Nick Pope is a freelance British journalist and media commentator. He was an employee at the British Government's Ministry of Defence from 1991 to 1994. Mr. Pope had a wide range of duties for the MOD relating to non-operational RAF activities. Non-operational activities are those that are not directly related to preparing for or executing warfare. One of his responsibilities was to investigate UFO phenomena to determine if they had any defense significance. He moved to the United States in January 2012.
Ministry of Defence
Pope worked in the Ministry of Defence from 1991 to 1994 in a section of Secretariat known as Sec 2a, 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. 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. 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.
Media work
In November 2006, Mr. Pope stated that the government's "X-Files have been closed down". He continues his research and investigation in a private capacity and now works as a freelance journalist and media commentator, covering subjects that include the unexplained, conspiracy theories, space, science fiction and fringe science. He does work for a number of film companies and PR agencies, promoting the release of science fiction films. On 24 June 2013 he appeared on IGN's comedy show Up at Noon promoting the game. 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.
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 tour of duty at the Ministry of Defence where his responsibilities included investigating UFO sightings and any impact they might have on UK national defense. Pope also discusses the politics surrounding the way in which those within government and the military view UFO-phenomena. 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.
Journalism
Pope also writes for online alternative news site Neonnettle in which he talks about current topics and news as well as UFO based material on the site fortnightly column.
