Once upon a time three Tombliboos – Ooo, Eee and Un – lived together in the Tombliboo Bush. They played with their friend Igglepiggle, took rides in the Pinky Ponk and all loved each other very much. Then Ooo hurt his back, lost his job and complained that Eee had subjected him to homophobic taunts such as “faggot” and “bitch”. Big hug? No chance. See you in court.

Tombliboos are innocent creatures with large bottoms and bobbly heads. But the performers who don costumes to portray them for the children’s TV series In The Night Garden are more complicated. I witnessed some of the tears before bedtime at a recent employment tribunal. This highlighted the dangers that arise when a minority culture mingles with the mainstream one of the workplace.