A LAP dancing club in south Essex has become the first in the country to gain a licence to hold weddings.

Katz Gentlemen’s Club will set the unusual precedent when it hosts its first ceremony on October 18.

The club applied for a licence last month, after a couple from Chelmsford visited for a fetish night and insisted they wanted their nuptials there too.

The couple are too superstitious to talk about their impending nuptials, but are said to be looking forward to having their big day at the venue in Time Square, Basildon.

Following a three-week public consultation period, and an inspection of the premises by Essex County Council, the licence to host marriages and civil partnerships for same sex couples was approved yesterday.

It is the latest in a number of unconventional wedding venue options.

You can also get married in a Southend casino, the windmill in Rayleigh and you can even swap vows in a tree house in Kent.

But Katz general manager Dean Kayne, 38, thinks they have now managed to plug a gap in the market.

He said: “As far as I know we are the first strip club in the country with a licence to hold weddings.

“What we are trying to do here is change people’s blinkered view of our establishment.

“The weddings we hold won’t involve strippers walking around, we are just making use of the very good facilities we have.”

Dean, who has ruled out the possibility of becoming ordained so he can marry couples, added: “We will have a registrar coming here from Brentwood, and the couple have organised their own band and caterers.

“We are looking forward to it and we hope it is the start of lots of memorable days.” here.”