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BBC accused over ‘Nazi’ film

By Rachael Gallagher

The BBC is facing new allegations over documentary editing following John Sweeney’s documentary Weekend ‘Nazis’.

Military re-enactor Nick Beardshaw claims the investigation into whether Second World War German army re-enactment groups are a ‘magnet for extremists’was misleadingly edited.

A segment in the October Films documentary covered Beardshaw and wife Michaela’s wedding. In it, Sweeney said: ‘My first impression is of a big fat Nazi wedding – later I was told I was wrong about that, apparently to the trained eye many of these uniforms are not Nazi.”

Beardshaw, who married wearing a German army doctor’s uniform, said American music was played during the wedding, but that the programme dubbed over the German national anthem.

He said that of 60 wedding guests only 20 were in German wartime army uniform – but that none of those in British or American military uniform were filmed.

Beardshaw said he was deeply upset by the way he was portrayed in the programme, and has complained to the BBC and Ofcom. He denies any link to neo-Nazis and any sympathy with Nazi ideaology.

Ofcom has received seven complains about the documentary.

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A BBC spokesman said: ‘We make plain in the programme that the overwhelming majority of German re-enactors have no interest or sympathy with Nazi ideology.’

The spokesman said that no footage was manipulated to exclude people and that German incidental music was used throughout the film.

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