It took more than 15 years for a country to air a specific episode of Star Trek – and it hasn’t been shown in the country since.
Picture this, you’re a Trekkie and you’re watching your favorite show when all of a sudden you aren’t able to watch the latest episode – or even worse, you aren’t able to watch the season all the way through.
Well, for Trekkies over in the UK – that actually happened after Data, the fictional Star Trek character played by Brent Spiner, made a controversial prediction about the year 2024.
If you’re a Brit you’ve probably never watched Star Trek: The Next Generation season three, episode four, titled ‘The High Ground’ – and probably for a good reason, as it could be seen that it may promote violence.
Not that a bit of blood and gore has ever been an issue on our screens – but it does become an issue for broadcasters when the violence is politically charged.
But what could be so bad that broadcasters would refuse to show the scene in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for well over a decade.
Brent Spiner as Lt. Commander Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation (CBS via Getty Images)
Data discusses the ‘Irish unification of 2024’ as he provides examples of when violence successfully achieved a political aim.
It originally aired in the US in 1990, but due to the concern over Data’s dialogue, the BBC and RTÉ – both broadcasters in the UK and the Republic of Ireland – opted against showing it.
Two years later, Sky, a satellite broadcaster in the UK, finally aired an edited version but cut the scene. They reportedly aired the episode uncut for the first time in 2006.
The BBC decided not to show ‘The High Ground’ until September 2007 – and according to its archives, it is the only transmission.
It was due to the conflict which at the time continued to rage in Northern Ireland, as the IRA, a paramilitary group, wanted to bring an end to British rule in the country.
Data made the controversial remark back in 1990 during ‘The High Ground’ episode (CBS via Getty Images)
So, what was the actual conversation Data had in the episode?
In the episode, which is based around terrorism after the Starship Enterprise’s chief medical officer Dr Beverly Crusher is abducted, Data said: “I’ve been reviewing the history of armed rebellion, and it appears that terrorism is an effective way to promote political change.”
Captain Jean-Luc Picard, played by Patrick Stewart, replies: “Yes it can be, but I have never subscribed to the theory that political power flows from the barrel of a gun.”
To which Data responded: “Yet there are numerous examples of when it was successful – the independence of the Mexican state from Spain, the Irish unification of 2024, and the Kenzie rebellion.”