Nick Pope (journalist)

Nick Pope is a media commentator and former civil servant. Whilst an employee at the British Government's Ministry of Defence (MoD), Pope was responsible, among other duties, for investigating UFO phenomena to determine if they had any defence significance.

Nick Pope
Occupation(s)Author and former civil servant
SpouseElizabeth Weiss[1]

He moved to the United States in January 2012.[2][3]

Ministry of Defence

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.[4] 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.[5]

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.[6][7][8] He moved to the United States in 2012 in order to pursue a relationship with anthropologist Elizabeth Weiss.[9]

Media work

In November 2006, Mr. 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 and fringe science.[11][9]

He does work for a number of film companies and public relations agencies, promoting the release of science fiction films.[12][9]

On 24 June 2013, he appeared on IGN's comedy show Up at Noon promoting the game The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.[13]

In 2015, he appeared in multiple episodes of UFOs Declassified, airing on Canada's History Television, the UK's Yesterday, and Smithsonian Channel in the US.[14] Since 2019, he has often appeared on the New York Post UFO YouTube series The Basement Office alongside journalist Steven Greenstreet.[15]

Books

Open Skies, Closed Minds is Pope's autobiographical account of his interest in ufology. 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.[9]

In 1997, he released a second book on similar themes entitled The Uninvited. His book Encounter in Rendlesham 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 by Thomas Dunne Books in April 2014.

Pope has also written two science fiction novels, Operation Thunder Child and its sequel Operation Lightning Strike.[17] In 2018, Pope published the political thriller Blood Brothers.[18]

References
  1. "Scholars denounce attempt to ban their archaeology book after being accused of racism against Native Americans (from Twitter)". Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  2. "Latest News". nickpope.net.
  3. "Biography". nickpope.net. Archived from the original on 21 February 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  4. "Ministry of Defence policy statement on UFOs" (PDF).
  5. "Defence". nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 11 June 2006.
  6. "Ministry of Defence - Freedom of Information - Publication Scheme - Search Publication Scheme - How to report a UFO sighting". nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 4 December 2009.
  7. "MoD department that investigated UFO sightings 'closed'". The Telegraph. 4 December 2009.
  8. Nick Pope (4 December 2009). "How not to report a UFO". The Guardian.
  9. Garcia, Francisco (15 September 2023). "It's boom times for the 'Real Fox Mulder'". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  10. "'Aliens could attack at any time' warns former MoD chief", Evening Standard (published 9 November 2006), 13 April 2012
  11. Pope, Nick (29 July 2008). "Unidentified flying threats". The New York Times.
  12. Battle: Los Angeles - Nick Pope answers Facebook fan questions. YouTube. 11 March 2011. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021.
  13. "Aliens Probably Exist - The Bureau: XCOM Declassified on Up at Noon - IGN Video". IGN.
  14. "UFOs Declassified looks at hard evidence behind infamous sightings". thestar.com. 7 January 2015.
  15. "The Basement Office - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  16. "The truth is out there... UFO expert Nick Pope talks about aliens". The Independent. 11 October 2011. Archived from the original on 19 September 2015.
  17. "Andrew Lownie Literary Agency :: Authors :: Nick Pope". Andrew Lownie Literary Agency. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  18. Pope, Nick (15 November 2018). Blood Brothers. Thistle Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78608-075-2.
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