The BBC has removed scenes from the children's television show Horrible Histories, including an entire episode, to ensure the series meets its editorial guidelines for children's programmes. The changes, which were made seven years ago, were confirmed by a BBC spokesperson following reports in The Times.
Episode and sketches pulled from iPlayer
An episode featuring slavery, Victorian child workers, and chimney sweeps has been removed from the show, according to The Times. The episode reportedly included a sketch about slavery in Rome, depicted as an airline flight with a Roman galley, where enslaved rowers were chained to their oars and told they would not be allowed to escape if the ship sank.
Around seven other scenes have also been removed, including those involving child slavery and scenes where white actors used darker makeup to portray ancient Egyptians or Incas. Another scene showed Victorian children being sent into dangerously narrow chimneys, with a young boy told to 'try not to die'. A sketch depicting Madame Tussaud making wax masks from severed heads has also been taken off BBC iPlayer.
Show's history and context
Mathew Baynton, who played multiple characters in the show, spoke to The Telegraph in 2022, saying it could be argued that the show had done "blackface". He said: "We didn't do blackface, for example, but you could argue that we did. Because I played Egyptians, you know, for example, where you'd get a spray tan, essentially, and stand in your pants."
The BAFTA award-winning show has had an episode completely removed and others heavily edited. A BBC spokesperson said: "The edits to Horrible Histories were made seven years ago, in consultation with the programme makers, to ensure the series meets our editorial guidelines for children's programmes."
Other BBC shows edited
Horrible Histories is not the only TV show to have scenes removed by the BBC. Sketches from That Mitchell and Webb Look were also taken out after they decided they "don't work". One of the sketches reportedly involved David Mitchell and Robert Webb satirising racism. Little Britain, starring Matt Lucas and David Walliams, has also been controversial because of its portrayals of characters from different ethnic groups.
The removals highlight ongoing efforts by the BBC to align older content with current editorial standards for children's programming.
