Famous children's books written by Roald Dahl have had their latest editions re-written to remove instances of offensive or inappropriate language as part of a review process which has been ongoing since 2020, according to The Roald Dahl Story Company.
The changes, which are said to only be "small and carefully considered" alterations, involve cutting out or re-writing several references to five key areas - weight, mental health, violence, gender, and race.
And while many have praised these changes others have claimed the classics shouldn't be messed with, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who today said publishers shouldn't "gobblefunk around with words".
The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "When it comes to our rich and varied literary heritage, the Prime Minister agrees with the BFG that we shouldn't gobblefunk around with words."
The official added: "I think it's important that works of literature and works of fiction are preserved and not airbrushed. We have always defended the right to free speech and expression."
But what is actually being changed?
According to the Telegraph, changes reportedly include removing the word "fat" from every Roald Dahl book, with the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory character Augustus Gloop instead being referred to as "enormous".
This change can also be seen in James and the Giant Peach, where earlier editions saw the Centipede sing a song which refers to Aunt Sponge as "terrifically fat" and "tremendously flabby".
The old song included the lines: "Aunt Sponge was terrifically fat, and tremendously flabby at that," and, "Aunt Spiker was thin as a wire, and dry as a bone, only drier."
And in the latest editions, the song will instead say: "Aunt Sponge was a nasty old brute, and deserved to be squashed by the fruit," and, "Aunt Spiker was much of the same, and deserves half of the blame".
Changes have also been made to the terms used to describe groups of people, as in earlier editions of Roald Dahl's work, many groups were referred to as "men".
In a push to use more gender-neutral and inclusive language, the Oompa Loompas in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory will now be described as "small people" instead of "small men", and the Cloud-Men in James and the Giant Peach are now Cloud-People.
And according to The Guardian, there will also be a new line added to The Witches which will appear after a paragraph explaining that the titular women are bald beneath their wigs and will inform children that "there are plenty of reasons why women might wear wigs and there is certainly nothing wrong with that".
Elsewhere, the word "black" has been removed from a description of the terrible tractors in The Fabulous Mr Fox, and instead the book simply describes them as "murderous, brutal-looking monsters".
The Roald Dahl Story Company confirmed it began a review into the books alongside publishers Puffin in 2020, and at the time said any changes were "carefully considered".
A spokesperson for the Roald Dahl Story Company said: "We want to ensure that Roald Dahl’s wonderful stories and characters continue to be enjoyed by all children today.
"When publishing new print runs of books written years ago, it's not unusual to review the language used alongside updating other details including a book's cover and page layout.
"Our guiding principle throughout has been to maintain the storylines, characters, and the irreverence and sharp-edged spirit of the original text. Any changes made have been small and carefully considered."
The company worked alongside Inclusive Minds, a collective for people working toward inclusion in children's literature, to make the changes.
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