Re: The Copyright That Never Grew Old

On Fri, Aug 20, 2004 at 11:55:38AM +0100, Tim Ivorson wrote:
> The Today programme this morning mentioned something about the copyright
> of Peter Pan at before ten to nine. No accusation of BBC bias from me this
> time, but it is a bizarre story.
> 
> The story is that a sequel to Peter Pan is planned to replace the
> royalties that will cease when the European copyright expires in 2007,
> having already been extended. It was said, however, that the British
> copyright will never expire. It seems that Great Ormond Street Hospital,
> holder of the Peter Pan copyright, might support the retroactive copyright
> extension in the EU and US, where Great Ormond Street Hospital has not
> been given this unique priviledge.

It's a strange one, this. s. 301 of the Copyright, Designs
and Patents Act 1988 is the relevant law:

  http://www.hmso.gov.uk/acts/acts1988/Ukpga_19880048_en_21.htm#mdiv301

  301. The provisions of Schedule 6 have effect for
       conferring on trustees for the benefit of the
       Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street,
       London, a right to a royalty in respect of the
       public performance, commercial publication,
       broadcasting or inclusion in a cable programme
       service of the play "Peter Pan" by Sir James
       Matthew Barrie, or of any adaptation of that work,
       notwithstanding that copyright in the work expired
       on 31st December 1987.

Schedule 6 is here:
  http://www.hmso.gov.uk/acts/acts1988/Ukpga_19880048_en_28.htm#sdiv6
and describes the conditions of this bizarre arrangement
(and in particular makes clear that the benefit is not
transferrable).

Apparently James Callaghan is to blame for this particular
piece of lunacy. God alone knows why he didn't just pull
strings at the DHSS to get the hospital's direct funding
increased....

> BBC website story:
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3582220.stm

The comments at the end of this piece are fantastic....

-- 
``... during slow news periods the major networks kill celebrities
  and make it look accidental. Personally, I won't board an airplane
  unless the newspaper is packed with good stories.'' (Scott Adams)