Going to the Chapel, Going to Get Slaughtered

I think this kind of thing has happened before, but I can't remember a church being the aggrieved party. The dean and chapter of Manchester Cathedral want to yank images of the building's interior from the shoot-'em-up game Resistance: Fall of Man.

David Wilson, a Sony spokesman, told The Times: "It is game-created footage, it is not video or photography. It is entertainment, like Doctor Who or any other science fiction. It is not based on reality at all. Throughout the whole process we have sought permission where necessary."

But clergy at Manchester Cathedral said no clearance for the use of their nave for a gun battle had been sought. Canon Paul Denby, Subdean and Administrator, said: "I think they are going to be in for a surprise because we are not going to let this one go. One million people are visiting Manchester Cathedral through this game."

That actually sounds like the best thing to happen to church attendance in the UK since Brits believed in God.