clubs will be banned unless they can prove they will not harm the family-orientated tourist trade.
The change, which is incorporated in the council's licensing policy which is updated every three years, is designed to protect children from harm.
It must be agreed by full council on January 23 before it comes into force.
Council leader Coun Peter Callow said he was determined to sweep away sleaze and restore Blackpool's family image.
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Sunday 27 May 2012
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