Recent events persuaded the BBC that an on-air beheading was a bad idea.
The Doctor Who fans out there know that on Saturday Capaldi‘s Doctor is about to come face to face with a very familiar folk hero. However the BBC has decided to truncate the episode, removing a beheading scene “in light of recent news events.”
The recent deaths of James Foley and Steven Sotloff prompted the BBC to make this change. Sotloff’s murder by Islamic militants was confirmed in a video release this week. Sotloff was murdered despite pleas from his mother to spare his life. The killers have said they will murder another hostage, this time a Briton, if US air strikes in Iraq aren’t stopped.
The edited portion is believed to involve a fight scene between the Sheriff of Nottingham and Robin Hood. The episode was filmed months ago, in February; unfortunate coincidence led to this change.
“In light of recent news events, we have made an edit to episode three out of respect,” says the BBC.
Source: BBC
