Pornography- legal or illegal?

[Kos]

Could somebody please clarify what is legal pornography and what is illegal? I am forever seeing stories about people being arrested for posession (or is it distribution?) of it and yet people openly post pornogrpahic pictures on UK websites.

Is it legal to buy it but not sell it?

I'm puzzled

[stevie21]

Usually the ones that make the news are child pornography which are not only illegal but morally repulsive.
I'd imagine that within reason, consenting adults can do as they please so that'd generally not be illegal if acted out and filmed.
I've just realised that I now sound like some kind of authority on porn.
Mum, I'm sorry - I don't actually watch porn, I was just trying to provide a helpful answer.

[Headtime]

Someone of a legal persuasion can probably clarify this better, but I would suggest that pornography is legal where the participants are willingly involved in allowing photographs of themselves to be taken in compormising poses.

I suspect where it becomes illegal, is where someone either makes, downloads , stores, forwards or prints images of an illegal sexual act - i.e child pornography.

And quite rightly too. I watched part of one episode of the BBC documentary "The Hunt for Britains Paedophiles" last year. And it sickened me to the core. I was unable to watch any more. Absolutely vile.

[Hippy]

I think provided that the "actors" are over the age of majority of the acts concerned and have given their consent in the full knowledge that they are being filmed for gain then we are on the road to legality. However, there are differing rules as to what is acceptable and what is not in various locations in the world. So there is a minefield. Here in the UK the Law is so vague, describing "lewd acts" and "tending to deprave and corrupt" that require value judgements from customs/police people and crusty old brigadiers or blue rinsed frumps who happen to be Magistrates.

Different standards are applied to films and magazines. For example, a book might just flop off a shelf and open itself at a double spread of massive members and accommodating alcoves topped by bulbous pendulobes, just as little Johnny walks by in all innocence. However, to get the picture from a film/video etc, you have to go to the trouble of tussling with the technology, and by doing so must be making some acknowledgement that you are prepared to see rude things.

We all have slightly different phantasies and the things that excite or disgust us are not necessarily the same for someone else. In the UK the rules have relaxed to such an extent over the last twenty years that almost any depiction of human sexuality short of death and children is freely (at a price! hoho) available. The rules are now so slack that knickers are dropping everywhere!

[Pinotage]

My understanding is that posession of any image in your own home is not an offence except for sexual images of children.

 

Its illegal to import porn, to sell it and to distribute through the post. But as to what constitutes porn ..... 

[Potatoman]

Why, feeling paranoid? lol
Only joking, kos
You do have to be careful, tho. Child pornography is 110% illegal. I remember reading in the paper that a father sent a picyure of his little one playing in the bath to the kids grandmother (all perfectly innocent) and didnt put the correct postcode on or whatever. The royal mail opened it up to find an address (which they can do) and found the picture and had him arrested.

[Bangkok]

I think (but am not sure) that it goes beyond postal restrictions and it extends to the Queens Highway.  Therefore if you passed a copy of a legal sex act (age , act, consent etc) over the garden fence, it is legal, but if you walked on the public pavement to deliver it, there may be an offence committed.

[Kos]

Totally agree with child porn being illegal. If I found anybody dealing in that I would not hold myself responsible for what I might do to them- but it would not be pleasant!
I was just intrigued as it seems readily available to buy all over the web, newspapers offer XXX products, and licenced sex shops can sell pornography (although I understand you have to go to the shop and collect it, which might be something to do with the dleivery laws as mentioned by Bangkok?)

[finex]

As far as I am aware, UK law on (legit) pornography is a bit odd. This may be out of date, but last time I looked into this, the main restrictions were:

• You cannot show an erect penis.
• You cannot show any act of penetration, straight or gay.
• All participants muct be consenting adults.

Aside from that, it's pretty much all legal.

However, it then gets odd, in so much as whilst these images can be published in magazines or on websites etc, they cannot necessarily be put in the post. Hence the great tales a mate of mine would tell me from his days working in a photo lab:

Whenever a particularly "fruity" set of prints came through the Quality Control section, firstly a call of "Reprints!" would go out, so everyone could judge them on their "artistic merit". If at this point the pictures were deemed to be prohibited to return by post (but still legal), then the customer would have to be telephoned and advised that the prints would need to be collected in person. Naturally, the girls on the reception desk would have a look to see if they could recognise the person collecting them! Not that you could always do so by their face...

[Bangkok]

As a footnote to the ban on erect penises, the benchmark for determining whether they are erect is the Mull of Kintyre.  Go and look at a map!

[romko]

judging from some of the comments on paedophiles etc, in this thread it seems like we got a few news of the world readers here!

"he's making a list, he's checking it twice...." as they said in Viz.

[brian5]

child pornography is wrong in any sense, for adult Pornography, it's actually quite simple, there is Hardcore and Softcore, the essential difference is that Hardcore shows erect penises and soft core does not, in the UJ harcore is Ilegal, sites sell from other countries, and it is ur call if you want to buy it and hope customs do not find it, I think the UK laws have been slightly relaxed over recent years, but we still cannot go to adult movie theatres and see Hardcore films.

[lillybeth]

im sorry in advance if im wrong in doing this but i really need help in understanding if what i have found my partner looking at is illegal or not.
fist it was just kinky all teens doing this and that, schoolgirls, babysitters most with older men or couples but some just teens with teens.
then ive found dad,F***s step daughter, dad, with son and daughter and pretending to force her. others have included the title of family sex and mother and daughter being you know what in public. i hate that i have seen some of this horror and feel it is completly wrong but is it illegal from what i can make out everyone is not under age although some are very close to not being. it is very hardcore stuff he has also viewed gay stuff to mention a few. please help me if you can. im scared to speak out to my counseller in case it is with out me knowing first. thank you.