Evangelicals have opened themselves up to charges of hypocrisy, and caused a general kerfuffle after producing posters carrying catchphrases from hit comedy sketch shows such as Little Britain.
Lawyers for comedians Matt Lucas, David Walliams and Catherine Tate threatened legal action for alleged unauthorised use of their catchphrases on posters aimed at young people.
Christian Publishing and Outreach (CPO), the UK’s biggest religious publicity supplier, sold the brightly coloured poster series to churches across the UK with the phrases in capital letters with the aim of reaching out to young people, for £25 a set.
They featured the refrain of Little Britain character Vicky Pollard, “Yeah but no but yeah”, as well as the “Yeah, I know” catchphrase from wheelchair-bound Andy Pipkin and his long-suffering pal Lou Todd.
Other posters featured Catherine Tate catchphrases such as her rebellious schoolgirl Lauren’s “Am I bovvered?”.
The posters each carry, in much smaller type, a quotation from the Bible. In the case of “Yeah but no but yeah”, it states: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”
The posters are described on CPO’s website as “the ideal way to reach out to today’s youth”.
The firm said the catchphrase posters had been selling well but they have now been removed from their range, reports Scotland on Sunday.
A spokesman said: “We can confirm that we have been contacted by legal representatives from Little Britain. As such we will be making no further comment on this issue at this time.”
He confirmed they had not asked permission to use the TV catchphrases in the posters.
Melanie Rockcliffe of the Troika Agency, which acts for Little Britain stars Walliams and Lucas, said: “The boys’ legal representatives have sent a letter to CPO regarding the unauthorised use of their material and we are awaiting a reply from them.
“This is the action we would take with a business of any kind that was using material copyrighted either to the BBC or to Matt and David.”
Tate’s spokeswoman Dawn Sedgwick confirmed that Tiger Aspect, her production company, would also be advising solicitors to contact CPO on her behalf.
Granada Ventures owns the merchandising rights for both Little Britain and The Catherine Tate Show. Spokeswoman Alice Burden confirmed they too would be considering taking legal action. “Granada treat our own intellectual property rights and those belonging to third parties we represent as our most important assets,” she said.
The use of the catchphrases may also open up churches who hold conservative views on homosexuality, to charges of hypocrisy. Little Britain has been a huge ratings success due in part to the popularity of characters such as ‘only gay in the village’ Daffyd Thomas. One of the posters carries Derek Faye’s “How very dare you”, a character from Catherine Tate whose sexuality is repeatedly called into question.
Little Britain star Matt Lucas is openly gay and committed to his partner Kevin McGee in a civil partnership last year.