With a new movie adaptation arriving in cinemas this week, E. L. James’s ‘Fifty Shades’ series shows its remarkable staying power on screen and in print.
Although widely derided by critics in all its incarnations, there is no denying the popularity, impact and influence of what began life as a piece of Twilight fan fiction.

The original 2011 novel was a completely unexpected runaway hit and was a triumph for the ebook format. Millions of copies of the book and its sequels were sold, and it suggested that there was a surprisingly mainstream market for S&M-themed erotica.
The necktie cover design quickly became iconic, and there are still many designs in this genre making suggestive use of single objects, jewellery, and masks.

We’ve explored a few of these concepts in this Fifty Shades-themed image gallery…

Click here to view the selection of images