VIDEO: The creepy 'Teletubbies' video that had to be banned
You wouldn't think you would see 'Teletubbies' and 'creepy' in the same sentence.
Unless you're scared of colourful creatures with televisions on their bellies who can barely speak, then 'Teletubbies' seems like a perfectly harmless children's television program, right?
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Clearly the show creators did something right because the show has been popular with toddlers, kids, and parents for nine seasons spanning decades.
There isn't a menacing air around these characters who run around beautiful green fields and eat custard.
As it turns out, they didn't always get it right when creating episodes.
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In an episode called, 'The Lion and The Bear', which aired in 1997, the story featured two new characters that did not sit well with parents.
The episode shows the 'Teletubbies' - Tinky-Winky, Dipsy, Laa Laa, and Po - sitting on one of the green hills when a wooden bear with darting eyes enters while strange, unsettling music plays.
The bear is trying to hide from a lion, who looks just as strange as the bear, and the lion is also accompanied by dark, creepy music and sound effects.
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The episode led to parents making numerous complaints that it was 'too scary' for the kids watching the show, who are largely between the ages of one and four.
You can be the judge and watch the full video below:
Even if you are over the age of four, you can see why parents were a bit taken aback by this change of pace for 'Teletubbies'.
In the end, the episode was banned in the USA first before being censored by the BBC two years later.
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Main image courtesy of Teletubbies/YouTube