RISHI Sunak has read the riot act to woke publishers rewriting Roald Dahl books – telling them not to “gobblefunk” the author’s words.
The PM was horrified to see sections of his children’s novels changed and insisted fiction should never be “airbrushed” from history.
Roald Dahl books have been rewritten by woke publishers
He weighed in after Puffin Books altered passages deemed offensive – including removing the word fat when describing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’s Augustus Gloop.
Mr Sunak’s spokesman today blasted: “When it comes to our rich and varied literary heritage, the Prime Minister agrees with the BFG that you shouldn’t gobblefunk around with words.”
Gobblefunk is the language used by the Big Friendly Giant, changing English words to bizarre alternatives.
The spokesman went on: “It’s important that works of fiction are preserved and not airbrushed. We’ve always valued the right to speech and expression.”
Edits to Dahl’s books have sparked uproar from politicians and free speech campaigners.
In the Witches, a reference to women “working as a cashier in a supermarket or typing letters for a businessman” has been changed to “working as a top scientist or running a business”.
And the Cloud Men in James and the Giant Peach have been changed to “Cloud People”.
Author Sir Salman Rushdie said Puffin Books and the Roald Dahl Story Company “should be ashamed”.
The Booker Prize winner tweeted: “Roald Dahl was no angel but this is absurd censorship.
“Puffin Books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed.”
A spokesperson for the Roald Dahl Story Company said: “We want to ensure that Roald Dahl’s wonderful stories and characters continue to be enjoyed by all children today.
“When publishing new print runs of books written years ago, it’s not unusual to review the language used alongside updating other details including a book’s cover and page layout.”
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