BBC’s secret 1949 comedy rulebook banned chambermaids, fig leaves, puns
In 1949, the BBC issued a confidential internal document to its comedy writers and producers. The Green Book, as it came to be known, laid out exactly what was and wasn’t permissible in broadcast comedy. The list of banned topics was extensive: lavatories, effeminacy in men, honeymoon couples, chambermaids, fig leaves, l…
