Contains adult themes: this story discusses new UK criminal offences covering pornographic images. Nothing explicit is described. This is not legal advice.
Update, Nov. 3, 2026: This story was updated with two later posts from Mayflower and the maximum penalties as set out in UK government guidance.
In brief: Three new criminal offences covering pornographic images take effect in England and Wales on Nov. 6: depictions of strangulation or suffocation, of sex between people who appear to be related, and of anyone who is, or is pretending to be, under 16. Scottish creator Alice Mayflower says she is deleting old content and still unsure what is covered. Government guidance answers some of her questions; others are left to a “reasonable person” test.
Alice Mayflower has spent the week before Nov. 6 going through hard drives.
The Scottish adult creator posted on X on Nov. 3 that she had “at least 2 more hard drives to go through” and no clear idea what she should be removing. She had focused on obvious choking content, she wrote, but was now worried about face-sitting and smothering scenes too, and about gagging.
Earlier that day she wrote: “I know we’re all focused on the choking law, but has anyone seen anything about whether having plushies visible in content will get it flagged as pretending to be under 16? Remember, 3 new laws are coming into effect on the 6th, not just the one about strangulation.”
What the law says
She is right that there are three. According to UK government guidance published Oct. 16, from Nov. 6 it is a criminal offence in England and Wales to possess or publish pornographic images that explicitly and realistically depict strangulation or suffocation; penetrative sexual activity between people who appear to be related, including step and foster relationships where one person is, or is pretending to be, under 18; or sexual activity where a reasonable person would think at least one person “is, or is pretending to be, under 16.”
The guidance says strangulation “generally means one person applying pressure to another person’s neck,” and that suffocation includes covering the mouth or nose or compressing the chest. The offences cover only people who appear to be real. Possession carries up to two years for the strangulation and incest offences and three for the under-16 offence; publishing carries up to five. Defences exist, and images people already hold must be permanently deleted before Nov. 6. A government factsheet says the offences also become priority offences under the Online Safety Act 2023, which puts duties on platforms.
The guidance does not mention props such as plushies, bows or braids. Whether a scene suggests someone is pretending to be under 16 is left to the reasonable-person test.
The plushie problem
Mayflower, who describes herself as “a curvy 30 year old woman” with tattoos and piercings, wrote on her blog on Oct. 21 that FapHouse had already flagged several of her videos “as having items portraying a minor or something like that, because some of my plushies have been visible in the background.” They were removed or blocked from publishing. “This war on porn is really getting old,” she wrote. She also stressed: “I am NOT a lawyer.”
‘Up to 5 years in jail’
Later on Nov. 3, replying to other users on X, Mayflower wrote: “Sorry, I’m a bit busy panicking that I might be facing up to 5 years in jail because I wasn’t sure if one of my videos was now illegal or not.”
View this post on X
Twelve minutes later she added that she had “7 years worth of content to filter through to make sure I comply with these new laws.”
Her five-year figure matches the top of the range. According to the government guidance, the maximum penalty for publishing material covered by any of the three offences is five years’ imprisonment. Possession carries a maximum of two years for the strangulation and relatives offences, and three years for the under-16 offence. A separate government factsheet on the act does not list penalties.
What about Scotland?
On Nov. 3 Mayflower posted that “these new laws apply to Scotland too,” adding: “The difference is we didn’t make new laws, we amended old ones.”
The commencement order for Nov. 6, SI 2026/1090, brings the offences into force for England and Wales. The Crime and Policing Act does include a Scottish strangulation provision, section 105, which amends the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, but under section 255(10) it takes effect on a day Scottish Ministers set by regulations. Channel 304 has not confirmed a Scottish commencement date. Scottish creators should check the current position with a solicitor.
Sources: Alice Mayflower on X, Nov. 3, 2026; Asking Alice, Oct. 21, 2026; GOV.UK, Oct. 16, 2026; legislation.gov.uk.