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Logo of the BBFC, used since 2019

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is an organisation that rates both films and home videos (it originally rated video games, until 2012, with the PEGI replacing it) in the United Kingdom. The rating system was introduced in 1912 and also rates videos. Because one county's view of a film is different from another county's view, county authorities are ultimately responsible for film ratings for cinema showings in their area.

History[]

The BBFC was founded in 1912, and is one of the oldest rating systems to exist as of today. It was originally called the British Board of Film Censors until in the 1980s, where the name was changed to to the current name.

The BBFC first used 2 categories, U and A, from 1912. An H category was added in 1932, which was later changed to X in 1951. An AA category was added in 1970. The rating names were changed in the 1980s, except for U (Universal). A was PG, AA was 15, and X was 18. Uc (Universal children) was also added. In 1989, a 12 rating was added, but not added to home media until 1994. It's still in home media products, but the cinema 12 was changed to 12A in 2002. Uc was discontinued in 2009. British film certificates last had their appearances changed in October 2019 by making them simpler in their looks (removing the BBFC logo pattern and the copyright notice) and made 12 to be the same colour as 12A. As of 5 October 2020, packaging of works must use the newest symbols.[1]

Ratings[]

Symbol Name Used until / What it means
BBFC U Universal 1912-Present

Suitable for all ages. Equivalent to G for movies and TV-Y or TV-G for TV in the United States. Negligible in impact.

BBFC PG Parental Guidance 1982-Present

Parental guidance suggested. Suitable for ages 8 and above. Equivalent to PG for movies and TV-Y7(-FV) or TV-PG for TV in the United States. Mild in impact.

BBFC 12A 12A 2002-Present

People under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Cinema only. Equivalent to PG-13 for movies in the United States. Moderate in impact. Strong in impact since 2006 with Casino Royale.[2]

BBFC 12 12 1989-2002 (cinema), 1994-Present (home video)

Suitable only for persons of 12 years and over. Not to be supplied to any person below that age. Video and DVD/Blu-ray only. Equivalent to PG-13 for movies and soft TV-14 for TV in the United States. Moderate in impact. Strong in impact since 2007 with Casino Royale.[3]

BBFC 15 15 1982-Present

Suitable only for persons of 15 years and over. Not to be supplied to any person below that age. Equivalent to PG-13 or R for movies and hard TV-14 or soft TV-MA for TV in the United States. Strong in impact.

BBFC 18 18 1982-Present

Suitable only for persons of 18 years and over. Not to be supplied to any person below that age. Equivalent to R or NC-17 for movies and hard TV-MA for TV in the United States. Very strong in impact.

BBFC R18 R18 1982-Present

No one under 18 is admitted. Restricted to licensed premises (adult cinemas or sex shops) because it contains explicit sexual content. May not be supplied by mail. No equivalent MPA rating exists.

Rating info[]

Video works that are given 12, 15, 18, or R18 certificates are legally restricted, and it is against the law (enforced by every council in the UK, but not by the Board itself) for anybody under age to obtain such material.

Films may receive a different rating when released on DVD/video to that at the cinema, for example, a film rated 12A at the cinema may get a PG, 12, or a 15 on DVD, depending on what content is in the video.

BBFC also has the right to refuse to rate a work, calling it unsuitable for classification or rejected. This means that a film would get banned from the United Kingdom, if it contains content potentially illegal under UK law. BBFC doesn't usually refuse to classify films. BBFC refused more films in the 20th century than the 21st century. Two video games submitted to the BBFC were rejected: Carmageddon and the first version of Manhunt 2.

As provided by the Video Recordings Act 1984, the BBFC has the authority to give classification certificates to video games as if it were a video work. However, because the Video Standards Council made PEGI ratings legally enforceable in the UK in 2012, BBFC certificates are no longer issued for video games except for sexually explicit material (Home video that contains a game may be also rated by a BBFC).

County councils often ignore the BBFC-advised rating, and rate films with another BBFC certificate in their county only.

Videos deemed by their distributors to be exempt under the Video Recordings Act 1984 may bear the mark E (for exempt), though this is not a rating and the BBFC does not maintain a symbol.

Videos[]

References[]


British Board of Film Classification (BBFC)
BBFC U BBFC PG BBFC 12A BBFC 12 BBFC 15 BBFC 18 BBFC R18

Formerly used certificates: A | H | X | AA | Uc | PG-12

History of certificates | Video Recordings Act 1984 | Rejected works | Cut works | Discrepancies

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