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The decision by British film censors to ban the showing of a nipple in a cinema advert designed to boost voter turn out for the Euro-elections is ‘like a script from Monty Python.’
The Community Practitioners’ and Health Visitors’ Association, which is a strong advocate of breastfeeding, condemned the action of the Cinema Advertising Association to censor the advert which is due to be shown in 2,200 UK cinemas from 28 May.
CPHVA director, Mark Jones said: ‘This is bordering on the Pythonesque. Millions of women each day breastfeed their babies. It is perfectly natural human behaviour. Everything should be done to encourage women to breastfeed their babies, not to create some artificial stigma about it.’
‘These censors seem to be living in a Victorian age when we covered piano legs so as not to cause offence. They are completely divorced from reality.’
The adverts, which will be shown uncut in other European Union states, have the strapline: ‘You’ve been voting since you were born: don’t stop now.’ Only the Irish Republic was reported to have followed the British stance. The adverts were produced by the European Parliament.
Mark Jones said: ‘We seem to be living in a world of double standards. These adverts will be appearing before films, which may contain scenes of nudity and extreme violence. Rather than relegate women’s bodies to sex objects, the censors need to get real and endorse their depiction for the job nature intended.’
Mark Jones said that the CPHVA was calling on the Cinema Advertising Association to reverse its decision ‘before it makes the UK a complete laughing stock across Europe.’
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