Sexual imagery has been at the heart of culture all over the world, from the Cerne Abbas man to the painted walls of Pompeii, from the carvings of Bourges Cathedral to the obscene pamphlets of the French Revolution. The discovery of explicit artifacts in the ruins of Pompeii created a dilemma for polite society in the 18th century. The solution was a secret museum for gentlemen only.

Pornography was instrumental in fermenting the French Revolution with shockingly explicit sexual satire directed at the monarchy. Photography was the greatest leap forward ever in the history of pornography. In the nineteenth century, to ask where pornographic photographs were sold is like asking where you can buy drugs today. The printing press democratized access to pornography, but also sparked a frenzy to censor sexually explicit material. The censorship battle had begun.

Photography’s universal appeal and facility for realism led to the creation of the porn magazine and a new breed of businessman: the porn dealer. This episode examines the appeal of photographs, their development and their consumers, heralding arguments which have parallels today with debates on internet pornography.

At the end of the 1970’s, the invention of moving pictures revolutionized pornography and dramatically expanded its reach. From stag films to peepshow booths to mainstream porn features, pornography leapt into the mainstream.

The advent of video led to the demise of adult cinemas and ended pornography’s crossover dreams. The most significant contribution allowed consumers to become producers as they stepped behind the camera and started recording their own sex lives in the privacy of their own homes.

The new era of digital manipulation has affected how pornography is produced and consumed. In its digital incarnation on the internet, pornography appears to have triumphed and sidestepped all attempts to control it. Pornography in physical forms - books, magazines, and videos - could always be seized and destroyed, but on the Net, pornography has shed its physical form and gone digital. But can it ever really deliver or do its promised fantasies remain as elusive as ever?