A brand new ITV sitcom has come under fire for its title, which the police have deemed to be “disgusting” and “highly offensive”. Piglets is set in a police training college and its name references a derogatory term that has been used as slang to refer to police officers for many years.
The Police Federation of England and Wales, which represents more than 145,000 officers, has taken great issue with the use of the term in the title of this high-profile show. Acting national chair Tiffany Lynch said that the name is “highly offensive to police officers risking their lives to protect the public every day providing an emergency service. It is a disgusting choice of language to use for the title of a TV programme.”
The comedy is due to premiere on July 20th and stars Mark Heap, best known for his roles in Brass Eye and Spaced, and Sarah Parish, from W1A and Industry. It is the brainchild of the writing team behind Green Wing and Smack The Pony.
In response to the backlash, an ITV spokesperson has said that the title is “not intended to cause any offence, it’s a comedic and endearing play on words to emphasise the innocence and youth of our young trainees.” However, the police federation remains concerned that the inflammatory title could lead to further negativity and misinformation about a public sector service that is already dealing with a great deal of pressure.
The police are currently under relentless negative pressure, and their representatives feel that insulting and offensive language against them is unhelpful at this time. They argue that the title of the show is inflammatory and poses a risk to the safety of police officers, who should be shown respect and not humiliation for their work in protecting the public
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