Mary Poppins has had its age rating lifted to a PG by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) almost 60 years after it was first released.
The film’s rating has been upgraded from U – which signifies no material likely to offend or harm – to one advising parental guidance due to the use of discriminatory language, as reported by the Daily Mail
“We understand from our racism and discrimination research … that a key concern for … parents is the potential to expose children to discriminatory language or behaviour which they may find distressing or repeat without realising the potential offence,” a BBFC spokesperson told the Mail.
The word in question is chim-chim-cheree which is known to be a derogatory word to refer to American chimney sweeps with fake cockney accents and blacked-up faces.
The film also also suggests taboo behaviour such as 'a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down', which is clearly nonsense as everyone knows sugar is a poison that should never be given to children.
Dick Van Dyke was not available for comment.