- Written by Stephen Mackintosh and Helen Bushby
- entertainment reporter
BBC Radio 1 DJ Greg James said he was “very sorry that he and former newsreader Chris Smith caused any offense by comments about glass eyes in a video announcing a new children's book”. ” he said.
In the clip, the pair discuss the idea of making the character “more rebellious”, inspired by Roald Dahl's The Twits.
When illustrator Emily Jones suggested glass eyes, Smith responded, “That's it. What a disgusting Tweet!”
This has led to criticism that it depicts disability in a negative manner.
James and Smith, who also wrote the popular Kid Normal books, co-authored The Twits Next Door, part of a new series commissioned by the Roald Dahl Story Company.
In the video, the pair came up with a way to make the characters look “really disgusting” and “horrible.”
Posted by James on X “It was never our intention to cause any offense and we unreservedly apologize.”
“We understand that words matter, and we pride ourselves on championing the magical world of children's books and welcoming everyone. We intentionally seek to exclude anyone. I never dreamed of that.”
In a statement to Glass Eye, James added: “We wanted to pay homage to one of Twit's most famous pranks with a pint of beer to remind people of two of Dahl's most infamous and horrifying incidents.” Ta.
He said this was not part of the new story's plot and was “not intended to suggest it was offensive in any way.”
“It's unfortunate that the word disgust seems to be a direct comment on that. That's our mistake.
“While we are shocked that this has happened, we fully understand why there is anger, and we thank everyone for speaking out in the right way.
“We hear a lot about it, and we're very upset that we made a mistake, but we're still very proud of this book and we're excited to put it out there and share it with people around the world. I’m excited to share it with young readers.”
The reactions to the video are as follows: The Royal National Institute for the Blind says: “When disabilities are represented positively in children's books, children with disabilities feel heard and their friends and classmates treat everyone the same.
“There's nothing unpleasant about prosthetic eyes. We think they're great.”
The Visual Impairment Charity encouraged Ms James and Ms Smith to “talk to us about promoting acceptance and understanding of disability”.
Charity Scope posted on X: “Positive representation of disabilities in children's books can help improve attitudes and inclusivity. So what can we expect from such negative representation?”
They also posted a video saying, “Greg and Chris, we know you can do better, and the disability community wants to help you get there.”
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Paralympic athlete Tanny Gray ThompsonThe actor, who is also a member of the House of Lords, posted: “Thank you. Thank you so much. #sarcasm. I was hoping the world was moving forward.”
The backlash follows the announcement Friday that James and Smith are among several active authors writing new stories based on Dahl's classic book.
In their novel, a new family called the Lovelies moves in next door to the Twits, and the Twits hatch a plan to evict their terrifyingly kind new neighbors. The Twits Next Door will be published in August.
Other contributors to the collection of short stories, Charlie and the Christmas Factory, include TV presenter Connie Haq, The Last Leg comedian Adam Hills and author Adam Kay.
The move follows Netflix's purchase of the rights to Dahl's children's books in 2021. Streaming giant Netflix now owns the Roald Dahl Story Company, giving it ultimate control over what happens to Dahl's stories in television and film, as well as in publishing.