The magazine was published in yearly volumes of twelve monthly issues but in 1973 Janus published three specials. The first focussed on bondage, rubber and leather fetishism, the second on spanking (below) and the third on fetishism beneath the skirt. The editorial team were overwhelmed with the response to the spanking special and published a further three spanking specials that same year. and I opted for the A framed trestle, which was padded and turned out to surprisingly comfortable. As I stretched down, the organiser asked if I minded having my g-string removed – which he did before I had answered, although I had lifted my hips slightly to make it easy for him to slide them down. I think about this moment a lot – here was I bent over with my bare bottom on display to twenty men including my ex-boss plus several waiters about to receive a strapping followed by a caning. I used to fantasise about being a stripper, and perhaps I was living out something else at this point. Alan Bell, the owner and editor of Roue was approached to become editor of Janus and, for a short period (Janus 8-10), he was editing both magazines. As part of the new team Alan brought Peter French and Vic Barnes with him and it was Peter and Vic who took over full running of the magazine as editor and photo editor respectively from issue 11 (below). Initially they produced the magazine from offices above the shop before moving to new premises in Golden Square. The next few years were something of a golden age for Janus. Featuring artwork by Paula Meadows and fiction by writers such as Richard Manton and R T Mason the magazine set the standard for its competitors producing innovative photo stories of a consistently high quality even when censorship restrictions were at their peak. The second photo story ‘The Master’ features two maids on the receiving end of the cane. The colour photos are especially good and ‘Angela’ would also go on to appear in the ‘St Winifred’s Trilogy’. In April 2011 the Janus shop shut its doors for the last time. Barely a month later in May, Gordon Sergeant died peacefully in his sleep aged 82. With the closing of the shop and Gordon’s death coming just a month apart it was the passing of an age.

The previous account told of my experiences some years ago in my early twenties when I worked as an au pair and received a number of canings for various misdemeanours, and how ultimately I came to enjoy the experience of being caned. In the account I also told of a lunch with my ex-boss fifteen years later in my thirties when he persuaded me to return to his house and be reacquainted with the cane. On that day, I received a ‘house caning’, so called because when he had been at school there were three levels of severity – the middle level being if you were to be punished by the House Master which involved reporting to him after supper fifteen minutes before ‘lights out’, removing your dressing gown, dropping your pyjama trousers for six strokes with the standard cane. He said that as the ‘warm up’ he would give me six strokes with a leather strap followed by six strokes with a leather paddle. My relationship with my ex-boss had been exclusively with the cane and I was surprised how pleasant a strapping actually is, especially the large oval shaped paddle. After the twelve strokes, which had certainly warmed me up, it was time for the cane. Having never been caned by anyone except my ex-boss, I didn’t know what to expect and I thought again about the audience all focussing on my bare bottom which was offered up for punishment in an incredible revealing position. In truth, the first three strokes were very mild, and I think the organiser was treading very carefully, not wanting to go beyond my limits. He leaned over and asked if the strokes were ok. By this stage I’d build myself up for a decent caning and told him that the strokes were very mild and that he should give me three more strokes in a similar manner before The magazine produced a series of popular videos with high production values during the early 1980’s. The St Winifred’s Trilogy (below), The Disciplinarian and the Moral Welfare videos were among the best films available on the market at the time. They sadly disappeared from the shop following the introduction of the Video Recordings Act 1984.

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As he proceeded to give me a real thrashing, I just concentrated on staying position despite the extreme pain that he was creating in my bottom. After the second and third strokes he gave me a slightly longer break as I tried to come to terms with the pain. A classic caning is so much worse than the house canings I have enjoyed earlier in the year, with the combination of the longer cane, the difficult position and my ex-boss just caning me harder making all the difference. When I put the phone down, I was quite wet, and he had the effect of making me feel both excited and fearful. I also knew that I could not get out of this, and that I had to go through with it. Logically, I knew that was not the case, and I could easily say that I wasn’t going. But this wasn’t logic, I was excited about being punished and I also knew I deserved a severe caning which I was going to get at 1100hrs on Saturday. giving me a proper six-of-the-best as he had promised. I remember him saying to the audience, “we have a game girl here” and told them what I had said. There is a big difference between electing for a caning (as I have this year with my ex-boss caning me for no reason other than for fun) and having to submit to punishment. Every so often I would have to fuel my need, and my ex boss was always happy to oblige. I enjoy undressing in front of him and his complimentary remarks about my body (I go to the gym at least three times a week). I enjoy bending across his desk knowing he is focussing on my bare bottom. As to the caning itself, I always tell myself to be brave, but in reality it is the after effects that are the most enjoyable.

At this time the magazine was published from offices at 164 North Gower Street, London and the main Janus bookshop was at 10 Irving Street, London (below).The wife who was spanked bare-bottom, and sometimes nude, by her husband in front of his friends and another couple when she was rude to him;

The Janus shop may have been firmly established at 40 Old Compton Street by 1981 and was now the mecca for all aficionados of erotic and recreational discipline, but the title of ‘Janus’ was anything but secure. The title rights became the subject of negotiation during this period and while the ownership was being resolved the editorial team launched Volume 1, Number 1 of ‘New Derriere’ (below left). New Derriere ran for just six issues while the rights to the name ‘Janus’ were being resolved and later in 1981 ‘New Janus’ Number 1 (below right) was born. This was undoubtedly the best and worst caning I have ever experienced. The worst because it was so painful and certainly beyond my ‘comfort zone’. It was also worse than the final six strokes I took at the party – where I had benefited from a warm-up, had a relatively comfortable trestle to bend over and had the pain slightly dulled by several large V&T’s. Here I had taken a severe caning ‘cold’, without the benefit of alcohol and having to stay in position touching my toes. But then I turned to the "Letters to the Editor" (with the motto "Want to give the Editor the business? Here is where you can"), and my eyes popped out. There was a very long, descriptive letter from a husband describing how he had come to give his wife weekly disciplinary "whippings" (for some reason the writer avoided calling them spankings, but they clearly were) after learning the ins and outs of disciplining a wife from his neighbor. The first whipping was given because his wife was exposing herself to the neighborhood by going outside to hang up the laundry (no fancy clothes dryers for them) wearing sheer underwear. Why the wife would want to show her lacy undies off to the neighborhood was never explained - I guess it was just assumed that all women were exhibitionists, but the spanking, using birch and paddle, was vividly described. At the end of 1980, Volume 9, Number 12 marked the 108th and last issue of the yearly volumes. It was the end of an era in more ways than one because Van, who had been very ill for some time, sadly passed away. As photo editor and producer of Janus films the legendary George Harrison-Marks (below) had been supporting Van to edit the magazine during his illness and was the natural choice to take over after his death. The editorial for Volume 9, Number 12 tells readers to look out for Volume 10 Number 1 but it wasn’t to be… I discussed this with my ex-boss over the phone and he asked me if I had done anything lately for which I should be punished.

The army wife who insisted on wearing micro-miniskirts without panties in public and who was spanked by her husband with a ruler to get her to wear underwear (come to think of it, there seemed to be a lot of letters from military men in this era, when Vietnam was just winding up); Following the success of the spanking specials the magazine gradually began to shift its focus solely towards spanking. A new editor, AG Van Okker, took the helm in 1973 and the popularity of the magazine began to build. Van was a colourful and well-loved character with an active interest in the subject matter. He also went by the name of Homericus and published an interesting book about his life (below).

I was amazed at how easily these girls took their ‘punishment’ and how after each had received twenty spankings and twenty strappings, most were hardly marked. These girls were taking thirty strokes of the strap each time it was their turn! The next occasion took very much the same format, first an enjoyable lunch, followed by a ‘house caning’ – six strokes of the standard cane bent over his desk with all clothes below the waist removed. I turned down the offer of a so called ‘Classic Caning’ which I had received twice many years ago when I was in his employ, which was reserved The army wife who had spread gossip about the husband's commanding officer's wife and, as a result, was stripped naked and spanked by her husband and the officer's wife in front of the officer; for more serious matters. The difference between a ‘house’ and ‘classic’ caning was that a longer cane was used and you had to adopt the more difficult ‘touching your toes’ position.In March 1994 Janus saw it’s first major change of staff for well over a decade. Following the publication of its second 100th issue a new editor, St John North, took the helm. St John (who was better known to Janus readers as ‘Christian’, the husband of Sophie Fennington) would edit the magazine for the remainder of it’s run. The second incident took place a little later and I was very interested in Amelia Jane’s article in Janus when she talked how much more powerful a caning is when there is a genuine reason for punishment. The venue was a restaurant, which had a separate room upstairs. Right from the start it was clear that this all about ‘fun’ and the organiser The Punishment Book’ by ‘Tom Horner describes Anthony Conrad’s last day as headmaster at St Edmund’s and contributions from readers includes a wonderful account of a relationship that came about through the Privilege Club prefaced by an introduction from the much missed Gordon Sergeant. When the lease on Irving Street ran out in 1977 the main Janus shop moved to 4 Greens Court off Brewer Street (below). In the late 70’s the lease on Green’s Court also expired and the main Janus bookshop settled in to it’s final home at 40 Old Compton Street.