Pole position girls?

But for the girls at For Your Eyes Only, table dancing is just another job. Some of them are students, some ex-dancers. One is a policeman's wife and another a junior barrister. They all want to make money and they're not afraid to strip off in public.

Table dancing is shaking off its sleazy image and is fast becoming part of the London social scene. I have friends who, after a hard day in the City, like nothing better than to wind down in a table dancing club. But since it was first proposed 18 months ago, the For Your Eyes Only club in Newcastle's Carliol Square has attracted controversy as well as curiosity.

Carmen is one of about 20 girls from the Newcastle club learning the arts of table and pole dancing at For Your Eyes Only's club in Mayfair. The 18-year-old fashion student from Darlington hopes to earn enough money to pay her way through college. "I don't see there's anything wrong with it. It's just another way to earn money. I'm proud of my body and I love dancing and dressing up. I think I'm really going to enjoy it," she says.

The other girls have a similar outlook, and although they may not realise it, it has a distinctly post-feminist slant. Shelley, a 22-year-old dancer from Durham City, says: "No-one is forcing us to do it. We all have good bodies and we're here to earn money. If the men are prepared to pay for a dance, that's not our problem. It's easy money really."

Some of the women are complete novices, some have dancing experience,but all of them are learning how to walk, talk and sit in order to impress the customers. It's fascinating to watch as they grow in confidence in the space of just a couple of hours. Tentative walks have become sashays and they are beginning to use their bodies to tantalise and titillate.

By the end of the session, they have even begun to master the pole, but they still have a long way to go before they can match the London dancers - Amazons who can hang upside down from the pole, holding on with their inner thighs.

Jan Carr, house mother at the Newcastle club, is confident her dancers will soon be just as impeccably groomed and skilled. "They've all got something about them already but I'm going to turn them into stunners. Within a month or so you won't recognise them."

Jan is a member of the club's management team and is responsible for the dancers' welfare, providing everything from a shoulder to cry on to advice on how to dress. She knows how important her role is from personal experience. "I used to run my own photography company and I had a kissogram business before that, but I got sucked into table dancing when my daughters took it up. I was horrified when I first found out but I checked out the club and I found out they were being looked after. It's important for the girls to have someone like me. I really do care for them and they treat me as a mum."

There is also a raft of regulations to govern the dancers' behaviour and protect them. Touching is not allowed and any customer who breaks the rules will be thrown out. The dancers aren't allowed to contact the guests or see them outside the club and anyone who does will be sacked instantly.

Is it enough to protect the dancers? The critics don't think so. The Christian Institute in Newcastle believes it is only "one stage removed from prostitution" and the city's universities fear students will be drawn into the world of vice as they take up dancing to pay off their debts.

But the girls seem more than happy with the arrangement. Lisa, another 22-year-old from Durham City, says: "I've danced in clubs before but there are many more rules here. It's going to be much better for us. You know what you're working towards and you know you're going to be safe."

After an afternoon of training, we have the chance to sample the club for ourselves. With its subtle lighting, plush seats, and extortionately priced drinks menu, For Your Eyes Only is a world away from the Sunday morning strip show at the club. The company prides itself on its upmarket image and attracts a lot of corporate clients.

The dancers take it in turns to perform on the pole during the evening and then walk the floor, asking customers if they would like a dance. A three-minute table dance costs £10 and in London, the girls can earn between £500 and £700 a night. In Newcastle it's more likely to be around £300 but it's still a substantial sum.

While we're in the club, a group of women ask one of the girls for a dance. According to Jan, this is a fairly regular occurrence. "I was actually quite surprised when I saw how many women come into the club," she says. "But this is 2001. Some come in because they're curious about what goes on. Others come in with their boyfriends and it's a bit of an aphrodisiac for them."

She asks one of the girls to dance for me so I can see exactly what it's like. She slips off her dress to reveal a minuscule G-string and stands just inches away from me, wiggling her hips and caressing her breasts. It's intimate but not erotic. Perhaps that's because I'm a woman but somehow I don't think I would be turned on by a male dancer thrusting about in front of my face.

Jan assures me this is what men want. "It's pure fantasy for them, a different world. It gives them something they don't get at home and when the dance finishes, they go and get on with their drinks." But at the table next to us, a middle-aged man is enjoying his third dance within half an hour. I can understand one dance, three seems a bit unsavoury.

The dancers aren't bothered by it. As far as they're concerned, it's just a way for them to earn a living and a harmless bit of fun for the customers. But when I press them further, they become a bit unsure.

Carmen says: "I have a boyfriend and he's fine about it. He knows that at the end of the day, it's just a job. I wouldn't mind him coming to the club but I wouldn't want him paying for a private dance." So do they think their customers' wives and girlfriends would mind? They shrug and there are more mutterings of "it's just a job".

The real test came at the weekend when the girls first danced for real. There are 55 girls on the books at Newcastle at the moment but Jan knows they're not all going to make it.

She says: "Not everyone is cut out to be a table dancer but those girls who do it really enjoy it. It gives them a real buzz and it can be a fantastic way to earn a living."