Hen Party UK's Stripping Survey: Would you want one?

Of course, we know that we love hen and stag dos. What we really want to know is: do we still love a stripper? Stripping has been a staple part of the hen and stag party diet since the 1970s. Lewd, cringey and tongue-in-cheek fun if you’re lucky; stripping is the ultimate ‘dare-we-or-daren’t-we’ booking for hen do organisers. But has the stripper tradition had its day — or is the trend actually more popular than ever?

We asked 1360 people to find out.

Do you want a stripper at your hen or stag do?

We aimed this question at both men and women to get a fair, all-round result. Surprisingly, the outcome was nearly even; with 64% of men saying that they’d like a stripper at the event for a bit of “harmless fun” and 53% of women agreeing.

Call us stereotypical, but we expected a greater divide than 11%. Often, we think it’s only men who relish watching a good strip, while the majority of ladies find it all a bit embarrassing. Clearly, this isn’t the case and more than half of both sexes can appreciate the art form in almost-equal measure.

What kind of hen party stripping are you into?

Once the pleasantries were over, we wanted to delve even deeper into people’s hen party stripper sentiments. So, we got rid of the men and asked: if you were hiring a male entertainer for your hen do, which of these experiences would you prefer?

The results came back with a meagre 18% for a uniformed stripper who gatecrashes your hen party, a better 32% for a Dreamboys-esque/Magic Mike experience, and a winning 50% for a ‘Butler in the Buff’ that visits your party at home.

If you’re thinking of the cheesy stripper who rocks up at the pub; forget it. Although we still like the decade-old idea of a cheeky hen party stripper who makes a beeline for the soon-to-be-bride, it seems that the act itself is the thing that’s changing. Hen parties are moving away from the cheesy, costumed strippogram and replacing it with choreographed routines and acts they can keep private. When you consider that we now spend about £300m on stag and hen dos every year, it’s no surprise that paying a bit extra for a classier strip show is the more popular option.

Stripping is essentially harmless entertainment, but it can embarrass even the ballsiest of brides-to-be. So, perhaps we’re seeing a modern compromise between our desire to keep the tradition going and not wanting to make it an awkward public event for her.

Which is the sexiest stripping costume?

We felt ourselves getting very profound, so we decided to lighten the mood by finding out the top hen party stripper outfit. Here’s the final say:

• Fireman: 40%
• Military: 22%
• Policeman: 17%
• Chippendales/Magic Mike: 14%
• Construction worker: 4%
• Other: 3%

We had bigger hopes for the builder and didn’t dare ask the ‘others’ to elaborate (although naval officers and cowboys came up); but we’re delighted to see the traditional firefighter outfit steaming ahead to success.

Our hen party stripper sum-up

We like to think we know a lot about everything hen party, but this survey definitely opened our eyes.

We used to assume that stags loved ogling a stripper, while hens opted for different celebratory pursuits. However, this definitely doesn't seem to be the case. Men and women are nearly equal in their love of hen party strippers, and the stripping trend itself has morphed into something quite different to survive. Once considered cringey and dated, the hen do stripper now takes its form in routined dance shows and cheeky, nearly-naked home visits, which we think adds the perfect amount of audience distance, bared flesh, and practiced showmanship to keep the event fun, flirty and cringe-free for all.

If you feel enlightened, we interviewed Dreamboy dancers and Butlers in the Buff to discover what it’s really like to be a hen party stripper. So, come back soon where you’ll get the chance to read a blow-by-blow account of stripping from the strippers themselves.