Students pidged ‘offensive’ play flyers

There has been outrage among Oxford students at the promotional tactics employed by the PR team behind an upcoming student production of John Ford’s “’Tis Pity She’s a Whore”.Students complained after being pidged condoms and women’s underwear. One student from Magdalen College described the promotional tactic as “in bad taste” and having “offended a lot of people”.She said, “Other people I know think it’s a pretty disgraceful thing to do, as they’re a bit more conservative and Christian and don’t think condoms should be flying around people’s pidges.”However the play’s director, Sam Pritchard, was keen to defend the decision to pidge condoms. He said, “I don’t much care if people have been offended by our marketing.“While I understand that some people might find this a bit confrontational, I think it’s ridiculous that someone would be offended by a plastic packet appearing in their pidge.“The idea is certainly not a marketing gimmick; our interpretation of the play confronts issues of sexual consent and unwanted pregnancy. The condom acts as the perfect symbol of these issues.”John Ford’s Jacobean tragedy is known as one of the most controversial works in English literature. The production will feature hardcore pornography presented on an onstage television set.Elle Graham-Dixon, in charge of marketing for the play, was also keen to defend their strategies. She said, “The initial concept behind both the play and the pidge condoms was to confront issues of sex, violence and degradation head on. The marketing reflects this.“If people are shocked by the material, then it will probably be representative of how they would feel about the play,” she said. “This is certainly not a case of using sex as a selling tactic. There is nothing sexy about big white pants with the word ‘whore’ emblazoned across them. If I receive promotional material that does not fit in with my personal beliefs, I throw it in the bin. I suggest they do the same.”However, one student, who wished to remain anonymous said, “They’ve been using welfare condoms, so are basically wasting college resources on a prank which most people don’t even find amusing.”