Magic Mike: Meet Brighton's answer to Channing Tatum's stripping star

Dan Harley, from Brighton, said stripping is so empowering that he “feels like a superstar” at work.

He now runs Butlers With Bums, an entertainment company and, with the potential to earn as much in one night as he did in a fortnight, has never looked back.

Ahead of the release of the latest Magic Mike movie, which is about male strippers, Dan said his industry has seen a real boost.

“Business has really picked up, and in about nine out of ten bookings, customers ask if there’s a Channing Tatum [who plays Mike] lookalike available,” said Dan.

“But we get all sorts of other crazy requests. It used to be firemen, but these days, one of the most common requests is that the stripper dresses up as Harry Potter.

“One group once even asked me to perform as the Easter Bunny.”

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Dan and his team take a wide variety of bookings.

“I’ve even had a booking at a care home for a woman’s 90th birthday," he said.

"That was surreal, but after the initial shock she loved every minute and really got into the swing of it – I think it made her birthday."

Brighton is a popular city for stag and hen dos (Image: Last Night of Freedom)

New research published ahead of the film, Magic Mike’s Last Dance, shows demand for male strippers has never been greater – even though customers want to see less flesh.

Data supplied by Britain’s leading stag and hen party provider, Last Night Of Freedom, shows Magic Mike-style dance show bookings have risen by 61 per cent since 2019.

“The film has undoubtedly changed people’s perceptions about the industry,” said Matt Mavir, managing director of Last Night Of Freedom.

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And according to Dan, dancers can earn a small fortune by stripping.

“During the busy summer months when Brighton is full of hen parties, a dancer can earn incredible money - up to £1,000 a night on a Friday or Saturday,” he said.

“They will have up to ten bookings on one night, which sounds a lot, but they are only there for about 15 minutes – so the hourly rate is staggering.

“However, lots of work goes into those few hours of performing. Obviously, they need to work out a lot to stay in shape, and there’s a lot of prep to make sure they look the part.”

Dan, left, said one of the most common requests is to dress up like Harry Potter (Image: Last Night of Freedom)

Like Channing Tatum’s character in Magic Mike, many of Dan’s dancers have regular day jobs and use stripping as a way to top up their income.

“They all have a variety of backgrounds, from personal trainers to gas engineers,” said Dan, who has expanded the company into an award-winning national brand.

“When I was in banking, I’d tell people what I did at the weekends, and it definitely raised a few eyebrows," he said.

“However, people were largely just really curious about what would go on - plus it was definitely more interesting than the day job.”