In the night garden light skinned doll

[spokette]

So according to the makers of In the night garden, the characters are toys, not representative of real people here?. I guess that is why most of the characters have light skin then.

One of the reasons I actually liked "In the night garden" is that there is a character who has dark skin and is therefore a positive reinforcement to my mixed race 4yo DTS because, there are very few dark skinned characters on TV and hence why their TV viewing is strictly rationed. Non-blacks will probably not understand why this is important but for those interested, I grew up in 70s Britain and the constant, relentless barrage by the media that black people were either criminals or only good at sports was not only dispiriting and erroneous but also insulting and designed to remind us of our place in society.

This cynical and deliberate ploy to market a lighter skin doll as oppose to the darker skin one was done to appeal to the non-black buying public as usual and demonstrates that the BBC, like many of these institutions are still paying mainly lip service to providing inclusive TV viewing.

Guess who will not be tuning in to this programme again?

My son likes to collect stones. Maybe Makka Pakka is based on him?

what i meant was (sorry if its not coming across well!) that at one end of the spectrum the manufacturer of a certain brand of marmalade got flamed for using a gollywog on it's jar labels, because it was 'black' (racist/discrimating) and now because a manufacturer of a doll is now too pale and not dark enough (as dark as it is portrayed on the TV prog) there's a fuss being made again. there just doesn't seem to be a happy medium. either a cartoon figure/character is too dark skinned or not dark skinned enough?? what's it to be?

There is a bit more to the marmalade sticky issue than that.

i always thought they were just characters. i'm mixed race and lived in africa for years. went to a local school that was quite a good mix due to the fact that the people who could afford the fees were well educated doctors, layers, politicians etc of a lot of different races. got horrifically bullied by the african kids for not being black enough, by the white kids for not being white enough and by the asian kids for not being asian enough. spent all my school life being refered to as the half-caste. there was quite a big group of us and we all suffered the same fate.

then moved to japan where i was too much of a foreigner..... now if anyone asks i'm a dolly mixture, there's too many mixes to even start to explain.

info

metatron, ta forthe link, was just trying to use the concept of the gollywog (horrid name) to use as a comparison when it comes to race.i couldn't care less if someone was green with pink dots, i'd still be happy to talk to them.
duomonstermum, that must have been rubbish at school, hope things have gotten easier for you. people can be so cruel in the school days, i remember it well...

link not working, metatron. just tried it the now.

liking the name feckit oh waaay better since i discovered my v v v sarcastic side. plus i've moved to a place where they don't really care what your colour is (or at least it's not the main priority) so long as you're the right religion i remember being asked what i believed in and the shocked silence at my chipy "ME!" i did hastily add that i was brought up to believe that discussing politics and religion was rude!

I just noticed that Dd's ITNG birthday cake with UD and IP has a perfectly tanned UD, but a two tone PINK IgglePiggle!
Just thought I'd mention it. Not sure what it could mean though...

Yentil, I see what you mean.

So very sorry you experienced that spokette.

try again

Thanks for interesting link Metatron, although it has left a horrible taste in my mouth. It's truly shocking to see what viscious things were allowed into print not so very long ago. It highlights for me how people can't rest on laurels and assume racism like this is a thing of the past, and why it needs to be challenged in all its forms. If the dreaded 'pc brigade' (of which I'm a card carrrying member) sometimes go too far the other way, then so be it. It's a small price to pay for making sure dangerous racist vitriol is never considered acceptable.

I would never dream of calling anyone a Gollywog but may I just say that in ye olden days we played with the toys without intending any malice to people? I thought the golly symbol on jam jars was just something cute.

My grandmother bought me a Golly moneybox and I thought it was rather sweet. My parents were anti-racists who explained what the Blair Peach graffiti was about so I expect they wouldn't have bought a golly but they didn't give us a hard time over the moneybox.

what the fook is a gollywog? puzzled.

no need to go all defensive spokette, i'm not having a dig at anyone who doesn't happen to have white skin at all. you have completely misunderstood what i was meaning...nevermind..anyway, i hope you can forgive ITNG for the colour of the doll, i'm sure it wasn't meant to upset anyone no matter what their race.

Yentil, please don't assume that the OP's not English, as your first post implies...

MrsT, unfortunately I have found there to be a lot of assumptions made on this thread! Very sad really as it does show that the colour of someone's skin and/or their nationality is still very much an issue.

Ah, see I called you MrsT...I was thinking of Thierry!!!

sorry but spokette, am a bit that you are so surprised to find out the nightgarden characters are toys and not representatives of real people.

the fact that some of the main characters are blue and a bit of an, erm, odd body shape for real people was not a bit of a giveaway?

what exactly is the ninkynonk?

fwiw, I had never ever noticed that upsydaisy was any particular shade at all but am quite happy for her to be made a shade darker if it keeps people happy. but a sense of perspective please

Morocco, you clearly do not understand the fundamental, underlying issues that I have raised so I suggest you carry on living in your perfect little world and leave the likes of me to continue to highlight concerns (I do have the right to do that on forums such as this btw)that legitimately bother us.

Spokette, from your OP and this page, I am in agreement with you.

I am white myself but can understand the sigh at yet another sterotype, or another positive representation is twisted. I like ITNG for it's subtle we are different message. I empathise, I really do. Cos it's hard to get angry (as demontsrated on this thread, people think you have a chip on your shoulder) but it's just so disappointing and wearying.

For me, I get that sigh when I see a talented ex-pupil in another TV drama role. Of course, I am pleased for him that he is successful but slightly that his roles to date have been gang-members, teenage robbers and a boy involved in knife crime.

I hadn't read any race issues into UD before but had noticed the skin was lighter and just thought it was another soft toy not resembling the character. But as a white middle class woman raised in Somerset where racism did not exist, due to there being hardly anyone of any other race, I simply hadn't noticed and feel a little at my ignorance.
The gap between leaving UD with dark skin and the good it can do and changing her skin tone is so vast. The Beeb have missed a great opportunity.
I wonder how many people will chose dark skinned (more correct representation) over the lighter one... therefore proving that 'we' think UD is from one race or another.

Why is the cartoon UD lighter anyway?

Good question Divine.
If they still have a diversity department, that's definitely one for the Beeb.

Umlellala, it's exasperating. I have an Asian friend who said, (tongue firmly in cheek) that thanks to recent hi-jacking themed telly and films, he has graduated from being a cornershop owner to a terrorist. Very sad. I hope your former pupil manages to keep his head up, and gets fantastic roles in the future.