A stage version of the BBC sitcom Are You Being Served? has reportedly been barred from a theatre after it was considered ‘demeaning to women and outdated’.
The Hull Playgoers’ Society theatre group had been due to perform at the city’s Truck Theatre.
But theatre chiefs apparently rejected the script, suggesting that it needed to be more politically correct, according to The Sun.
The legendary British programme, which featured constant innuendos and rude jokes, first aired in 1972 and ran for 13 years.
The cast of Are You Being Served? Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft’s original comedy first aired in 1972 on BBC One, and ran for more than 10 years
In the original show, Frank Thornton was manager Captain Peacock on the clothing floor of Grace Brothers department store.
Starring the likes of Mollie Sugden as the pussy-loving Mrs Slocombe and John Inman as the camp Mr Humphries, the risqué humour made it a household favourite, drawing audiences of up to 22.5 million.
Themes included Trevor Bannister’s Mr Lucas endlessly chasing the affections of Miss Brahms, played by Wendy Richard.
Playgoers’ artistic director Vine Matfin criticised the decision.
‘When we did Up Pompeii! we tweaked the script and instead of women being scantily clad, we had half-naked lads instead,’ he told the newspaper.
‘The Four Male Strippers also went down well with the ladies of Hull.
A stage version of the BBC sitcom Are You Being Served? has reportedly been barred from a theatre after it was considered ‘demeaning to women and outdated’
‘I have a pile of really good scripts and already censor my own choices.
‘Now I have someone censoring what’s left.’
Mr Bannister’s widow, Pamela, 69, told The Sun: ‘Trevor would have thought this is political correctness gone mad.
‘Are You Being Served? was a great piece of writing and beautifully crafted.
‘Why on earth would someone want to stop a play like that? ‘Trevor never thought it was demeaning to anyone, just fun.’ In 2016, the sitcom was revived with a brand new cast.
Last night a Truck Theatre spokesperson said they had asked to meet with the theatre group to discuss its choice of performance and ‘how this aligns against our artistic policy and values’.