UK: World's first ever strip poker championship takes place in London's Cafe Royal

Up to 200 strip poker players competed on Saturday (August 19) to see who would lose their shirts -- and more -- and who would scoop 10,000 pounds by retaining their clothes and modesty. Organised by Irish bookmaker Paddy Power, the inaugural World Strip Poker Championship took place at the prestigious Cafe Royal in central London with players battling it out in games of "No Limit Texas Hold 'em". The bookmaker said it decided to hold the competition after its spoof April Fool earlier this year generated a lot of interest. "It started off as an April Fool's joke. On April Fool's Day, every year we send out a press release saying that we're gonna do something crazy. Like sometimes we're gonna paint a horse green and run it in the Grand National, but this year we pretended that we're gonna have a strip poker tournament. But suddenly we were inundated with people calling us and saying how do we play, when is it on, how do we register and so we said we better do this for real. So four months later, here we are. " Players of both sexes from over 12 countries are battled it it out for the Golden Fig Leaf trophy and the right to revel in the title of World Strip Poker Champion. Two participants from Germany came all the way over to London just to participate in the event. They reckoned they stood a good chance to win: Aside from strict rules governing the poker play, there were clear guidelines on the stripping element -- most importantly that each player starts the match by wearing five items of clothing supplied by the organisers. Each contestant was given a towel to sit on and to cover themselves when naked, but only after they have stripped completely. About two hours into the event, the first contestant to bare it all, was already in the spotlight of TV cameras. Andrew who said his 'bad' luck was due to a bad run of cards, was the first male contestant to lose his shirt... and everything else he was wearing. For some, like Victoria, this was the first time she had played the game and had no intention of baring it all. "I've taken off as much as I'm going to now," she said. Others, had a little bit more experience at the art, just like eighteen year Oliver, who'd done it all before. "At parties, a few drinks and then get the poker going get the ladies round and then you know, it all happens from there." The young contestant made it to the final round of ten die hards, to play for the cheque of 10,000 pounds. This amount was doubled as winner John Young was giving it away to charity - cancer research. The freelance journalist/artist from Slough bared all and thinks he set a double record on this challenging event. "It's brilliant, I can't believe I'm in the Guinness World Book of Records, I'm probably the hairiest poker player to get in the Guinness World Records as well," Young said.

ITN Source | August 20, 2006

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