Teletubbies banned by parents for 'overly sexualised' scene

An old episode of Teletubbies is currently under fire from concerned parents who believe that one scene is inappropriate for children.

Teletubbies is an iconic British children’s show - it first aired back in 1997 and ran until 2001, and was later revived in 2015. As is the case with many kids’ shows, it was always a bit strange - the original series starred four colourful characters with TV screens on their stomachs (hence the name of the show) who live in a green, hilly landscape called Teletubbyland. They’re watched from above by a laughing baby who embodies the sun, and a sentient hoover called Noo-Noo lives there too. Now though, as LADbible reports, a scene from an old episode has gone viral on TikTok for all the wrong reasons.

Take a look at the scene here.

The scene from the 1997 episode ‘Chinese New Year’ pictures three of the Teletubbies - Tinky-Winky, Laa-Laa and Po - playing with a large party blower. After Tinky Winky blows on it, the blower extends outwards and over towards the fourth Teletubby, Dipsy, who’s bent forward trying to pick up a hat. This leads to the party blower tickling Dipsy’s behind and making him giggle.

Many parents have been voicing their concerns in the TikTok comments: “I didn’t allow my kids to watch this show. After one episode, I banned it,” April Barber wrote. “I can’t stand the Teletubbies! Did not allow my kids to watch them!” Amanda added. “[This is] why I never allowed my kids to watch this show!” Sara Germany616 said.

While others pointed out that children would be unlikely to perceive the scene as anything but innocent, many insisted that it could be subliminally harmful: “We don’t want to normalise having tickles on the bottom to our children,” allisagatrost commented.