Soho bar's naked ambition

When Soho's Raymond Revue Bar became the first legal nude show with moving dancers in 1958, it sparked moral outrage.

Now, more than 40 years later, the venue has asked permission to have completely naked table-dancers for the first time, to keep up with modern-day rivals such as Stringfellows and Spearmint Rhino.

The Raymond Revue Bar was set up by Paul Raymond, previously a travelling entertainer with a clairvoyant act that had been wearing thin with audiences. Within years of its establishment the venue just off Berwick Street became famous as far afield as the Middle East and Japan. Copyists clamoured to cash in on Raymond's vision with similar bars.

But recently both Peter Stringfellow's Covent Garden venue, and US lap-dancing chain Spearmint Rhino, which has a bar in Tottenham Court Road, have been granted licences to offer naked lap-dancing. Current legal restrictions mean the Revue Bar can only have naked dancers on stage as part of a striptease show.

It has applied to Westminster council to change its licence to allow nude table-dancing.

Gerard Simi, who bought the bar from Raymond in 1997, said he was only trying to keep up with the competition: "We have to move with the times. We don't want to be left behind. If we are doing the same job we want to be treated as equals."

Relaxed rules for the Revue Bar are not a foregone conclusion. Westminster said the Stringfellows decision did not automatically mean the Revue Bar would be granted full permission for table-dancing.

A spokeswoman said Mr Stringfellow had proved himself a "decent, responsible licencee who had tried hard to integrate his club into Covent Garden".

However there are few complaints from councillors. Conservative Ian Wilder, who has campaigned for West End streets to be cleaned up, said: "It would be very hard to say to the owners you cannot do this when everyone else is. It is a bar built into the fabric of the West End. It would be wrong to say no.

"I do not necessarily care what goes on inside but we care about people who come out of clubs and bars urinating on the streets, shouting abuse at residents and causing fights."

The new wave of lap-dancing clubs is a world away from the billionpound empire Raymond built up from the Fifties. His first strip show involved two tap-dancers persuaded to disrobe for 10 shillings.

The Revue Bar became Soho's first legal nude show allowing dancers to move, proving more stimulating than the pioneering Windmill Theatre where nudes could only pose still-life.

Raymond also discovered a legal loophole. If he opened his bar as a members club he could evade the restrictions imposed by the Lord Chamberlain.

But he did not escape the anger of the pre-permissive society era. In 1961 he was convicted of keeping a "disorderly house" at the Revue Bar. The chairman of the London Sessions called Raymond's show - including snake charmer Julie Mendez - filthy and fined him £5,000.

Interested parties have until 13 May to lodge objections with Westminster council. A spokeswoman said the council had not yet received a single complaint.