Between 2004 and 2006 sales of men's magazines in Britain doubled to 32 million a year. Behind this phenomenon was the outrageous circulation war of the first ever lad's weeklies, Nuts and Zoo.
This programme gives an in-depth account of that epic battle, and provides a revealing dissection of the sexual mores of the 21st century British male.
IPC launched Nuts in January 2004, but the next week EMAP let loose a raunchier rival, Zoo Weekly. A £16 million launch campaign saw Nuts and Zoo going head to head using football, gore and girls to sell half a million copies a week. But the massive sales brought a moral backlash, as their nipple content rose in what became known as the Battle of the Boobs.
In 2006, Westminster debated a censorship law that would curb Nuts and Zoo. But the law to put age limits on the sales of `lads mags¿ failed ¿ and now UK lad culture is an export commodity.
Not all programmes are available on 4oD. Please see our FAQs.
