One episode of Peppa Pig has been deemed so dangerous it can’t be aired in Australia.
In what appears to be a ridiculous move, the ABC have deemed Episode 22 so dangerous it can’t be shown in Australia.
But what was so wrong about the cute animated kids show that got a viewer so riled up they complained to the station?
You can blame spiders.
A viewer complained about the episode which featured a friendly arachnid called Mr Skinnylegs, where the moral of the story was that spiders are not really scary.
Watch the episode (and tell us what you think below!):
In response to the complaint the ABC agreed it was the wrong message for Aussie kids.
36 Comments
What the….. there is nothing wrong with it at all.
My initial reaction (before watching the episode) was…here we go again, however in this case the ABC erred on the side of caution and made judgement call. We have some of the most venomous spiders in the world, the Dad made it look like spiders are ok to touch. If people are outraged that the episode was pulled and want their children to watch it then it’s freely available online, no one is stopping them from exercising their ‘freedom of choice’ it’s just that the ABC will no longer be showing it.
I can see both sides of the argument. There are several species of spider in Australia that are either quite venomous and deadly, or can deliver a very painful bite. I don’t want my son poking around in webs and picking up random spider, but then again, it is also up to me to educate him not to do that. As for “Mr. Skinny-Legs”, he reminds me of a Daddy Long-Legs, and they aren’t venomous, so I wouldn’t have necessarily thought about the episode as anything other than that, had not someone brought up the possible issue here in Australia.
Actually they are one of the most deadly spiders….. but because their bite can’t get through our skin at all it means they are not able to harm us.
No they’re not. This is an urban legend.
That’s a fallacy. It’s been debunked that Daddy-Long-Legs can’t pierce human skin, and that they are highly venomous. There’s even an episode of “Mythbusters” where Adam is bitten a multitude of times by them.
As parents its up to us to teach our kids right from wrong, that it is not ok to touch spiders! My daughter loves peppa and loves this episode in particular yet she does not go and touch spiders, if you ask her she will tell you not to touch spiders, and she is 2 and a half.
If your kids cant tell the difference between the cartoon and real life have a look at the way your teaching your kids!
Mr. Skinny legs is actually a very deadly spider, only thing is that due to their bite not being able to penetrate our skin they seem harmless…… but if you ingest one……..
So teaching kids that it’s ok to touch it…… not a good idea at all.
This is incorrect rhey will cause a nasty bite and burning sensation but they are not as venomous as say a funnel web or Red Back spider. They can also pierce our skin but thar should be obvious as there is a bite reaction.
So a spider’s bite is worse than being bitten by a snake? As with any animal, even your pets, don’t antagonise them: your pet dog is more likely to turn around and attack or bite your kids if they tease it or if its just had puppies. Its a natural reaction for animals to defend their young or themselves: but you, being a dumb example of the human race, would “defend” yourself by king hitting or shooting someone
Why would you ingest a spider? Did you do so because you swallowed a fly? Then what, a bird, a cat, a dog, a horse? I guess you’ll die
I can’t believe that the ABC banned this episode. I teach my grandchildren to respect all creatures and we especially value spiders for the catching of flies and mosquitoes. If there is a huntsman in the house, I trap it using an ice cream container and a sheet of paper and take it outside. Was this a huntsman? Just as much a real animal as the pigs. Love
Peppa for the discussions it enables.
I catch them too and release them outside,i explain to my grandchildren that “I” can only do this or an Adult and everything has its “purpose” on our planet and “squashing/killing” things doesn’t make you feel very good inside ! :0) <3
Why stop at banning just this one? I’d be happy if they banned the whole series!!!!
Really why? There is nothing wrong with that show! In fact,my 2 year old daughter loves it!
Really why? There is nothing wrong with that show! In fact,my 2 year old daughter loves it!
No it shouldn’t be on tv showing kids fine to play with spiders wat if my son picked one up and it bit him…..
stupid I think
Yes, you are.
Perhaps this episode needed to be a bit “Detailed” on what a child could do if they see a spider in the house or outside ! I would of “mentioned” “don’t touch” any spider and if you see one in the house please get a parent ! :0)…….Also I see a “Helmut” wasn’t worn on “daddy pig” when he rode the bike,this is more of an issue than a spider ! :0)………PS I really don’t think this “episode” Warranted a “Ban” !
I’m sorry but this HAS aired in Australia both on ABC for Kids and Foxtel, so this argument is not valid at all!!!
Curious I don’t have kids Why is there a problem…
Ridiculous. It’s up to parents to teach their kids not to touch spiders. We get lots of daddy long legs, huntsmans and white tails in our house. And redbacks outside. our kids know not to touch any of them, but we also teach the friendly spiders from the dangerous. I don’t want my kids growing up scared of them. They’re a part of the Australian lifestyle.
I love this show and have been late for work from watching it with my two little ones.
I agree this episode should be banned for the sexist undertones. It is not mummy pigs job to clean daddy pigs study or to pick up his breskfast bowl because he is running late for his meeting. He should have washed his own cereal bowl or at the least put ut on the sink.
I agree with the ABC banning it.
Its a cartoon for goodness sake. There are no “sexist undertones” etc, if anything movies like “Wonder Woman” are sexist in that it shows that a group of women can live together, isolated on a hidden island to stop men visiting – how do they procreate? Isn’t it encouraging lesbianism, or that when men come to the island they become violent and kill them all?
You sir are a loser
LMAO I cannot believe they decided to ban this episode. There are worse shows out there which teach kids something that you may not agree with etc. it’s a bit stupid to just ban this one.
are you for real – seriously people get a grip, all this was showing was respecting critters. There was no one playing with the spider, all they were doing was placing the spider in another location it could live safely and happily without affecting the home. No different to when people get possums in the roof and they are trapped and replaced in other locations to live.
Have you seen some of the nasty shows out there, like the NEWS and other horrific cartoons programs, there is more horrific stuff, that is not suitable for children that they are over exposed to daily.
Oh and there is one little lass who had her own animal show, and I can certainly state that much of her facts were very wrong, and yet, no one stopped that going to air while it filled our children’s head with nonsense. Instead I got a fact book on the animal and showed the children the truth of the animal and it has not scared them in any way today.
This is a harmless message of being able to live safely and in harmony with our environment.
At the end of the day it is the parents responsibility to teach your child/ren right from wrong not rely on these television shows.
It’s high time peoples that we take responsibility for how we teach our children and remove this Cotton Wool wrap that is suffocating the expression of our juniors and society.
So to the person’s who are trying to ban it – too late we saw this episode ages ago, and guess what my kids know right from wrong, why because i teach them as that is my role as a parent.
And again to the persons trying to ban it, turn your tv off, yes, that is right you have an off button don’t you – use it. Let the rest of society enjoy the program for the innocence that children deserve and stop over thinking everything
Yes, I believe you are talking about Bindi Irwin and her dad Steve aka The Crocodile Hunter – an ironic moniker since he was supposed to be all about saving or respecting animals. He “taught” hus own kids that its ok to handle snakes etc yet he was also involved in antagonising a sting ray for the benefit of one of his programs, acting as though he were playing with it.
Then there’s Steve Backshall on Deadly 60, even though he warns its not safe or right to interact with any animal it doesn’t stop him from grabbing a snake or digging out a tarantula from its burrow: so much for ‘respecting” animals
Where has parental responsibility gone? As parents we have the task and privilege to teach our children the difference between right and wrong, reality and pretend, acceptable and unacceptable, safe and unsafe. Instead, it seems, we blame tv, social media, schools, teachers, other kids etc. when things go wrong and wrap our kids up in cotton wool to their detriment.
I don’t believe this episode should have been banned. It’s teaching children to respect other living creatures which is a good positive message, it also gives you as the parent/guardian the opportunity to discuss with your child that the show is just pretend and you wouldn’t really touch a spider and perhaps start a conversation you might not have had otherwise.
At the end of the day it’s our responsibility as parents to teach our children not to play with spiders the same way we teach them not to eat berries off trees or run on the road.
There are several family movies that we enjoy that use language we do not at home (such as Toy Story when Woody tells Buzz to “Shut Up”) but my 3year old tells me Mummy he said a bad word and moves on, we’ve had the conversation and she knows it’s not acceptable language she doesn’t copy everything she sees just because it’s on TV.
Definitely not a good message for our kids at all. Out here in the bush so many spiders are poisonous. I would hate to think the kids would even think of picking one up or going near one just in case.
Really? No-where did I see the ‘children’ in that episode pick up the spider. It was their dad who did! And since when do we take cartoons so seriously?
I was brought up on ‘Roadrunner’ and I can tell you not once have I picked up an anvil and dropped it on anyone!
For the complaining parents, you might want make your children aware that ‘Peppa pig’ is a cartoon. Pigs don’t talk, drive cars or act like humans… the series is made in a country that doesnt have venomous spiders like Australia, and the message is about respecting all creatures.
Its your job to teach your childern, of the dangers of spiders not a bunch of talking pigs.
I understand why it was banned in Australia their is lots of deadly spiders there. Kids should not touch them. PS peppy pig is illumnati
Learn how to spell. And use propper grammer – its not “their”, its “there”. There are more deadly creatures in the world than spiders: hippos account for the most deaths in Africa but people don’t go around killing them as they do spiders, out of dumbness of being human. If we killed all of the spiders in the world then we would be inundated with flies and other bugs they eat – much worse to have a planet covered in flues
What a stupid over reaction! We live in the bush with lots of spiders and my kids have watched this episode of Peppa many times and have never tried to touch a spider. Might have something to do with the fact that my husband and I actually talk to our children and educate them!!!
nothing wrong with it at all
What the? It’s an episode with a spider: there’s no references to antagonising the spider, in fact it shows that if you leave them alone its basically a wonder of the world to see a spider making a web – something humans have never been able to replicate. It also highlights the fact that ANY animal, even your pet dog or cat, deserves to be respected and not antagonised. Its also dumb on the part of us humans that we feel compelled to kill a spider, snake, mouse, shark etc through fear