Elton John on an episode of 'The Muppet Show' in 1977. Rex Features
Elton John on an episode of 'The Muppet Show' in 1977. Rex Features
Elton John on an episode of 'The Muppet Show' in 1977. Rex Features
Elton John on an episode of 'The Muppet Show' in 1977. Rex Features

'The Muppet Show' is the latest programme to receive 'offensive content' warning on Disney+


Sophie Prideaux
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Disney will attach an offensive content warning to The Muppet Show.

Five seasons of the famous children’s television show are now available to stream on Disney+, with each episode subject to a prior disclaimer warning that the show includes “mistreatment of people or cultures” and “stereotypes”.

“This programme includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now,” the disclaimer states.

“Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together,” the statement continues.

“Disney is committed to creating stories with inspirational and aspirational themes that reflect the rich diversity of the human experience around the globe."

It is the latest in a string of warnings added to classic Disney films and television shows on the streaming platform, which launched in November 2019.

The same message has been added to Peter Pan, The Aristocats, Dumbo and The Jungle Book, with some films even being removed from the accounts of children under the age of 7.

Although specific reasons have not been given for the warnings for each title, Peter Pan features a Native American tribe whose members are referred to by a racist term, while in the 1970 film The Aristocats, a Siamese cat called Shun Gon, has slanted eyes and prominent teeth, which are viewed as a caricature of East Asian people. Dumbo, which was released in 1941, has been accused of demeaning enslaved African-Americans on Southern plantations.

Brief scores:

Toss: Rajputs, elected to field first

Sindhis 94-6 (10 ov)

Watson 42; Munaf 3-20

Rajputs 96-0 (4 ov)

Shahzad 74 not out

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

In numbers

1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:

  • 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
  • 150 tonnes to landfill
  • 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal

800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal

Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year

25 staff on site