BBC fans outraged as classic children’s show hit with ‘woke’ trigger warning

The 90s classic had a warning about the language and attitudes in the show.

Brum on BBC

BBC slapped a warning on Brum (Image: BBC)

Fans of the BBC were left outraged as they noticed that a trigger warning had been slapped on a classic children’s TV show. Brum, which originally aired on CBeebies back in 1991, is still available to watch on iPlayer – but before fans tune in, they are hit with a message.

Posting to Reddit, one viewer asked: “What the hell did Brum do?” They shared a screenshot of the small, intelligent car with the warning over the top of it. The message from BBC read: “This series was originally aired in the 90s and early 00s and may reflect the language and attitude of the time.” Fans jumped in the comments with witty responses. One wrote: “Always knew he was a wrong un.” Another added: “The 90s and 00s being seen the same way as the 70s were in my childhood hurts.” Someone else wrote: “I really hate that this warning exists.”

 

However, following comments from fans, the broadcaster has since confirmed that the warning was added by accident. A spokesperson said: “The label was added in error and has been removed from Brum on BBC iPlayer.”

The much-loved children’s show followed Brum, a sentient vintage car, as it got into low-key adventures around Birmingham. Created by Anne Wood and Frank Beattie, the TV series ran for 66 episodes in total, from 1991 to 1994 before a revival in 2001 to 2002.

This development comes on the heels of recent reports that the BBC had issued a similar warning to Ricky Gervais’s comedy programme The Office.

The wildly successful mockumentary sitcom, created by the comedy partnership of Ricky, 64, and Stephen Merchant, notably features Ricky portraying paper firm boss David Brent, paving the way for its American adaptation to achieve worldwide acclaim.

The two series of this legendary noughties programme were formerly labelled with a ‘G’ for guidance on BBC iPlayer, indicating that certain material might not be appropriate for younger viewers.

Nevertheless, almost half of the episodes from the BBC series set at Wernham Hogg’s Slough office now carry an extra content warning notice.

Last year, the classic sitcom Only Fools and Horses also became subject to numerous disclaimers, warning audiences about “racial language”, terminology that “may offend” and “dated attitudes and behaviours”.