One male and one female escort have revealed all about what it's like to work in the industry. Most people probably haven't, but even if you have, your assumptions are probably quite far from the truth. Although exact figures are difficult to obtain, it is thought that as of , there were more than 72, sex workers in the UK. Of this, a staggering 88 per cent were women, with only 6 per cent men and an even smaller 4 per cent transgender.
Our sister title Essex Live spoke to one male and one female escort, with each giving us a glimpse of what life is really like in one of the most mysterious of careers. The woman escort, whose identity has been protected but is called Chloe, has been working in the adult sex scene since she was a teenager.
After spending a decade in the business, on and off, she has accumulated a catalogue of odd anecdotes that reflect the industry. I can get 50 phone calls a day from 50 different men - it's a lot bigger than people think. I had got in trouble, in and out of the law, and then I got into the industry. To be honest it was for the money. When she began her career as an escort, she tried to hide her new line of employment from her family. Chloe's clientele spans from all across London to Essex.
She says people travel to see her for as little as a few minutes or a whole hour. She spent time moving between different agencies to utilise the 'new girl effect', which she says is down to clients wanting to try the 'new girl' on the books. The interested men would choose her to enjoy her company - but it wouldn't last forever.
When working at the agencies, the escorts would only see 50 per cent of the money earned. She sees 'busy periods' around lunch time and the evening rush hour, and claims men visit her 'on a stop off on the way home from work'. She also claimed that she's seen law enforcement and delivery drivers who leave their work colleague in the car downstairs whilst they attend the arrangement. She added: "I work when I feel like it, on a busy day I will see six or seven clients.
