John Cleese has branded a decision to remove the “don’t mention the war” episode of Fawlty Towers from a streaming service as “stupid”.
UKTV, which is owned by the BBC, said it had temporarily made The Germans episode unavailable because it contains “racial slurs”.
In the 1975 episode, Basil Fawlty, right, played by Cleese, declares “don’t mention the war” around German guests, while the Major uses offensive language about the West Indies cricket team.
Actor and creator Cleese called the move “stupid,” telling The Age newspaper the episode was clearly a critique of racist attitudes.
Cleese as Basil Fawlty in the classic sitcom (BBC)
“People have very different senses of humour,” he said.
“Some of them understand that if you put nonsense words into the mouth of someone you want to make fun of, you’re not broadcasting their views, you’re making fun of them.”
The character of the Major uses racial slurs in the episode ()
A UKTV spokesman said: “The Germans episode contains racial slurs so we are taking it down while we review it.”
The episode previously came under scrutiny in 2013, when the BBC removed the scene in which the Major uses a racial slur when they re-broadcast it.
The move comes amid renewed debate over how to deal with portions of well-known films and TV shows which feature language and depictions deemed offensive by modern audiences.
Little Britain has been removed from Netflix, BBC iPlayer and BritBox over its use of blackface, with the BBC noting that "times have changed" since the series first aired.
The Mighty Boosh and The League Of Gentlemen, which also feature blackface, are no longer available to stream on Netflix, while Channel 4 no longer features Leigh Francis' Bo' Selecta on its All4 streaming platform.
