Pensioner Beverly Roberts has worked as a prostitute for the past 25 years and, despite being a great gran, sees up to six men a day.
'Sex keeps me fit. I don’t have health problems and I put that down to my job'
The 63-year-old makes around £750 a day – meaning she earns around £176,000 a year – and she has the full support of her family.
Beverly, from Gravesend, Kent, says: “Sex keeps me fit. I don’t have health problems and I put that down to my job. People say I look young and can’t believe I’m a great gran. I see myself working until I’m at least 70!”
Beverly first became an escort to support her sons, Jason, now 42, and Joe, 39, after separating from her husband in 1988.
She says: “We’d lost our house due to debts, so I had to rent a two-bed flat. The boys were 14 and 17 and we were living on bread and jam and couldn’t afford furniture. Office work wasn’t an option as I had no qualifications. It didn’t occur to me to get a cleaning job or go on benefits – I needed a decent wage.”
[ASSETHERE=image]
She adds: “Then I saw an ad in my local paper seeking escorts, which claimed to pay really well. I thought escorts went out for dinner with single men and it seemed easy and fun. I contacted the agency and the smartly dressed owner visited me and said I’d be going to lunch and dinner with men for £120 an hour. It sounds naive, but I didn’t think it would involve anything else.”
A few days later, Beverly had her first appointments.
She says: “The same man picked me up while the boys were at school.
He told me we’d be driving to different clients’ houses, then he explained some of them would want to have sex. I started panicking – I hadn’t slept with anyone since my husband. He handed me some condoms and told me, if I did what the men asked, I’d earn £1,000. I felt sick and wanted to run away, but I told myself I was committed and I had no choice – we were so poor.”
Then, after ringing her teenage boys to say she’d be late, Beverly saw a staggering 10 clients. She says: “I started at 10am. The first client I saw was a middle-aged ginger-haired man who wanted me to touch him intimately. I was so nervous, I felt sick – I just tried to block out what I was doing and think of the money.
'I accepted what I was doing and just thought of it as a job that would give my boys a good life'
“After that, I went for lunch at a man’s house, who made me ham, egg and chips, then asked for sex. I thought, ‘Can I really do this?’ but then I thought about my family and felt I didn’t have a choice. The man was attractive, which helped. During the rest of the day, I saw eight other men – two others wanted full sex, while some just wanted a massage. They were from all walks of life.”
Beverly finished work at 11pm. She says: “When I got home, I broke down. Joe asked what was wrong and I told him to run me a bath. I felt so dirty and kept thinking, ‘How has it come to this?’ The boys wanted to know why I was upset, so I told them. We’ve always been close and I tried to be honest. They were upset and shocked, but they understood we needed the cash.”
Beverly was booked to see more clients the next day.
She says: “That night, I wondered if I could go through with it. But I looked at the £1,000 cash and knew there was no way I’d make that much in another job. So, the next day, I saw eight clients. By the end of the day, I’d accepted what I was doing and just thought of it as a job that would give my boys a good life.”
From then on, Beverly saw up to 30 clients a week, with a couple of days off a week. She says: “I started thinking about grooming. I had stockings and suspenders, but no sexy lingerie, so I got a basque and thongs. I also shaved every day to make sure I didn’t have a hair on my body, took care of my nails and went to the hair salon regularly.”
She adds: “I wanted to be honest with my mum so I told her what I was doing a week after I started and she was heartbroken but understood I had no choice. I didn’t make a point of telling people but, gradually, most people found out. Luckily, they were all accepting.
One man, who was hired by a pimp, threatened her with a gun and another held a knife to her throat
“And we were soon in a good financial position, but I carried on because, by then, my boys were fine with it and I’d started to enjoy it – I’d always been adventurous in the bedroom and I became confident over time. If a client wanted to do something I wasn’t keen on, I’d suggest something else so I could have fun too. There aren’t many women with a sex life as good as mine. I was providing a useful service and most of my clients were decent men.
“After three years, I bought a two-bed house for the boys and me. I had money to buy furniture and clothes. I never got anything designer, but I liked to look smart for clients, so I bought suits. I didn’t spoil the boys with computer games, but I did buy them a gold watch each.”
But Beverly – who is now self-employed and advertises her services online – admits her work was risky. One man, who was hired by a pimp, threatened her with a gun and another held a knife to her throat. She says: “The men tried to stop me working –- it was a turf war. But I didn’t let them put me off. I didn’t report it to the police as it would have been bad for business.”
'I’ve got a 92-year-old client who can’t have sex, but likes being cuddled and massaged'
The gran has slept with thousands of men over the past 25 years and still sees up to six clients a day. Beverly, who has regular STI checks and insists on condoms, says: “I may be older, but I’ve got clients of all ages. Some young men come to me because they prefer an older woman. It also helps that I’m a size 12 and I’m friendly. I like dressing up and role play, but I’m not keen on the dominatrix look.”
She adds: “I’ve got a 92-year-old client who can’t have sex, but likes being cuddled and massaged. His wife has been dead for a while – if his family knew what was going on they’d go mad.”
Beverly – who now earns £90 an hour when a client comes to her home, or between £120 and £150 if she visits them – insists no one has ever criticised her work. And she’s only had one relationship during her career. She says: “I dated a client for over two years, but we broke up because he was jealous of my other clients. I don’t feel I’ve missed out and I’ve never wanted to marry again.”