STRANGE BUT TRUE

Sex arrives in Bourne

Sex is now one of the main ingredients for television and films, an element considered essential by producers to sell their products and the last taboos have long gone. Nothing is now left to the imagination and that which cannot be found in mainstream viewing can be sought out in the more remote channels after midnight or in the murky recesses of the Internet.

It was not always so. In years past, local watch committees and the Lord Chamberlain vetted suspect material before it was shown on stage or screen while the cinema had its own controls through the British Board of Film Censors. Almost fifty years ago, a controversial film came to Bourne designed to teach young people about sex but before it was given a public screening at the Tudor Cinema in North Street [now a Chinese restaurant] it needed the seal of approval from the authorities.

Accordingly, a specially invited audience went along to the cinema in the spring of 1969 for a screening of Helga, an 80-minute film made under the auspices of the German Ministry of Health and the first full length sex feature to be shown universally. They included the chairman of Bourne Urban District Council, Councillor Ted Kelby, the clerk, Mr Frank Mason, together with doctors, clergymen, school governors and a number of officials from organisations dealing with the youth of the town.

The film explaining the rudiments of sex and its consequences was intended as a guide to adolescents, young couples, parents and educationalists and had already been granted an “A” certificate by the board which enabled young people below the age of 16 to see it provided they were accompanied by an adult but the cinema owners decided that it would be better if it received official approval before being shown to the public. In the event, the film was given their endorsement and for five days from May 11th, attracted full houses of parents, young people and even escorted school parties.

Helga was part of a now legendary German sex education series that started in 1967 and there were several sequels. It was written and directed by Erich F Bender and contained scenes never shown on screen before from the actual moment of conception to the birth of the baby, the complete and intimate story of a young girl’s sexual awakenings. When it was shown in Bourne it was hailed as an essential part of education for young people but today it has been described, perhaps unfairly, as soft porn for teenagers dressed up as sex instruction for youngsters experiencing puberty.

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