BBC criticised for censoring Elvis Costello lyrics In the sleeve notes to a 2002 reissue of the Armed Forces album on which Oliver's Army features, Costello admitted that the song's lyrics allude to the Troubles in Northern Ireland: I made my first trip to Belfast in 1978 and saw mere boys walking around in battle dress with automatic weapons. They were no longer just on the evening news. These snapshot experiences exploded into visions of mercenaries and imperial armies around the world. The song was based on the premise 'they always get a working class boy to do the killing'. Warning: full uncensored version. The 6 Music listener's complaint prompted a discussion of the issue on Feedback last Friday, with DJs Mike Read and Trevor Nelson criticising the decision to censor the song. Read, 66, who presented the Radio 1 breakfast show in the early-Eighties, told Feedback presenter Roger Bolton: I think cutting a piece out and changing the whole tempo of the music simply draws attention to it. If you don't like the sentiment or you don't agree with the sentiment then don't play it but to take the scissors and cut a bit out of it, I am sure Elvis Costello might have something to say about that. Nelson, 50, who is still a presenter on BBC Radio 1 and Radio 2, described the editing out of words - including those in hip-hop and rap songs - as "a little patronising." The point was also made that the song must have been played thousands of times since 1979 without being censored. This is not the first time that the BBC has been criticised for censoring lyrics on its radio stations. In 2011, the corporation was accused of political bias after using sound effects to obscure the words "free Palestine" from a performance by rapper Mic Righteous on BBC Radio 1Xtra. Other songs have been banned outright by the BBC in the past due to contentious lyrics - including the Sex Pistols' God Save the Queen in 1977, and Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Relax, which was banned in 1984, three months after its initial release and days before it rose to number one in the singles chart. A 6 Music spokesman said the decision to censor lyrics was made "on a case by case basis." In this instance it was decided that the song would be edited but it does not mean that it would always be the case. We take into consideration a number of factors including the nature of the language, the station and its audience, the time of day, editorial justification and the wider context of the programme.