A Celebration Of Tanya Cheex & The House Of Thwacks

Author: Mistress Seraphique

Up until the 2000s Britain had a history of making sexual comedies. From Confessions of a Window Cleaner to Personal Services which told the story of Madame Cyn, the notorious London brothel owner from the 70s and 80s.

Personal Services included elements of BDSM but nothing had spoken to the modern image of kink as that of the 1997 film, Preaching to the Perverted.

Banned in various countries including the Republic of Ireland where not only was its cinema and VHS release banned, but also led to the recall of over 3000 copies of the video release of Donne Brasco because they showed the trailer for PttP.

However, elsewhere it won awards, especially across European film festivals. And quickly became a cult hit.

The Story follows the supposed public outcry and degrading of social morals in general due to the House of Thwacks events, organised and hosted by New York Dominatrix Tanya Cheex and her band of merry kinksters (loosely based on Torture Garden and Club Rub).

The plot follows Peter, a very low level civil servant who is thrown in to a world of latex, whips and empowered women by his boss, a rather typical uptight MP.

As Peter becomes more embedded in to the House of Thwacks, experiences a wide range of kinks and forms a relationship with Tanya Cheex, he begins to question who the real deviants are and exposes the hypocrisy of those elected to serve the will of the people.

For me, and many of my age, this was the first exposure to readily available kink. I mean I rented it from Blockbuster FFS.

This was before the age of the internet and if you wanted kink material you had to go to select back street stores or order it via a PO Box and hope the postman and your mum, didn’t discover what it was.

It was the first time you could see  cunnilingus by someone in nipple clamps and tongue piercings, spanking and flogging, pony play, bondage, electrics and whole manner of “perversions” which we so lovingly enjoy but on a mainstream movie release.

We’ve since had a number of movies which have explored in some form or other various forms of kink, but nothing has taken an in-depth look at how morale codes can seem outdated and out of step with what society really does behind closed doors.

That being said, kink and the practitioners of kink are still seen as a sub culture. Made up of rubber and leather perverts who like to get tied up and do various deviant acts.

In reality though, it’s usually a group of open minded individuals who meet up once a month, dressed in normal mum and dad clothes, sit around an extended table in a pub, eat chicken parmi, and talk about a whole range of subjects.

Of course we also get to explore our fetishes, if we are lucky we do it at our own versions of the House of Thwacks, private parties or in the comfort of our own home.

But a pair of fluffy handcuffs and a sex shop whip have yet to skew societies moral compass or turn us all in to sex craved perverts in rubber nun costumes. Nor do we go around sticking ginger root up Mr Ned’s bum.

So although some of the acting may be a little sub-par and the script a little weak by todays standards. Preaching to the Perverted is still an enjoyable film. The philosophical views of Tanya Cheex alone are enough to keep it watchable and if that doesn’t do it for you, the chance to see some of the amazing alternative kink performers of the time should be reason enough to hunt this movie down.