The Bash Britain Corporation

The BBC’s version of the Nativity this Christmas will depict Mary and Joseph as asylum seekers rejected by brutal Britain. Yes, once again the Beeb plays fast and loose with history so that we can all think the worst of our country. So let’s remember some facts. First, this country’s record in giving genuine asylum seekers refuge is second to none, a matter for pride rather than disparagement. Second, Mary and Joseph were not in any sense asylum seekers, nor were they dirt poor. They were a Middle Judean family who had gone to Bethlehem to participate in a census (primarily for tax purposes) but arrived so late all the inns were full (hence the resort to the stable). None of this matters, of course, to the cultural secularists who dominate BBC drama. You’d have a bit more respect for them if they also did a story about a bit of an oddball — let’s call him Mohammed — who thought he had a hot line to God, was a bit too keen on waging war and not at all queasy about massacring Jews — but we doubt you’ll see that on a BBC screen any time soon.