After officials in Aberdeen and the Highlands had to intervene in schools over the Netflix series Squid Game, we have been looking at other controversial trends.
The South Korean series focuses on a group of people with financial difficulties facing deadly children’s games.
Bosses at Countesswells School in Aberdeen were worried that some of the games in the series were being copied by youngsters
At Newton Park School in Wick, parents were asked not to dress their children up as Squid Game characters.
Netflix said the series was their biggest ever hit.
Here are some of the other controversial decisions on playground games, adverts and computer games that have been made over the last few years.
Traditional playground games
A researcher found that traditional games like British Bulldog and even rounders were being consigned to the history books because headteachers fear they will be sued if children get injured
The lunchbreak is in danger of becoming a sterile, joyless time as schools over-react to an increasingly litigious society, a study by Sarah Thomson, a Keele University researcher, suggested in 2000.
Her findings were based on analysis of the playground pursuits of 1,000 children in England.
In 2004, a primary school headteacher banned children from playing conkers – because some of her pupils are allergic to nuts.
Veronica O’Grady of Menstrie Primary, Clackmannanshire, said she had no choice after health experts said the playground pastime threatened the lives of pupils who suffer severe reactions to nuts.
But the move infuriated some parents, who say measures to protect children from nut allergies have gone too far.
Grand Theft Auto
When the first-ever Grand Theft Auto computer was launched in 1997 concerns were raised about its impact on children.
The 18-certificate game awards points to players for shooting down members of the public as well as setting fire to monks.
Players are told they are working for gangland bosses and have several missions to complete, including, drug smuggling, hijacking and kidnapping.
In the north-east the police were worried that youngsters playing would try to recreate its violent scenes.
Grampian Police Chief Inspector Magnus Mowat said: “If it encourages law breaking then we will discourage its sale.
“We are trying to educate young people to be responsible. And if this detracts from that then we will certainly discourage it.”
Tango
In 2000, an advertisement that starred a young James Corden for soft drink Tango was suspended by the authorities.
It featured actors shouting at each other through bright orange megaphones and there nearly 70 complaints that featured scenes of bullying.
In 1998 church leaders united in condemnation of a series of “obnoxious” adverts featuring children praying for Tango underneath the Star of Bethlehem at Christmas.
Six years later an advert featuring a young man who was slapped on the cheeks by an orange genie was banned.
Slender Man
The Slender Man movie has proved controversial after it inspired a 12-year-old girl to stab a classmate.
Morgan Geyser was committed to a mental hospital for 40 years in 2018.
Anissa Weier was also involved in the attack, which their victim survived after crawling out of the woods and getting help.
Slender Man has been an internet craze since 2009 and a film of the same name was released in 2018.
Anissa Weier’s father Bill criticised the movie.
He said: “It’s absurd they want to make a movie like this. It’s popularising a tragedy is what it’s doing. I’m not surprised but in my opinion it’s extremely distasteful.
“All we’re doing is extending the pain all three of these families have gone through.
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