Joe: "the most natural thing in the world"

Joe, 38, a managing director, has been married for 8 years.

No-one likes admitting it, but everyone masturbates! I don't think of masturbation in the same way as I did 20 years ago, or when I was single, but it's still the most natural thing in the world. 

Where and when do you do it?
Always on my own - group masturbation's not my thing! I did it with my friends when we were young, in front of films, during that time when you're kind of discovering your body, but these days I don't need to do it as much, thanks to my wife! When I do it it's always alone, when I'm watching a film, when I can't sleep...I need my privacy to do it.

What do you think of it?
I'm comfortable with it, because it's not as taboo a as it used to be, when you only ever joked about it or talked about it in a really dirty way. The taboos are still there, but we're a lot freer. Men don't try and hide the fact that they masturbate, unlike women. It took my wife a year to admit she masturbates from time to time! I think that attitudes still need to change, but at the same time you need to respect people's privacy - there are always going to be people who are uncomfortable with talking about sex and people who are okay with it, it depends who you are.