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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Fawlty Towers “Don’t mention the war” removed.

443 replies

boredtotears11 · 12/06/2020 08:55

Aibu to say I think that is a ridiculous decision by the BBC.Theyve removed it from its streaming service because of its “racist slurs”. It was a classic piece of comedy. I mean if they start picking apart old classic comedy how far are they going to go. Dads Army next?

OP posts:
TomPinch · 12/06/2020 21:48

Points taken about some of the Goon Show jokes. But I think they're very much in passing.

Ric2013 · 12/06/2020 22:13

I actually have massive issues with the whole thing.

While I agree we need to be honest about our past, removing any reference to what we today consider racist material is, in my opinion, profoundly hypocritical.

The Tate Gallery admits its philanthropic founder, Henry Tate, is associated with slavery (even though not directly connected with it). Many of our institutions have more directly benefitted from the wealth of slavery. Let's face it, the UK is a weathy country in large part due to the wealth stolen from abroad in the British Empire on which the sun never set, and these people were moral based on the opinions of their time. Obviously, in the mindset of those people, the 'primitive' people or 'savages' had to be considered inferior, otherwise the unfairness of the system was too obvious. Some, for example Quakers, may have objected at the time, but they were a minority.

Problem is, are we going to pay massive financial reparations to the rest of the world for ripping them off and for the colonial wars (or murdering other people who so unreasonably refused to play by our rules in their own countries when we were illegal immigrants, basically)? Of course not, and I'm not quite sure it would even be reasonable to expect us to. A lot of it was a very long time ago.

The sensible thing would be to accept the past and understand how this happened - and then take a good hard look in the mirror and ask whether we are much better. Most people are ethical enough until they find something at a cheaper price and don't then want to know how it got that cheap. And, to be clear, I'm not ranting about those of us who bought something essential on Amazon because it cost more at John Lewis and they were skint, my criticism is of those who can afford to care - and don't.

Why was it so hard for [a famous computer and smartphone company], to check whether its products were being made from materials made by child labour in very dangerous working conditions abroad, when a documentary journalist found clear evidence of it? Probably because it made them more money not to check too hard if they wanted to be considered an ethical firm.

And what is our goverment , the one we elected in December, doing to stop us importing this kind of stuff? Very little because we all want a "strong economy "(i.e more stuff and less work). To genuinely care (and some people do care to this extent), we'd have to start living very differently in the name of fairness. Being humans, I'm not sure how many of us could really cope with what that might entail.

FruitPastillesaregood · 12/06/2020 22:16

ric

Great post.

Ric2013 · 12/06/2020 22:18

As far as Basil Fawlty is concerned, the humour in the episode is more about Basil's inability to distract himself from thoughts and language that the Germans might find offensive. In a way, we are laughing at his racism and inability to hide it.

I'm not sure it would be all that funny if it were made today, so I'd view it as an amusing period piece. Perhaps removing it is a knee-jerk reaction to stop idiot troublemakers (by which I don't mean protesters in general, just those of them that are idiot troublemakers) having an excuse to set fire to Alexandra Palace.

TomPinch · 12/06/2020 22:20

@Saucery

I agree that TLOB was making some "very valid points about organised religion" to put it mildly.

But as for this point.

Jesus appears in the same scene as Brian (Sermon On The Mount) so nonsense to say they are the same person. As you’ve taken the same line as the bombastic Bishop Of Southwark I doubt there’s much point repeating that, however.

Jesus gets a walk-on walk-off part, and this enables Python and others to say "this film isn't about Jesus, it's not about faith". I think the appropriate term for that device is "fig leaf".

I am not taking the same position as the Bishop of Southwark as I enjoy the film. But I think it's very clear that the film is a strong and very funny attack not just on the bad things people do in the name of religion, but on the whole notion of collective beliefs in a divine being. It doesn't leave much left over (there is basically nothing left over if you try to detach the historical Jesus from Christianity).

My comments probably sound like I'm offended by the film. I'm really not, and I'd be pretty upset if it got removed from view - but I do recognise what's in it. There is far more that a Christian could reasonably find offensive in TLOB than, say, a transperson (I'm thinking of Loretta, of course), which is not to say that they should or need to be offended.

fascinated · 12/06/2020 22:27

Yes, Ric hits the nail on the head.

So much of wokery is just window dressing anyway.

jackdawdawn · 13/06/2020 09:29

@BadLad

The episode with the rat is better. ducks

The best episode is Communication Problems, with deaf Mrs. Richards.

And there is another group that could take offence, deaf people. I don't think there were many people FT didn't (potentially) offend. The Irish, Americans, Spanish, Germans...when I was a child I remember my mum telling me that there had been a lot of controversy about the episode with the dead guest whose body is hauled about, as it was considered very disrespectful.

Where does this end? I saw an episode of The Royles the other night, with a scene where Joe inadvertently dates a transwoman. Will that one be removed, like Little Britain? Then there is dinnerladies, with the older characters' frequent referral to Anita as an 'ethnic'. These comedies have kept me going during lockdown, frankly...I just don't find recent ones very funny, and they are distasteful too, in different ways.

MockersGuidedByTheScience · 13/06/2020 09:33

Regards the money "we" (whoever that is? Where's my share?) made ripping off the world, we spent it all paying for food and ammunition from the yanks in WW2. And then some more.

boredtotears11 · 13/06/2020 10:14
Think I agree, the funniest episode ever. 😂
OP posts:
SpocksEyebrows · 13/06/2020 15:00

The episode has now been reinstated. It seems that taking down Faulty Towers was just a step too far and in danger of causing anarchy. Anyone over 45, that high tax paying demographic, would get the serious hump, so they've backtracked.

Alsohuman · 13/06/2020 15:02

Did Netflix ever remove it? I checked to see if it was there last night and ended up watching it. It wasn’t edited in any way.

SpocksEyebrows · 13/06/2020 15:03

It probably had the highest viewings in its history!

MockersGuidedByTheScience · 13/06/2020 15:04

That's the second person today who's found t amusing to call it "Faulty Towers," indicating that they've never seen it, or they'd know about the running gag with the sign:

Fawlty Towers “Don’t mention the war” removed.
Isthisfinallyit · 13/06/2020 15:23

I don't know why they just couldn't bleep it out.

Anyway, I'm waiting for the bookburning to start. I hate censorship. If anything put a disclaimer in or whatever, don't erase the fact that people used to be more racist and that we now feel that it's wrong. What's next? Do we rewrite history books and take the slavery out of them?

FruitPastillesaregood · 13/06/2020 15:28

Gone with the Wind has been banned apparently.

Alsohuman · 13/06/2020 15:30

They couldn’t bleep it out because those two words and the difference between them are the entire point of the gag. It would be completely nonsensical without them.

Xenia · 13/06/2020 15:31

It has now been restored by the BBC but with a warning at the start - the right decision.

Pumperthepumper · 13/06/2020 16:26

Do we rewrite history books and take the slavery out of them?

No, because we already do this.

SpocksEyebrows · 13/06/2020 16:35

I've see. Fawlty Towers millions of times. I'm just a lazy pedant.

Saucery · 13/06/2020 16:38

Tbh I wouldn’t even have looked for Fawlty Towers on Netflix before all this, it’s so old. Tax paying and paying for Netflix are not really the same. I wouldn’t have cancelled Netflix if they’d removed FT.

Good point about Dinnerladies upthread. I do wince at jokes like the Urdu/Hair do one because I remember barbed and nasty comments similar to that when I was growing up. ‘Misunderstandings ‘ in language that weren’t really misunderstandings at all, mainly in a factory I worked in. Still wouldn’t ban it, though. Because context.

Alsohuman · 13/06/2020 16:53

Isn’t Gone with the Wind going to be restored with some mealy mouthed introduction? I remember going to see that with my granny when I was a teenager. And no, I’m not that old, it was a one off art house showing!

Lordfrontpaw · 13/06/2020 17:02

And the first black actress to win an Oscar acted in which film...?

Alsohuman · 13/06/2020 17:05

Precisely.

FruitPastillesaregood · 13/06/2020 18:36

I went to see it with my Granny as well! They were doing a special showing for some reason too.

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