It could make for an interesting scenario: a construction worker, a cowboy, a traffic cop, a Native American chief, a sailor, Jamie Oliver, a leather queen, some lawyers and a judge – together in court. The Village People are threatening legal action against Channel 4 over a promotional film used this year for Oliver's TV show Jamie's American Road Trip.
Anyone who thinks the Village People are little more than a fun-at-the-time 1970s disco band with hits including YMCA and In The Navy needs to think again. According to John Giacobbi, the British lawyer pursuing Channel 4 on their behalf, "the Village People are still a huge, multimillion-dollar global business."
The name and costumes are trademarked in the US, and hundreds of commercial requests are dealt with every year, said Giacobbi. There was, he said, no such request from Channel 4.
The broadcaster said the Village People had had four months to take action and still had not done so. A spokesperson said: "We are confident that the promotional campaign for Jamie's American Road Trip does not infringe any copyright/trademark rights which the Village People may have. No parties have received a formal legal claim from the Village People and, if one is received, it will be vigorously defended."
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