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ITV has insisted it has ‘no plans’ to change the title of controversial new comedy, Piglets.
The programme depicts a fictional police training college, with a newly recruited group of wannabe cops, as they undergo the training required to knock them into shape.
The series, which has been created by the team behind Smack The Pony and Green Wing, stars Sarah Parish and Mark Heap as Superintendents Julie Spry and Bob Weekes, tasked with overseeing the training of the future police officers.
However, the show has already sparked outrage, with the Police Federation branding the name ‘disgusting’ and ‘highly offensive’.
But ITV’s head of comedy Nana Hughes has said there’s no plans to change the name and it was not meant to cause offence.
She said: ‘We just wanted to have a bit of fun, we certainly didn’t set out to offend anyone.’
‘Comedy is subjective so some people will like it and others won’t but hopefully most will,’ Hughes went on, according to The Mirror.
‘We thought Piglets was just a funny, cute name for our bunch of trainees.
‘Can we change it? No, it’s all done now. It’s on air in a week. There just wouldn’t be time.’
She added: ‘We just called it Piglets for fun, the aim was to be funny. I hope that police officers see that when they watch it, it’s just silly and daft. It’s purely for entertainment.’
This comes after the title was called ‘highly offensive’ and sparked outrage.
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 providing an emergency service.
‘It is a disgusting choice of language to use for the title of a TV programme. I find it incredulous that this has passed through checks and balances at an organisation made up of people who at any time have or may need the support and assistance of the police.
‘Our colleagues are working hard and keeping people safe under relentless negative pressure at the moment, insulting our new in service officers is unhelpful.’
She went on: ‘The name of this show is also inflammatory against a landscape of rising threats and violence against officers. 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.’
The CEO of the Police Federation of England and Wales, Mukund Krishna, also said the organisation will be writing to Ofcom and demanding a change.
He said in a statement: ‘The programme’s title is an insult to our brave and hard-working members. At a time when the service is fighting to attract and retain officers, ITV’s actions are totally undermining. The Federation will be writing to Ofcom and ITV to register its disgust and demanding a change.’
Viewers have been just as outraged, with several commenting on social media that the name is ‘disgraceful’ and ‘distasteful’.
‘I don’t mind a comedy but the name is highly offensive to any former or serving officer,’ @Cypher79C said.
@MrCynicalC blasted: ‘Disgraceful, disrespectful and distasteful.’
@Milesmannin added: ‘Poor and offensive from ITV. But let’s be honest, not surprising. Shameful that @ITVX thinks it’s acceptable.’
An ITV spokesperson told outlets: ‘Piglets is a fictional new comedy about a police training academy and the title is not intended to cause any offence, it’s a comedic and endearing play on words to emphasise the innocence and youth of our young trainees.’
Metro.co.uk has approached ITV for comment.
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Piglets airs on July 20 on ITV1 and ITVX.
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