Rabbits; bullets; G-spot stimulators; air-based clitoral devices . In 2024, the sex toy industry is booming – so much so that by 2026, it’s expected to reach a global value of $52.7 billion, and a further $80.
7 billion by 2030. When it comes to appearance, sex toys can start to look dated incredibly quickly. Take, for example, the ‘Turtle and the Hare’ episode in series one of Sex And The City , where Miranda introduces her innocent friend, Charlotte, to the ways of the Rabbit vibrator.
She quickly becomes addicted and has to have it prized away from her, as she increasingly chooses self-pleasure over dating and socialising. Honestly? Mood. But, watching the episode back now, it’s striking how different this style of sex toy looks compared to the updated models of the 2020s.
Sex And The City isn’t the only show to have referenced sex toys over the years: now, Netflix’s new ‘wine-soaked sex romp’ The Decameron, starring the likes of Saoirse-Monica Jackson ( Derry Girls ) and Tanya Reynolds (Sex Education), has referenced their intricate history. Following the characters through the Bubonic Plague, inspired by Giovanni Boccaccio’s original tale published in mid-14th century Italy, the characters are comically depicted fashioning their own sex toys out of clay. With all that in mind, I couldn’t help but wonder.
.. when did sex toys first become a thing? And how have they changed with history? When was the first sex toy made? Sign up to The Hook-Up, Metro's s.