ITV bosses have faced controversy over the title of one of their upcoming comedy shows. The new series, which is set to start airing on July 20, follows the experiences of a group of trainee officers as they start prepping to join the police force. However, real cops have already expressed their displeasure with the name of the show, Piglets.
The tongue in cheek title makes reference to the way that police are sometimes offensively referred to as 'pigs'. The Police Federation issued a statement hitting out at the name of the series, with the Acting Chair calling it "disgusting". Tiffany Lynch, Acting National Chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: "The new ITV show titled Piglets is highly offensive to police officers risking their lives to protect the public every day by providing an emergency service.
"It is a disgusting choice of language to use for the title of a TV programme. "Our colleagues are working hard and keeping people safe under relentless negative pressure at the moment, insulting our new in service officers is unhelpful. "The name of this show is also inflammatory against a landscape of rising threats and violence against officers.
She added: "We should not be put at further risk for viewing numbers, our officers deserve respect, not humiliation for the job they are undertaking. "It is actually incredibly dangerous to incite more negativity and misinformation against a public sector service that’s already under so much pressure." Mukund K.