The innocent world of the Teletubbies is under attack from America's religious right.
The Reverend Jerry Falwell, a former spokesman for America's Moral Majority, has denounced the BBC TV children's show. He says it does not provide a good role model for children because Tinky Winky is gay.

Cheerful Tinky Winky, the purple character with the triangular aerial on his head, carries a handbag - but apart from that seems much the same as his friends Laa-Laa, Dipsy and Po.

The characters are famous for their use of baby language, including the catchphrases "eh-oh" meaning "hello", and "uh-oh" for "oh dear".

But the Teletubbies have made the Rev Falwell, chancellor of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, hot under the collar. He decided to "out" Tinky Winky in the February edition of his National Liberty Journal.

'Subtle depictions'

In an article called Parents Alert: Tinky Winky Comes Out of the Closet, he says: "He is purple - the gay-pride colour; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle - the gay-pride symbol."

He said the "subtle depictions" of gay sexuality are intentional and later issued a statement that read: "As a Christian I feel that role modelling the gay lifestyle is damaging to the moral lives of children."