Are Teletubbies banned for being gay?

"The programme features four colourful tubby characters: Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po, who live within a futuristic dome (the "Tubbytronic Superdome"), set in a landscape of rolling grassland. The environment is dotted with unusually talkative flowers and periscope-like "voice trumpets". The only natural fauna are rabbits (although birds are often heard, particularly blackcaps and wrens). The climate is always sunny and pleasant save for occasional inclement days, with rain and puddles, and snow at Christmas time.

The Teletubbies are played by actors dressed in bulky costumes, although the sets are designed to give no sense of scale. The costumes vaguely resemble large spacesuits, although the Tubbies appear not to wear clothes. They are instead furry, and have metallic silver-azure rectangular "screens" adorning their abdomens. These screens are used to segue into short film sequences, which are generally repeated at least once. When the series is shown in different countries around the world, the film inserts are to be tailored to suit local audiences (The British inserts are default).

The Teletubbies have the body proportions, behaviour and language of toddlers. The pacing and design of the show was developed by cognitive psychologist, Andrew Davenport, who structured the show to fit the attention spans of the target audience. The repetition of practically every word is familiar to everyone who has ever worked with young children.

The Teletubbies speak in a gurgling baby language which is the subject of some controversy among educationalists, some of whom argue that this supposedly made-up talk is not good for children (a similar complaint was made forty years previously about another children's series, Flower Pot Men).[citation needed] Tubbies are at the stage of understanding speech but not yet fully capable of articulating it, exactly like their target audience. They often simply groan in disapproval in situations where a human toddler would throw a tantrum. The Teletubbies' catch-phrases are Eh-oh (hello), as in: Eh-oh, Laa-Laa, to which Laa-Laa will respond, Eh-oh, [other Tubby's name]; "Uh-oh", a common toddler response to anything untoward; "Run away! Run away!", especially from Dipsy; and "Bye-bye" at least four times in a row. Laa-Laa, when flustered, will explode with "Bibberly cheese!", which is as angry as they get. Perhaps the most common exclamation, however, is "Big hug!" which one or more of the Teletubbies will invariably call for during the course of an episode, resulting in an enthusiastic group hug ("Teletubbies love each other very much", confirms the narrator).

The surreal environment is an evocation of a toddler's perception of the world, where they are ordered about and told to go to sleep, while wonderful and mysterious things happen without explanation. A prominent feature of each episode is a radiant sun that has an image of a smiling baby superimposed upon it. The baby in the sun occasionally laughs out loud in short bursts. To adults the laughter does not seem to be in response to any stimulus or humorous developments in the plot line of the episode.

The Teletubbies' diet seems to consist exclusively of Tubby Custard (which is sucked through a spiral straw bowl) and Tubby Toast (circular toast with a smiley face on it). One of their companions is the Noo-Noo, a sentient, self-propelled vacuum cleaner.

In 2001 production was cancelled and it was announced that no new episodes would be produced. It is often alleged that this was due to substantial pay rise demands by the previously anonymous actors portraying the Teletubbies. However, since the four years of production had exceeded the target audience's age span, it was deemed that continuation was unnecessary, and the existing 365 episodes will be played in re-runs for years to come.

Some comparisons have been drawn between the Teletubbies and 'Harry Enfield's Television Programme' comedy sketch; 'English For Aliens' (series 2 episode 8 (first broadcast 9/4/1992)featuring three aliens with ariels protruding from their heads speaking in a childlike manner which pre-dated the Teletubbies by five years.

In real life the Teletubbies' landscape was an outdoor set located in rural Warwickshire, England, at Sweet Knowle Farm, Redhill Bank Rd, Whimpstone, CV37 8NR (between Stratford upon Avon and Shipston on Stour, close to the River Stour.[1][2] It was reported that by 2002 the set had become overgrown, and pending the 2003 lease expiry it was expected to become farmland again."

Tinky-Winky controversy

One of the Teletubbies, Tinky Winky, was the focus of a still hinted-at controversy in 1999 due to his carrying a bag that looks much like a woman's purse (although he was first "outed" by the academic and cultural critic Andy Medhurst in a letter of July 1997 to The Face).

A February, 1999 article in the National Liberty Journal, published by evangelical pastor Jerry Falwell, warned parents that Tinky could be a hidden homosexual symbol, saying "he is purple—the gay pride color, and his antenna is shaped like a triangle—the gay pride symbol."

A spokesman for Itsy Bitsy Entertainment Co., who licenses the characters in the United States, said it was just a magic bag. "The fact that he carries a magic bag doesn't make him gay. It's a children's show, folks. To think we would be putting sexual innuendo in a children's show is kind of outlandish."

In an incident reported in 2000, a girl's Tinky Winky toy reportedly said "I got a gun". Kenn Viselman, then chairman of the Itsy Bitsy Entertainment Co., claimed the toy actually said "Again, Again."

Teletubbies Banned

There was a something about Tinky Winky being gay because he's purple and has an upside-down triangle on his head (gay pride, pink triangle I guess). Jerry Falwell is the guy who started the problem in the first. He accused other fictional television characters of being gay too like Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street. It's just another fanatic seeing things that aren't really there. It's still on TV though at least in America.

No, not true. They weren't banned; they are still on TV. At least they are still on TV here.

They weren't promoting homosexuality. If you watch them and compare them to other children's shows, they are no more harmful than Dora.

Adults are far too concerned about sexual orientation and the influence of it on children.

Did the Teletubbies really make kids gay? No.

If you want the Teletubbies to be gay, we see them as such.

Diego encourages contact with dangerous animals.

Handy Manny encourages use of dangers tools.

The Wonder Pets encourage running away.

The Backyardagins encourage ADD.

This is one of those "COME ON" moments.

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RE:

Are Teletubbies banned for being gay?

im working on sexual orientation and my teacher told me that the goverment banned the teletubbies because they thought it was spreading homosexuality... so i wanted to see if this was true!

I wrote an essay about the hysterical attitudes people had towards the Teletubbies when I was at sixth-form college, thirteen years ago. It's good to see people are still concerned about such important world issues.

Harry Enfield Aliens

No,but your teacher probably is.

Does he frequently talk about hearing voices in his head?

Unfortunatley the telletubbies are still on tv.One of the tubbies carried a purse,and he was a boy,purple one I think.That led people to believe he lived an "alternate lifestyle",possibly even knew Richard Simons.No one knows for sure.

If they were to be banned it should be because of the lack of intelligent entertainment offered to children of that age from that show.

I found the teletubbies extremely funny (even though im at university) and when your so pissed still and you watch 4 people run around chasing rabbits is so funny. lol

Oh, I love the Teletubbies... Especially the purple one! They are so fashionable with their matching purses - I mean bags.

Gay or not they are FABULOUS!