Australia’s peep show and sex cinema scene isn’t what it used to be… the glory days of neon “Nude Girls” signs and coin-operated booths are largely over. But if you know where to look, a handful of these adult venues still survive across the country.
Peep shows in Australia came to prominence in the 1970s with a handful of pioneering sex store owners offering this unique way to entertain its patrons. As the idea caught on, dozens of similar venues opened up in the major towns and cities offering customers the opportunity to view live performances of acts as diverse as striptease, solo masturbation and sometimes lesbian sex shows.
Sadly, the peep show has suffered a major decline which has been happening since the mid-1980s. As pornography became more widely available with the introduction of home videos and later DVD, less people wanted to leave the comfort of their homes to get a fix of something titivating.
The Rise and Fall of the Aussie Peep Show
The first adult cinema in Australia opened on Flinders Lane in Melbourne and was called The Star.
The cinema was at the forefront of the sexual revolution that followed Australia’s introduction of the R rated movie. From the mid-1970s small cinemas were following in the Star’s footsteps and many stores were converted to include cinema screens, lounges and peep shows.
The venue was sold to HGC in the 1980s (owned by the Hill Brothers who run the Club X chain of sex shops) and underwent a face lift. The addition of some dancing poles in the theatre and the Star was renamed the Crazy Horse.
Today, the venue is operated as one of several Club X locations.
In 1977, the Shaft Cinema was opened on Swanston Street in Melbourne (also owned by the Hill Brothers).
The venue closed in 2009 owing to pressure from the local council to make a more ‘family-friendly’ Swanston Street. Club X, however, is keeping the candle burning for the peep show.
Melbourne’s last central city adult cinema, the Dendy Adult Cinema, closed in 2016 when owner Joseph Sobota sold the building.
Originally opening in the 1970s the venue with backstreet access on Coverlid Place was popular throughout the 70s and 80s often with large queues late at night. Sadly, as with most of Australia’s peep shows, the venue suffered from a decline in audience figures, first with the advent of VHS then DVD and, in the last few decades, due to the abundance of porn available for free on the internet.
Though much of the action was centred around Melbourne, other Australian cities also experienced a boom in the peep show industry in the 1970s though most have closed down many decades ago due to falling visitor numbers.
How Do Modern Peep Shows Work?
When visiting a peep show for the first time, you can expect to find a similar set-up wherever you go.
You will enter a small booth which will have a seat, opposite which will be a small viewing window that will be closed. Inside the booth is a coin operated machine that, when fed, will open the viewing window allowing you a glimpse (or a peep) into an open area where a model (or models) will be performing.
The performance space is usually quite plain but often features a comfortable seat or podium and a handful of props such as sex toys.
Depending on the style of the performance space you may also be able to see the open viewing windows of other booths. This happens in smaller venues when the performance space is ‘in the round’ but less common where booths are arranged in a staggered corridor.
Shows can include couples as well as single performers and may include live sex.
Viewing times vary but are often around $2 for a minute’s ‘peep’. Change machines are usually located outside the booths so be sure you have enough shrapnel to keep your booth active.
Think of it as a sort of offline cam show.
Want to get the same thing online?! Check our list of Aussie cam sites.
Notable Aussie Peep Shows
Most of the peep shows operating in Australia are run by Club X, one of the leading chain sex shops in the country. They have over 30 stores nationwide… though not all of them have peep show facilities.
The company was founded in 1975 by brothers, Kenneth and Eric Hill and was built on the back of their first store in Melbourne.
Most of the stores have an adult cinema in addition to the peep shows, which can often be used by swingers and voyeurs. You will also find what is known as ‘Ram Lounges’ in some Club X venues. These are male only venues used for gay cruising.
You can check our city guides for famous peep shows near you.
Here are some of the most famous remaining locations:
Club X, Melbourne (Crazy Horse)
34 Elizabeth St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Opened in the 1950s, the Crazy Horse is the city’s oldest running cinema… and Melbourne’s first adult cinema.
Originally called the Star Theatre, the venue hasn’t always had an adult association – with the cinema showing everything from cartoons to sport, international news to independent films.
In 1970, the cinema changed its regular offering to become Australia’s first sex cinema. The venue was taken over by Club X owners, the Hill Brothers, in the 1980s and changed its name from the Star to the Crazy Horse.
Situated behind a black curtain at the back of this small sex shop you can find the historic 50 seat cinema. The theatre shows back to back films during the day with strip acts performing between the films. You can also enjoy a private strip show in a one-on-one session.
The peep shows run continuously during the clubs opening hours and a roster of the girls performing is published in the foyer so you never miss any of your favourite acts. Booths are coin operated and there are note changing facilities on site.
Club X, Melbourne (Swanston St)
216 Swanston St, Melbourne VIC 3000
https://www.facebook.com/clubxswanstonst
The Club X store on Swanston Street in Melbourne has been home to a peep show for over two decades.
Though the ownership has changed and the layout updated, you can still access one of four booths where you can peep in on a show as well as use one of 14 cybersex booths. Private dances are available and there is an adult cinema on site with a couple of lounges for gay cruising.
The shop itself looks a lot more modern and clean than it used to. Signs of the changing times!
Whisper Shop, Perth
95 James St, Northbridge WA 6003
https://www.whispershop.com.au
Whisper Shop has been one of Perth’s go-to adult stores for decades, and it still proudly operates one of the few surviving peep show setups in Western Australia. Tucked away in Northbridge – Perth’s nightlife heartland – the venue blends a traditional sex shop with private booths, an adult cinema, and coin-operated peep shows. It also has the classic ram lounge and private DVD/Internet rooms.
The peep show itself works much like the Melbourne Club X venues.
Slightly gritty, but that’s kind of the point.
Taboo Burswood, Perth
Shop 4/285 Great Eastern Hwy, Burswood WA 6100
https://tabooburswood.com.au/services-2/
Taboo Burswood is a real blast from the past.
This independent adult shop has been serving Perth for years and combines the classic adult bookstore features – yes, including video peep-show booths – with a mid-sized selection of contemporary toys and outfits. It’s tucked in a small, innocuous strip in Burswood.
Behind the retail space sit a row of private video peep-show booths, a setup that feels straight out of the ’70s. You step into a small, dimly lit cubicle with just enough space for you and your imagination. A coin slot sits beside the monitor, and with each feed of change the show flickers to life. For a few minutes you’re part of that classic, slightly gritty peep-show ritual that’s almost extinct in Australia today.
In the back, true to its roots, are private video booths for customers seeking a more hands-on experience. There’s also the famous Taboo Burswood Strips – a sexy private strip show starting at $20 for 5 minutes, or $100 for 25 minutes.
Everything is strictly non-contact, but the setup gives you the intimacy of a one-on-one performance without the hassle (or price tag) of a full strip club.
Last Flickers of the Peep Show?
Peep shows might feel like relics from a seedier, neon-lit past… and in many ways, they are.
With free porn, cam sites, and VR sex only a click away, it’s no surprise the booths have thinned out over the years. But the guys who still wander into these venues aren’t just chasing a quick fix. In many ways, they’re there for the nostalgic throwback. Chasing the illicit thrill of the live, physical, and anonymous – the buzz of coins clinking, curtains sliding back, and dirty late-night thrills.
It goes without saying… you get some characters in these places.
But the sad truth is, Australia’s peep shows are on borrowed time.
Councils don’t love them. Younger punters don’t “get” them. And landlords prefer something more family-friendly and “sex positive”.
So if you’ve ever been curious, now’s the time. Drop a few coins, slide into a booth, and enjoy a slice of erotic history before the shutters finally come down for good.
