From wikipedia! (re. Sex Pistols album title)

 at Nottingham Magistrates' Court on 24 November 1977, defending Queen's 
Counsel John Mortimer produced expert witnesses who were able to 
demonstrate that the word "bollocks" was actually a legitimate Old English 
term originally used to refer to a priest, and which, in the context of the 
title, meant "nonsense". The chairman of the hearing was forced to conclude:

"Much as my colleagues and I wholeheartedly deplore the vulgar exploitation 
of the worst instincts of human nature for the purchases of commercial 
profits by both you and your company, we must reluctantly find you not 
guilty of each of the four charges."

Steve


--On 03 July 2006 09:52 +0100 "Bailey, Lesley" 
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> As a defence, I seem to remember hearing a radio program a long time
> (15years plus) ago about the court action that resulted from the Sex
> Pistol's album 'Never mind the B*****ks'. I think the defence that was
> used was that B*****ks were a (medieval) priest hence not offensive at
> all. Does anyone else know?
>
> And perhaps we could start a trend for T-shirts saying 'Priests to Blair'
> if my recollection is accurate, and we'd all know what they meant!?
>
> Lesley
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: email list for Radical Statistics [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> On Behalf Of Mike Brewer Sent: 02 July 2006 14:20
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: More political motivation?
>
>
> To make it more topical, perhaps the Radstats Troika could organise an
> experiment? Find 100 volunteers.
>
> Give 20 volunteers T shirts that only say "the B word", 20 can wear ones
> saying "B******* to Blair", 20 can say "B******* to Bush", 20 can say
> "B******* to Cameron", and 20 can say "B******* to you all". Send them
> all to public places. See how many get arrested (and how quickly).
>
> Mike
>
>
>> I'm sorry, folks, to once again be on the margins of topicality,
>> though -- once again -- it illustrates a potential risk to all who
>> make statements that might coceivably be politically distressing to
>> some, which might include us. (And anyway it's Sunday).
>>
>> 1: For starters: In yesterday's (01/07/2006) Telegraph (printed
>>    edition; I can't today locate a URL for the story on-line):
>>
>>   £80 fine for 'distressing' Blair shirts
>>
>>   A clothing company director has been fined for displayng
>>   sports shirts bearing an anti-Tony Blair slogan.
>>
>>   Tony Wright, 60, was one of two stallholders at the
>>   Royal Norfolk Show giver £80 fixed penalty notices after
>>   they created displays of clothing with "B*****ks to Blair"
>>   on them [my euphemisation -- I don't want to offend anyone].
>>
>>   Police officers told Mr Wright that the shorts, which sold
>>   at up to £35, were distressing visitors to the show. He said:
>>   "No one came up to me and said they were distressed. I don't
>>   want to pay this. It is about freedom of speech. But getting
>>   fined worked. I had sold only two before the police came.
>>   Once word got around, people took pity on me and everyone
>>   wanted one. I ended up selling 375."
>>
>> However, in my Google search for a URL, I discovered that this is not
>> the first time a similar thing has happened. And in similarly august
>> environments. So:
>>
>> 2: Horse & Hound (22 September, 2005)
>>    http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/competitionnews/392/68779.html
>>
>>    A girl was arrested for wearing her "B*****ks to Blair" T-shirt
>>    at the Midlands Game Fair last weekend. Charlotte Denis, 20, a
>>    gamekeeper from Gloucestershire, was stopped by police as she
>>    left the Countryside Alliance stand because of the "offensive"
>>    slogan.
>>    [...]
>>    A tearful Denis was driven to a mobile police unit. "I asked
>>    the officers how they could arrest someone for wearing a T-shirt
>>    and they told me it was because it would offend a 70-80-year-old
>>    woman," she said.
>>
>>    After agreeing to wear a friend's coat, Denis was released without
>>    charge. But the incident ruined her day: "You don't expect to be
>>    treated like that at a country fair," she said.
>>
>>    Denis bought her T-shirt at Badminton Horse Trials last year,
>>    as well as a matching badge she wears on her coat.
>>
>> 3: Telegraph 30/04/2006
>> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2006/04/30/
>> do3004.xml&sSheet=/opinion/2006/04/30/ixop.html
>> [all one line -- also http://tinyurl.com/hj35t ]
>>
>>    Wear an anti-Blair jacket... and you'll have your collar felt
>>    By Patience Wheatcroft
>>
>>    [... -- but worth a read ]
>>    Yet there are still those who are bold enough to make clear in
>>    public their displeasure with this Government. One of them stood
>>    outside Earl's Court tube station last week wearing a jacket
>>    which proclaimed across its back "B*****ks to Blair".
>>
>>    The woman wearing the jacket, Julia Gobert, was distributing
>>    leaflets in support of the Conservative candidates for Thursday's
>>    election [...]. But she was told to change her clothes.
>>
>>    Two British Transport Police very politely informed her that
>>    she would be arrested unless she removed the jacket. Someone,
>>    presumably of a different political persuasion, had told the
>>    police that the slogan was offensive, and the police claimed
>>    that this left them with no alternative but to act.
>>    [...]
>>
>> 4: http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=78&id=944702004
>>
>>    [But Clarissa Dickson Wright was not arrested for her eponymous
>>     confection of roe-deer "jimmies" -- perhaps no-one was offended?]
>>
>> 5: But enough of frivolity. In the solemnity of Parliament the
>>    dreaded phrase has been uttered (ay least 3 times) in the House
>>    of Commons by Mr. Edward Garnier (Harborough) (Con):
>>
>> http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmstand/
>> deleg2/st051012/51012s01.htm
>> [all one line -- also http://tinyurl.com/nm5xn ]
>>
>>    Second Standing Committee on Delegated Legislation
>>    Wednesday 12 October 2005
>>    Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005
>>    (Designated Area) Order 2005
>>
>>    Mr. Garnier: [...] It is already the law, Mr. Jones. It is
>>    already wrong--or could be wrong--for you to walk from
>>    Waterloo station across to the palace with "B*****ks to
>>    Blair" on your lapel.[...]
>>
>>    [I fear Parliamentary privilege does not extend to citation...]
>>
>> and so on ...
>> Best wishes to all,
>> Ted.
>>
>> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>> E-Mail: (Ted Harding) <[log in to unmask]>
>> Fax-to-email: +44 (0)870 094 0861
>> Date: 02-Jul-06                                       Time: 11:53:37
>
> -
> Mike Brewer
> Programme Director, Direct Tax and Welfare
> Institute for Fiscal Studies
> 7 Ridgmount Street, London, WC1E 7AE
> Tel: +44 (0)20 7291 4800  Fax: +44 (0)20 7323 4780
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----------------------
SD McKay, PFRC
School of Geographical Sciences
University of Bristol, University Road
BRISTOL BS8 1SS
0117 928 9713
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