Activity

Play the clip to the pupils without any introduction, before leading a class discussion around the following questions:

• Why did the comedians choose this topic?
• What British stereotypes can students identify?
• Does the sketch employ any Asian stereotypes?
• Why do they think the BBC was content for the sketch to mock broadcasters' approach to ethnic programming?

After discussing some of these issues, ask students to write a short sentence explaining the underlying message of the sketch. Hear a selection of the class's ideas and encourage students to think about the ways in which their interpretations differ.

Finally, ask students to consider the power of television, in particular comedy, to challenge prejudice in society. How important are shows like Goodness Gracious Me? What potential impact can these shows have? Ask students to rate comedy shows on a scale of one to 10 (where one = no impact). To help them think a little more about this topic, perhaps play a short extract from Curry and Chips (1969) as an example of how ethnic stereotypes have been used in TV in the past.

Some more ideas

• This extract deals with ethnic programming. Do students agree with the creation of distinct ethnic programming broadcasting units (for TV and Radio)? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this development?