Kinky History with Esmé Louise James

It’s time to take your seat for a dinner party like no other. Celebrate the launch of Kinky History: The Stories of Our Intimate Lives, Past and Present.

Join us for a night of scandalous fun with Tiktok sensation Esmé Louise James in conversation with Hannah Ferguson, author of Bite Back. Dive into the kinky history of the ancient world and the saucy secrets of famous figures.  

WHEN: Tuesday, 17th October 2023. Check-in begins at 6.30 pm for a prompt 7pm start. 

WHERE: Chauvel Cinema, 249 Oxford St, Paddington NSW 2021

TICKETS: 

• ADMISSION: $25.00 (excluding external fees). Your ticket includes admission to the event.
• ADMISSION + BOOK BUNDLE: $50.00 (excluding external fees). Your ticket includes admission to the event and a copy of the new book, Kinky History by Esmé Louise James (RRP $35.00 - save $10) 

There will be drinks and snacks available for purchase at the bar.

Copies of Kinky History and Hannah Ferguson's book, Bite Back will be available for purchase on the night. Both authors will happily sign books after the talk - priority in the signing line is given to those who have chosen to purchase the book from Gertrude & Alice as appreciation for their support.

Irreverent and provocative, this is a history of sex, from TikTok sensation Esmé Louise James.

About the Author:

Esmé James is a PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne in the School of Culture and Communications, researching the development of the erotic genre from the eighteenth century onwards. On social media she has developed her wildly popular Kinky History video series, which explores the history of human sexuality across a range of platforms (including TikTok, Instagram and YouTube) and the series SexTistics, which uses statistics to create a snapshot – past and present – of gender, sexuality and identity in Australia. Esmé was a speaker at TEDxSydney in 2022, and her writing has been published in the Age, the ABC, The Conversation and the Herald Sun. In 2020, she was listed in the Top 30 Emerging Writers by SBS Australia.

About the Book:

Discover the long, long history of the dildo. Hear James Joyce celebrate the beauty of his wife’s farts. And you’ll never guess Albert Einstein’s thoughts on marital relations. 

Kinky History draws on Esmé Louise James’s phenomenally successful series on TikTok, which explores scandalous stories in the ancient world and the saucy secrets of famous figures. Teaming up with her statistician mother, Dr Susan James, the pair have surveyed the nation for all of your intimate secrets – and the results are in.

By placing the past in conversation with the present, we'll explore five ‘kinks’ that challenge our thinking about sex. How has the idea of sin shaped our sex lives? Why is masturbation so taboo? Where are our hidden queer histories? How do kinks and fetishes play with the idea of sex? And why does pornography have so much power over us?

Kinky History aims to blow open our conversation about sexuality and gender. Strap yourself in (or on?) – let’s build a more liberated, sex-positive future.

About the Host:

Hannah Ferguson is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cheek Media Co, an independent news commentary platform providing informed, progressive opinions on subjects that sit at the intersection of feminist, social and political issues. Hannah has a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and a Master of Publishing, Editing and Writing from The University of Queensland.