BBFC

BBFC is the British Board of Film Classification. It is a non-governmental

organization, founded by the film industry in 1912 and responsible for the
national classification and censorship of films exhibited at cinemas and
video works (such as television programmes, trailers, adverts, public
Information/campaigning films, menus, bonus content) released on
physical media within the United Kingdom. It has a statutory requirement
to classify videos, DVDs and, to a lesser extent, some video games under
the Video Recordings Act 2010. The BBFC have the legal powers to rate, and
sometimes cut or even reject works. The BBFC was established in late 1912
as the British Board of Film Censors by members of the film industry, who
would rather manage their own censorship than have national or local
government do it for them.
The BBFC was set up in order to bring a degree of uniformity to those
standards. The object was to create a body which could make judgements
that were acceptable nationally. To this end the BBFC has needed to earn
the trust of the local authorities, Parliament, the press and the public. It
must not only be independent, but be seen to be so, taking care, for
example, that the film industry does not influence its decisions, and that,
similarly, pressure groups and the media do not determine its standards.
Statutory powers on film remain with the local councils, which may
overrule any of the BBFCs decisions on appeal, passing films we reject,
banning films we have passed, and even waiving cuts, instituting new
ones, or altering categories for films exhibited under their own licensing
jurisdiction. However, by the mid-1920s it had become general practice
for local authorities to accept the decisions of the BBFC