Before I begin, I would like to talk about a WWF home video I have literally just finished watching. "Mick Foley: Madman Unmasked" (the A&E biography broadcast earlier this year, I believe) is a TERRIFIC complement to Mick's book. Although some of the revelations in this film are old news to those who have read the book, I especially enjoyed hearing about Hell in the Cell from both Taker and Vince's point of view, not to mention his brother John.

What was especially impressive was most of the first-time-seen-in-the-UK footage from Japan and ECW: shit, those suplexes onto the barbed wire ring 'ropes' looked absolutely brutal, not to mention the flaming chairshots and the slams onto fire!!!

This video received a "15" certificate from the BBFC (British Board of Film Classifcation), which really undermines Channel 4's argument that certain scenes are too graphic for broadcast at *ANY* time on UK television.

As far as the backlash against Channel 4's screening of Backlash, I received the following letter today from Andrew Whitaker, the Senior Vice President for International TV Distribution at WWFE.

It makes for some interesting, yet ultimately disappointing reading...

Dear Mr Craig

While I am indeed sorry to hear of your dissatisfaction with the "quality of 
coverage" of WWFE on Channel 4, I feel obliged to review with you, an 
obviously dedicated fan, some realities, which it appears you already have a 
strong grasp of, where the UK market is concerned.

For thirteen years, first with BSB and then BSKYB, WWF TV programming was 
exclusively licensed to the aforementioned Pay TV platform, only of late 
reaching 30 plus percent of the available UK TV households.  In an effort to 
expand the availability of WWF content, the decision was made recently to 
branch out, with one weekly show and four specials, to the potential WWF 
audience not yet exposed to the WWF's continuous soap opera on BSKYB.

Obviously, extensive interest from the Free TV networks in the UK put the 
WWF in a position to not only reach a million and a half more viewers per 
week via Channel 4, but also to double the amount of programs delivered to 
UK fans over BSKYB.

Given the above, Channel 4 is indeed correct in saying that specials 
delivered free-to-air need to include commercial breaks.  In order to insert 
these breaks, it is important to deliver the show on a dealyed live basis so 
as not to miss large portions of the action.  However, I would be remiss in 
not saying that your understanding of the realities of Free TV versus Pay TV 
in the UK are correct, and that the 'editing requirements' of the ITC 
absolutely do play a major part in 'any' content delivered into the UK 
market.

As US producers operating under the letter of the UK law (ITC Broadcast 
Code), we are obligated to perform certain edits for content delivered 
free-to-air.  We don't like it either, but the law is the law.

Again, while I understand your dismay at the results of the ITC programming 
code as it relates to Free TV, for WWF to say no to a Free Tv opportunity 
would result in the following:

1. No 100% penetration of the WWF branded product
2. Far less significant numbers of hours broadcast on BSKYB

In closing, I would like to say that where "Backlash" was concerned, the 
minimum number of edits per ITC specification were performed.  We at WWFE, 
abiding by UK Broadcast law, will continue to work out the kinks of 
delivering our specials via Free-to-air TV.  It is my hope that in the 
process, WWF specials can be delivered with minor edits to you and a vast 
number of new WWF fans (1 million plus) eager to join the original WWF fans 
such as yourself.

Sincerely,
Andrew Whitaker
Senior Vice President
International TV Distribution

However, what *does* anger me deeply, is how the WWF have seemingly been mislead by Channel 4 into thinking that different standards apply to terrestrial channels (as far as the depiction of violence is concerned), in comparison with satellite and cable channels.

Let me clarify that the ITC (Independent Television Commission: regulators of ALL commercial TV in the UK) have ONE SINGLE Programme Code, which is equally applied to all licensed broadcasters.

Therefore, for Channel 4 to apparently hoodwink the WWF into believing otherwise is a real shame.

After all, if Raw and Smackdown can be broadcast unedited from 10pm, and ECW Hardcore TV from 11pm (not to mention Nitro and Thunder from 9pm), then surely Channel 4 can air similar content unedited from 1-50am to 5am?

In closing, to accentuate the weakness of Channel 4's opinion on the objectionable levels of 'violence' contained in Backlash, on this week's episode of 'Buffy' on the BBC, broadcast between 6-45pm and 7-30pm, the character Oz got put through a table. Was it edited out? As a certain Tejas rattlesnake would say, "OH HELL NO!!!"