John Willie

Though distributed underground, Bizarre magazine had a far-reaching impact on later fetish-themed publications and experienced a resurgence in popularity, along with fetish model Bettie Page, beginning in the 1970s.

Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Royal Scots, Coutts was forced to resign in 1925 when he married a night-club hostess, Eveline Fisher, without the permission of his commanding officer.

[1] Coutts joined a local High Heel Club, where he was probably introduced to the print media of a community of "shoe lovers" and other fetishists.

Coutts' access to the High Heel Club's mailing list allowed him to begin producing and selling his own illustrations and photographs.

He worked at a variety of jobs as well as pursuing his hobby, and eventually established a company to produce exotic footwear called "Achilles".

Willie was introduced to the American fetish underground by Charles Guyette and later worked with Irving Klaw, the infamous BDSM merchandiser later charged with obscenity, but he is best known for his fetish cartoon character Sweet Gwendoline, which he drew in a style that influenced later artists such as Gene Bilbrew and Eric Stanton.

Despite the nature of the magazine, Coutts was able to circumvent censorship and orders to cease publication because he was careful to avoid "nudity, homosexuality, overt violence, or obvious depictions of things that might be read as perverse or immoral and that might rankle those parties who were capable of banning, censoring or blocking the magazine's circulation.

These letters covered topics such as high heels, bondage, amputee fetishism, sadomasochism, transvestism, corsets, and body modification.

[7] After publishing the first 23 issues of Bizarre, Coutts moved to Hollywood, California, where in 1961 he developed a brain tumour and was forced to end his mail-order business.

Destroying his archives and returning home to the British Isles, Coutts went to live with his sister who resided on the island of Guernsey.

There is a partner to suit everyone somewhere, but the search will be difficult until we can discuss our likes and dislikes, openly, in good taste, without threat from our own brand of standardized Police State.