Finally! We Can Parody Things In Britain … Thanks To The EU :)

Although I usually try to avoid talking about politics on this blog, one of the few exceptions I make to this rule is the whole subject of copyright laws.

But, although I’m normally very cynical about politics, I actually have to congratulate parliament today. Yes, you heard me correctly, parliament has done something I actually approve of.

As of today, people in Britain now have the legal right to make parodies of other things – this is a right that Americans have enjoyed for decades at the very least (thanks to their sensible “fair use” copyright rules). But, now, Britain has finally emerged into the 21st century with regard to this issue 🙂

But, like a few other sensible reforms in the UK ( such as with things like LGBT military service and transgender healthcare) it wasn’t the UK parliament itself that was behind this sensible change in our laws. No, it was the EU.

Seriously, for all of the criticisms people make of the EU, it can occasionally be something of a civilising force in British politics. But, I’m getting off-topic here….

Amusingly though, the new British parody rules seem to be the polar opposite of the American ones. Whilst, in the US, a legally-protected parody must make some kind of serious critical comment about the work that it’s borrowing things from, the BBC News article about the new UK laws seems to suggest that legally-protected parodies in the UK actually have to be funny.

Even so, it’ll probably be down to the courts to determine the limits of our new parody laws. I hope that they interpret them in the widest possible way (and that no-one’s lives are ruined by the inevitable court cases) – but, no doubt, we’ll probably still end up having more restrictive laws than some other western countries like the US.

But, this aside, these new laws are at least a small step in the right direction. So, well done parliament and, more importantly, well done to the EU as well 🙂