Glee for Birmingham comedy club group as it wins ruling against TV giant

THE Glee Club in Birmingham has won its long-running legal battle with television and cinema giant 20th Century Fox to stop it using the title Glee for a hit TV show.

In what is likely to be seen as David versus goliath victory for the Birmingham comedy club – which also has branches in Cardiff, Oxford and Nottingham – the makers of hit TV show Glee lost their appeal against a legal ruling that found in favour of The Glee Club.

Comic Enterprises successfully argued in the High Court that 20th Century Fox’s show breached its trademark right to The Glee Club name.

The show’s broadcaster appealed against the 2014 ruling, but appeal court judges dismissed their case.

However, the row could still rumble on into the European courts as part of the film studio’s argument was that it should not need to change the name, citing EU law which states a trademark must be “a sign”, in the sense of being a single sign and capable of being “graphically represented”.

The judges have asked the two parties and the UK Intellectual Property Office to enter their submissions on the issue by Monday when they will consider whether to send the case to the European courts.

But Mark Tughan, owner of the comedy club chain, is treating the appeal dismissal as a clear victory for his cause.

He told BBC News “I feel vindicated, not only for taking the case in the first place but now that two courts have come to the same conclusion about the infringement on my trademark.

“One would hope that Fox would put down their weapons but they have shown no inkling of wanting to settle this.”