CBBC's Balamory: Ethnic Minority OVERLOAD!

I’ve had the opportunity to watch a few Children’s TV programmes this week, and from the opening title scene in Balamory, (a disabled Asian girl) I knew I was going to be in for a bit of a giggle.

Balamory seems to be about a playgroup where the slightly mad female presenter has an adventure, in this episode she had to find a way for the children to overcome boredom on the bus whilst they were being driven to the playgroup.

Anyway, as the programme progressed it was a bit like “spot the chalky” …countless minority groups were represented in this programme in such a way that seems almost comical. Not just ethnic minorities of Asian and African descent, but many that I couldn’t even identify.

Have the BBC taken ethnic equality too far? They are over compensating for their typically white/middle England primetime output with a disproportionate representation of ethnic minorities in other programming. Even in a reasonably diverse multicultural community – I doubt there would be such a mix of minorities – indeed in rural communities (ie Balamory) there would appear to be markedly few ethnic minorities as most seem to flock to urban areas (the reason for this I suppose, is that in their own country of origin, urban areas have the best chance of running water, food, employment etc etc – they may assume the same for this country)

What are your opinions on the way in which the BBC represents ethnic groups in a over-zealous way?

Are there any other programmes on the BBC that are as bad as this?

Ludovic Kennedy mentioned this sort of thing a few weeks ago.....

Whatever about the minorities, the theme tune to that programme shouldn't be listened to if you don't want to find yourself singing it to yourself of a Friday morning!

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The 'disabled Asian girl' isn't Asian - her name is Kim Tserkezie and she's a native of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.....

I find it refreshing to see that the programme is representative of the fact that one in four people in the UK have some kind of disability or long-term medical condition.

The show also gains my respect by portraying disabled people as how I believe they should be; Penny is never referred to being 'tragic' or 'brave', she's not riddled with bitterness about being disabled, she just gets on with life. More importantly, she's accepted by everyone.

Is she *really* disabled then? I assumed she was an acting disabled for the benefit of the programme.

It must be said Katherine, many caucasians from the North East have been mistaken for being of ethnic decent. That damn coal dust gets everywhere.

The BBC, and most of the rest of the country. We now live in a country where any questioning of overly representing ethnic minorities is taken as racism. I think that says a lot.

Yes, she is genuinely disabled.... I firmly believe that if a television programme intends to include a disabled person in its episodes, then only genuinely disabled people (I'm disabled if you didn't know - Asperger's Syndrome, Dyspraxia and epilepsy) should be considered.

I agree with you, Katherine.

The trouble with the disabilities that you mention is that many of them are not obvious to another person.

The fact that the BBC used somebody in a wheelchair makes me very cynical (ie their disability is obvious).

Why don't we see more people on the BBC with cognitive conditions, such as the ones listed above? This is where a lot of misunderstanding and stigma needs to be brushed away.

I have to say that for a children's programme (and a very popular one at that), there is a real value for the key audience to see something they can identify with. That is all the more important when young 'uns are coming to terms with their lot, be it being born of different ability or of colour. The 'normaility' factor of including all different types of people is quite delibarate.

I think Ludovics comments are worth debate when looking at other types of shows - standard soaps and dramas. I'm not saying I agree outright by any means, but I respect his opinions as an intelligent broadcaster and think there should be discussion about it.

Believe me, when you see me fall to the floor having a Grand Mal seizure it sure DOES make at least one of my conditions very obvious indeed!!

I think that, when you're trying to portray the concept of disability in a programme that is geared towards a pre-school child, it's necessary to provide an obviously disabled person (i.e. a wheelchair user) as a 'basic introduction' to that concept. Introducing more complicated disabilities can then be introduced as the child grows older and their brain better able to understand how differing disabilities can affect people and why that disability occurs (genetics, accidents etc).

Kim Tserkezie was once a reporter on a now-defunct BBC2 disability magazine programme called 'From the Edge' and so I've known about her for many years. It is refreshing to see a genuinely disabled person in a pre-school show and this is great for pre-school children with disabilities to have someone to identify with and relate to.

BTW, only one of my disabilities (Asperger's Syndrome) is a cognitive disability. Dyspraxia is a developmental disorder and epilepsy causes temporary imbalances in the electrical activity in the brain.

I think so to.

(And now we will have the PC brigade accusing us of being racist)

I'm all in favour of informed debate, and I agree that it's a shame people are often accused of racism just for voicing certain opinions. But as a member of the "ehnic minorities" I find the positive portrayal of blacks and asians on television nowadays, a refreshing change from the not too distant past when we were all still pimps or muggers and such like. Positive images of ethnic minorities and people with disabilities is good news in my book.