Even More Hideously White Than Before

"Cheers - we're racists!"

Remember when Greg Dyke said the BBC was "hideously white"?

Well, that craze is back, as Britain's most popular television shows, including The Vicar of Dibley and Neighbours (which is not even a British show!), have been branded "too white" by black and Asian viewers. Respondents pointed to the stereotypical portrayal of 'Dev' as a corner shop owner in Coronation Street and the BBC's portrayal of the Indian Ferreira family in EastEnders.

Now, funnily enough, the actors who play all these characters happen to be...Asian! Are they complaining? Or do they accept their roles because, coming as they do from these same cultures, they know that they accurately reflect family life for these people? And I'm not a fan of Eastenders, and don't watch it often, but I do happen to remember that not so long ago we met a relative of the Ferreira family (yes, he was Indian, too...) who was a successful young entrepreneur, or some such thing. BANG goes the stereotyping theory.

As for the Vicar of Dibley, one of the commenters on the Daily Mail website puts it succinctly:

Interesting that "The Vicar of Dibley" should be cited as an example of "hideously white" television. Perhaps, in the interest of balance there ought to be a sitcom called "The Imam of Somewhere-or-other" in which Islam is subjected to the same ridicule which is routinely thrown at Christianity? Don't hold your breath!

EDIT: By the way, the UK is 92.1% white. Remember, we want to accurately represent the diversity of Britain on TV, folks!