Nick Pope (journalist)
Nick Pope | |
|---|---|
 Pope in 2008 | |
| Born | 1965 (age 58–59)[1] England |
| Occupation(s) | Author and former civil servant |
| Spouse | Elizabeth Weiss[2] |
| Parent | Geoffrey Pope[1] |
Nick Popeis an English media commentator and former civil servant. Whilst an employee at theBritish Government'sMinistry of Defence(MoD), Pope was responsible, among other duties, for investigatingUFOphenomena to determine if they had any defence significance.
He moved to theUnited Statesin January 2012.[3][4]
Ministry of Defence
[edit]Pope worked as a civil servant for the Ministry of Defence from 1985 to 2006. From 1991 to 1994, he worked in Secretariat (Air Staff) Sec (AS) 2a more commonly known as the "UFO desk", where his duties included investigating reports of UFO sightings, to see if they had any defence significance. At the time, while the Ministry of Defence stated that it "remains totally open-minded about the existence or otherwise of extraterrestrial lifeforms", it also stated that there was no evidence to suggest that any UFO sightings posed any threat to the UK or that they were extraterrestrial in origin.[5]It is clear from material that Pope wrote whilst still at the MoD that he did not share the MoD's view that conventional explanations could be found for all UFO sightings.[6]
Pope's final posting in the MoD was to the Directorate of Defence Security. In 2009, MoD announced that UFO sightings would no longer be investigated.[7][8][9]He moved to the United States in 2012 in order to pursue a relationship with anthropologistElizabeth Weiss.[1]
Media work
[edit]In November 2006, Pope stated that the government's "X-Files have been closed down".[10]He came to appear in the media as a commentator, covering subjects that include the unexplained, conspiracy theories, space, science fiction andfringe science.[11][1]
He does work for a number of film companies and public relations agencies, promoting the release of science fiction films.[12][1]
On 24 June 2013, he appeared onIGN's comedy showUp at Noonpromoting the gameThe Bureau: XCOM Declassified.[13]
In 2015, he appeared in multiple episodes ofUFOs Declassified,airing on Canada'sHistory Television,the UK'sYesterday,andSmithsonian Channelin the US.[14]Since 2019, he has often appeared on theNew York PostUFO YouTube seriesThe Basement Officealongside journalistSteven Greenstreet.[15]
Books
[edit]Open Skies, Closed Mindsis Pope's autobiographical account of his interest inufology.It provides an overview of the UFO phenomenon, with the emphasis on Pope's three-year employment as the Ministry of Defence desk officer where his responsibilities included investigating UFO sightings and any impact they might have on UK national defense.[16]Pope concludes that an alien race is waging a secret war on humanity, a position he has come to distance himself from since the publication of the book.[1]
In 1997, he released a second book on similar themes entitledThe Uninvited.His bookEncounter inRendlesham Forest:The Inside Story of the World's Best-Documented UFO Incident,written with John Burroughs, USAF, Ret., and Jim Penniston, USAF, Ret., was published byThomas Dunne Booksin April 2014.
Pope has also written two science fiction novels,Operation Thunder Childand its sequelOperation Lightning Strike.[17]In 2018, Pope published the political thrillerBlood Brothers.[18]
References
[edit]- ^abcdefGarcia, Francisco (15 September 2023)."It's boom times for the 'Real Fox Mulder'".Financial Times.Archivedfrom the original on 23 September 2023.Retrieved26 September2023.
- ^"Scholars denounce attempt to ban their archaeology book after being accused of racism against Native Americans (from Twitter)".Retrieved5 January2021.
- ^"Latest News".nickpope.net.
- ^"Biography".nickpope.net.Archived fromthe originalon 21 February 2020.Retrieved26 March2015.
- ^"Ministry of Defence policy statement on UFOs"(PDF).
- ^"Defence".nationalarchives.gov.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 11 June 2006.
- ^"Ministry of Defence - Freedom of Information - Publication Scheme - Search Publication Scheme - How to report a UFO sighting".nationalarchives.gov.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 4 December 2009.
- ^"MoD department that investigated UFO sightings 'closed'".The Telegraph.4 December 2009.
- ^Nick Pope (4 December 2009)."How not to report a UFO".The Guardian.
- ^"'Aliens could attack at any time' warns former MoD chief ",Evening Standard(published 9 November 2006), 13 April 2012
- ^Pope, Nick (29 July 2008)."Unidentified flying threats".The New York Times.
- ^Battle: Los Angeles - Nick Pope answers Facebook fan questions.YouTube.11 March 2011.Archivedfrom the original on 19 December 2021.
- ^"Aliens Probably Exist - The Bureau: XCOM Declassified on Up at Noon - IGN Video".IGN.
- ^"UFOs Declassified looks at hard evidence behind infamous sightings".thestar.7 January 2015.
- ^"The Basement Office - YouTube".youtube.Retrieved30 December2020.
- ^"The truth is out there... UFO expert Nick Pope talks about aliens".The Independent.11 October 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 19 September 2015.
- ^"Andrew Lownie Literary Agency:: Authors:: Nick Pope".Andrew Lownie Literary Agency.Retrieved30 December2020.
- ^Pope, Nick (15 November 2018).Blood Brothers.Thistle Publishing.ISBN978-1-78608-075-2.
External links
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