The BBC is likely to face a Christian backlash over a new drama series featuring a graphic murder, homosexual sex and the exorcism of Mother Teresa.The series, which has been likened to a horror film, depicts a man possessed by the devil and being skinned alive in a gay sauna.
Another episode shows a father threatening to sexually assault his daughter while in another, Mother Teresa is seen on her death bed.
In other scenes blood drips from the eyes of those supposed to be possessed by the Devil.
The series, called Apparitions, was the idea of the actor Martin Shaw, who also stars in it as a Roman Catholic priest.
He said he realised the programme would be controversial but added: "I'm not going to pretend this is the most positive show on Earth. We're talking about the end of all things but the message is that love conquers all.
"It doesn't show a wholly positive message, otherwise it would be Songs Of Praise and people would switch off. It is going out at nine, an acknowledged watershed."
When asked whether the Mother Teresa scene depicted her being exorcised, he said: "She was exorcised before she died.
"I don't think that's as unusual as it sounds. The Catholic Church would say, and I agree, that the more holy they are, the more likely they are to come under attack.
"Christ spent 40 days in the desert and was hideously attacked by Satan. The scene is not against Mother Teresa or her message."
The six-part series features Shaw playing Father Jacob, a priest running a Roman Catholic seminary in London.
One of his students, a young gay Italian man called Vimal, is expelled and then seen visiting the sauna in a gay club where he is attacked by a homeless man possessed by a demon.
The programme shows the two men fighting naked, flesh being sliced from Vimal's arm and finally his skinned corpse.
Catholic bishops advised the scriptwriters and production company to help them portray the exorcism accurately, but a spokesman for the Catholic Bishops' Conference said: "I will not watch the drama myself, it is not tasteful.
"I haven't seen it but people might well be shocked. I have to stress, it is a work of fiction. The Catholic Church would not have chosen the drama form to explain the issue of exorcism."
John Beyer, the director of the pressure group Mediawatch-UK, said the programme was bound to cause controversy.
"This series is likely to be a clear breach of the Broadcasting Code," he added.
"I'm surprised the BBC consented to a show like this as a way of depicting the battle between good and evil. There must be better ways of doing that.
"They've got people sitting on crucifixes. It will cause very serious offence. This will create the same type of furore the BBC caused when it screened Jerry Springer The Opera."
There were 55,000 complaints when that show was broadcast on BBC2 in 2005 and the organisation Christian Voice led street protests at nine BBC offices across the country and threatened to bring blasphemy charges against senior executives.
A BBC spokeswoman said: "Apparitions is a post-watershed drama and the scenes are a vital part.
"Representatives of the Catholic Church were invited to ensure accurate depiction of all religious rituals. They read all the scripts."
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(Source: TTUK)