ITV sparks fury as beloved 80s sitcom slapped with trigger warning
ITV has slapped another classic sitcom with a trigger warning, leading to complaints from viewers that it was a "ridiculous" move.
The broadcaster's streaming service has added a warning about discriminatory language to 80s sitcom Terry and June, which starred Terry Scott and Dame June Whitfield as a middle-aged couple between 1979 and 1987. All nine seasons of the BBC comedy are available to stream on ITV, but viewers will see a message attached that reads: "Contains discriminatory language of the period."
ITV explained: "Programming that contains potentially sensitive language has carried appropriate warnings since our launch.
"We regularly re-examine historical programming in order to review, re-label, provide context and ensure the right guidance is in place."
Terry and June isn't the first classic sitcom to have been given a trigger warning for streaming - Dad's Army, Fawlty Towers and The Royle Family have all been edited or labelled with warnings, too.
Although ITV hasn't said which episode in particular is a problem, one person speculated on X: "There’s an episode where Terry is at a work conference and puts June’s perfume on by mistake. The entire episode is about how his boss hates gays, and how Terry is terrified about being thought of one. Cue every 70s homophobic comedy trope."
But others claimed to think the warning was "ridiculous" as one person commented: "Good grief, Terry and June needing a trigger warning… Isn’t it a bit late for April Fools?" and someone else added: "Ridiculous to have trigger warning on Terry & June! People offended need to get a grip!"
Another person wrote: "I think we are reaching peak insane wokery TERRY & JUNE has had a trigger warning put on it," while someone else pleaded: "Can we please stop with this madness and please leave our beloved/classic sitcoms alone."
Richard Madeley also weighed in on the controversy on Good Morning Britain, where he acknowledged some of the language was offensive but said he thought nothing should come with a trigger warning.
He told GMB viewers about the Terry and June warning, saying: "Now I know on the face of it that sounds ridiculous, but actually if you look at some of the dialogue and the plot lines from Terry, on the much-loved Terry and June, it’s pretty homophobic. You’d never dream of scripting it or making it today."
One GMB guest accused Madeley of being sensitive and he hit back: "I’m not sensitive! I don’t think it should have a trigger warning, I think trigger warnings full stop are ridiculous… I hate it on the news, I know I’m watching the news!"
