ONLY a handful of people dared to bare all at Britain's first nude shopping evening in Worsley last night. And there were mixed views among those who took their clothes off about whether the concept of naked shopping would really take off. Harwood man Stephen Sutcliffe, 33, and Bolton shop assistant Jayne Marks, 27, revealed all in the aisles of the Costcutter store in Boothstown.
Jayne, who works at the supermarket, said: "I enjoyed it and would do it again."
But Stephen, who was heading to the House Without A Name pub in Harwood for a birthday drink after his moment in the media spotlight, was less sure.
He said: "I didn't feel half as nervous as I expected to. But it was definitely a one off. I just did it for the laugh. I can't really see this catching on round Bolton."
Stephen had agreed to take part in the stunt organised by Century Radio along with Anna McHugh, aged 38, from Stoke. Radio station presenter Derek Hatton stripped off for photos - but preserved some modesty by keeping his shorts on. Keeping a discreet distance from the scrum of TV cameras and press photographers was confirmed naturist Lola Davies, 43, from Warrington.
She said: "In the right conditions away from the media spotlight, I think the chance to go shopping naked is a great idea.
"It has to be done carefully though, after normal hours, with the shutters down. We don't want anybody to be offended or upset."
As reported in the BEN last week, the stunt has already received a cool reception from the British Naturism organisation. Costcutter boss Steve Farrington said: "We'll have to see how it goes. But if there is the demand there I'm sure naturist shopping events could take off."
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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