I'd forgotten about the smoking part.

I don't find it offensive but it looks really strange to me when you watch the older films with people smoking.....especially when it is seen as sexy to blow smoke in someone's face.

Equally I'm glad that my son's TV heroes don't smoke. The message is a lot easier to deliver for a dad to a young kid.

I don't think the smoking was removed for reasons of offence - rather, for all the reasons you've described.

Many of the modern dramas and films contain smoking. You probably havn't noticed it.
Smoking is still very much in evidence but its not tobacco.

It always surprises me when the Dambusters film is trotted out every Christmas that Guy Gibsons black Labradour is still called what most black dogs were called in those days.

Can't beleive bobody has mentioned bah-bah black sheep yet.

Broad walk empire springs to mind.theres not two minutes go by without someone shoving a fag in their gob!

Surely in these politically correct times both Hull FC and Widnes should be forced to change from their traditional colours to a neutral gray.

I think I can confidently say that Boardwalk Empire was aiming for a different demographic than Tom and Jerry.

Undoubtedly so...
out of interest Bren what your view on the classic RIsing damp? Would you find some of the comments made by rigsby not acceptable nowadays if done in a modern version of rising damp?

I don't remember it in great detail, but I seem to recall that whilst Rigsby was racist - a lot of the comedy in that show was aimed at him [i*because*[/i of his racism; perhaps it was holding a mirror up to the prevailing attitudes of the time, rather than joining in? It certainly didn't have the nasty feel of Alf Garnett or that daft twaddle about the language school.

I think it was re-done for the stage a few years ago and directed by Don Warrington, who played Philip in the original series - so that would suggest he was ok with it.

The language thing was 'Mind Your Language'
I can remember laughing at that.

It's on famous video site.
It's painful now.
It's not so much offensive as just a list of racial stereotypes and cliché comments about 'Johnny foreigner'

Watched the Rising Damp episode this teatime, classic laughed from start to finish

I guess that's true about the show Love Thy Neighbour, the white guy was racist but also made out to be a fool