The UN bans “UNIT” - the Brig unimpressed!
Reports from the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine indicate that Russell T. Davies has revealed that the United Nations has contacted the BBC and forbidden the usage of the name “United Nations Intelligence Taskforce” in Doctor Who. Apparently the production team can still call it “UNIT”, they just can’t say what the initials stand for. Apparently the UN doesn’t want to be associated with a fictional organization that’s been defending the earth from evil alien invaders for the past 37 or so years. This is why the words “United Nations” no longer appear on the BBC’s UNIT website - it’s now just says “Intelligence Taskforce”, though the “UNIT” remains. I had to go there to check it out because I couldn’t believe it to be true.
Quite how they propose to enforce the ban on the name is beyond me. Will they impose sanctions on the new series production team if the full name is said on screen? Send a peace-keeping force to Cardiff to enforce their will? Force BBC Kids to over-dub something else in the place of “United Nations” when the full name is given out on classic series Pertwee-era repeats?
Perhaps the Slitheen have now infiltrated the ranks of the UN. The next time someone farts at the UN, I think someone should check for a zipper on the forehead. Only then might I understand this rather bizarre action on the UN’s part.
Posted by John on Monday, August 22 at 9:19 am
16 Comments...
I can understand why they would do it. It doesn’t represent the UN or its ideals, etc.
Posted by John on 08/22 at 11:38 AM
And THESE people are running the world? Oh, yeah. I’m sure we’re all in good hands. *sigh*
Posted by Danielle on 08/22 at 01:57 PM
Another thing Doctor Who doesn’t represent is reality, which is why I shake my head at the UN here. The same show with the UNIT reference has pigs in a spacesuit, fat farting aliens disguised as politicians with zippers in their foreheads, and a 900 alien who travels time and space in a phone booth bigger on this inside than on the outside. I really don’t think they have anything to be worried about in terms of people taking the UNIT reference seriously as a negative element of the real world UN - and that’s leaving aside the issue of whether there is anything negative about UNIT reference at all - are they in favour of hostile alien invasions? Perhaps they didn’t like the Doctor calling them “good people”.
Posted by Luca on 08/22 at 02:07 PM
That is the most ridiculou thing I’ve ever heard. I *can’t* understand why they’d do it. Have they not got better thngs to do? Like bringing abut world peace? what a bunch of eejits!
Posted by hobomanjoe on 08/22 at 02:09 PM
Maybe its because UNIT has a website that could be mistaken for a legitimate site. Obviously the UN does not want to be associated with a group that repels hostile alien invasions. That is in fact a negative association.
Posted by John on 08/22 at 03:21 PM
I can understand asking them to take it off a website for those, but forbidding them to use the full name on the show is just ridiculous, especially as the show has been doing it for 37 years with no problem at all.
Also, if being associated with a group that saves the world from destruction is a negative one, does that mean that that an association with a group that tries to cause the destruction of the world would be a positive one? I guess that would fit in with the UN (and not UNIT) giving the Slitheen access to the nuclear weapons in Aliens of London.
Posted by Luca on 08/22 at 05:55 PM
And I thought my opinion can’t get any lower of the UN since the MAJOR screw up in Srbrenica.
Isn’t ironic how the UN protected areas in former Yugo were the most dangerous?
They had more than enough fire power to prevent the slaughter of 7000 Muslim men and boys but they just let the renegade Serbian militias just slaughter all those people while just standing there.
This is just absolute bollocks.
Posted by RG on 08/23 at 11:09 AM
Is the Brigadier protesting by shaving off his military moustache or did the U.N. claim copyright on that too? Will the RT have to digitally paint it out for all forthcoming DVD releases?
Posted by Ryan on 08/23 at 01:01 PM
Good to see the UN using their time so wisely.
Posted by Mike on 08/23 at 02:57 PM
Maybe it’s time to rewrite UNIT’s full name:
Universal Nations Intelligence Taskforce
United National Intelligence Taskforce
Uber-Neato Intelligence Taskforce
Or perhaps they could relocate their base from Geneva and become:
Upper Nunavut Intelligence Taskforce
Anyway, the fact that Doctor Who is now prominent enough to attract the attention of the United Nations - which it apparently never was before, not even in its 1970s heyday (Doctor Who’s, not the UN’s) is something to be pleased about, surely?
Posted by Curt on 08/23 at 10:02 PM
How about they change the name to “Union of Nations Task Force” to go along with the EU?
Posted by gmendias on 09/06 at 09:32 PM
I can see a headline now:
LETHBRIDGE-STEWART TO UN: “GET OFF MY WORLD.”
Posted by Donald Gillikin on 09/17 at 11:20 AM
i fully respect the UN and it’s decision, but i also think they should go and get stuffed!
Posted by Victor Foxtrot on 09/27 at 05:14 PM
Luca: “Also, if being associated with a group that saves the world from destruction is a negative one, does that mean that that an association with a group that tries to cause the destruction of the world would be a positive one?”
Being associated with a group that repels alien invasions is negative because there is no such thing as alien invasion. The UN is not some organisation that thinks the earth needs defending from aliens, and they don’t want to be associated with one.
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