BBC Muslim Beheading Irks Christians

The BBC defended decision to show the decapitation as "carefully considered," and "central to the story line."

"If it had been another religion portrayed in that manner, the PC police would have been up in arms about the nastiness and their rights not to have their religion ridiculed," one viewer posted on the BBC's website.

"As it was Christians, it was apparently OK."

The new drama, Bonekickers, has triggered a barrage of complaints from viewers and TV critics for portraying extremist Christians.

The six-part series, which started last week and viewed by 6.8 million viewers, recounts the story of a group of archeologists countering a right-wing Christian group who believes the UK's Christian heritage is presently under siege.

In one gruesome scene, a member of the extremist group hacks off a moderate Muslim's head with a sword in an unprovoked attack.

The bloody scene has prompted 100 complaints on the network's website since it was broadcast on BBC1 on Tuesday.

"It was actually a nasty little scene," The Observer's television critic Andrew Anthony wrote on Sunday.

"A Martian watching TV drama of late would probably conclude that the country is crawling with homicidal Islamophobes, desperate to kill those few Muslims who have not already been interned by the government or shot by the police."

"I am not a Christian, but if I were, the demonization of evangelicals ... would make me cross," Andrew Billen, wrote in The Times.

"For the rest of us, 'Bonekickers' is regrettably watchable, bunk."

Fundamentalist

Critics opened their salvoes at the BBC for being biased for Islam.

"Murderous Christian fundamentalists, like the ones on Bonekickers, are frequently on TV, but their Islamic counterparts rarely make an appearance," Hermione Eyre wrote in The Independent.

The network, however, denied any bias against Christianity or for Islam.

The BBC defended its decision to show the decapitation as "carefully considered," and "central to the story line."

"We regret that some viewers felt the beheading scene was inappropriate," the British corporation said in a statement.

It said the beheading scene sought to show the flawed beliefs of religious fundamentalism in general.

"The drama seeks to highlight the consequences of a misguided fundamentalist taking his beliefs to violent extremes.

"The inclusion of the scene had been carefully considered and was very much central to the story line and reflected the character's extreme fundamental beliefs and state of mind."

It is not the first time the BBC, the world's largest broadcasting corporation, draws ire of Christian groups.

In 2006, the BBC came under heavy fire from Christian groups over a drama portraying evangelical extremists plotting to murder British Muslims and blowing up mosques.

Britain is home to a sizable Muslim minority of nearly 2 million.