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Basil Brush is being investigated after a complaint was made about an alleged racist joke in the puppet's BBC series.
A complaint was received by the police following a recent screening of an old episode that features the fox telling jokes about gypsies, reports Metro.
The episode, which was originally shown six years ago, features a sketch where a gypsy woman tries to sell Basil some wooden pegs.
A police spokesperson said: "We can confirm we have received a complaint about a TV show featuring Basil Brush from a member of the public in February. The complaint was logged as an incident of a racist nature."
Joseph Jones, a spokesperson for the Romany, Gipsy and Irish Traveller Network, said: "Racist abuse of black people is quite rightly no longer deemed acceptable, but when a comedian makes a joke on TV about pikeys or gypos, there's no comeback."
Did you see the offending episode? Do you think Basil should be banished from our screens?
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User comments
What a stupid,and complete waste of time, and money. I hope the person who reported this as to pay the costs involved, when it is thrown out
Posted by: d.charlton12 on Mon Mar 17 01:15PM | Report abuseIt's obvious that our police don't have anything better to do... the "Black and White Minstrels" mustl be quaking in their boots!
Posted by: a.i.campbell on Mon Mar 17 01:15PM | Report abusejust one question who is going to operate the puppet in court
Posted by: jimstaniforth on Mon Mar 17 01:15PM | Report abuseFor goodness sake get a life. Beyond belief, if that's all the police have to worry about then god help us.
Posted by: dalekshire on Mon Mar 17 01:15PM | Report abusepolitical correctness gone adder still
Posted by: amdarmanin on Mon Mar 17 01:15PM | Report abuseThis episode was screened 'six' years ago! Racial abuse is not acceptable anywhere but come on, is this a Nation that is going to whip up a storm everytime, the next thing will be programmes from 10 or 20 years ago when the idea of 'political correctness' was not an ideal in the forefront of our minds. Dont get me wrong as stated racial abuse should not be tolerated but this is a children's character.
Posted by: janetdavies873 on Mon Mar 17 01:16PM | Report abuseIT'S stupid this racist as gone out of control, the english man can't say anything these days it's time people grew up.
Posted by: jegan117 on Mon Mar 17 01:16PM | Report abuseUnbelievable, what is the world coming to ????!!!!!
Posted by: mark.spooner2 on Mon Mar 17 01:16PM | Report abuseHow pathetic that we have allowed something as innocent as Basil Brush to be used in the latest PC nonsense that is infesting the UK. This spokes"person" who should be called spokes"man" and all of their ilk need to learn to be a grown up and accept that life is not all nice and cannot be solved by insisting every comment is a racial slur. The fact that these peopleare actively looking for a reason to complain makes them, in my opinion, racists and inflammatory bigots themselves.
Posted by: mac5543 on Mon Mar 17 01:17PM | Report abusewhy
Posted by: sarahj34 on Mon Mar 17 01:17PM | Report abuse