A Crushing Teletubbies Drama

The shocking and expensive aftermath of breaking a toy

What a fiasco for a little boy and a store that had very expensive toys.

On Sunday evening a young family went into a toy store called KKPlus in Langham Place in Mongkok. It was quite crowded in there when the five-year-old boy knocked down a giant gold Teletubbies statue that crashed to the floor in pieces.

The father had stepped out of the store to take a call on his mobile when he heard a loud bang and turned to see his son and the broken statue.

The staff claimed the boy had kicked the statue -- which was not cordoned off or secured  -- and so the father immediately offered to pay for the damages, which amounted to HK$33,600 (US$4,280). Online it is priced at HK$52,800.

Before the statue broke

Needless to say he said on the way home his son was stunned by what had happened.

But later videos surfaced to show that the store was packed with people and the boy tried to get out of the way of others by leaning lightly on the statue. He had not kicked it at all.

In no time there was viral outrage against the store for claiming the boy had purposely damaged the 1.8-metre-tall Teletubbies statue, and that it should have done more to cordon off the giant toy. Others said the parents should watch their children more carefully.

To avoid further repercussions, KKPlus refunded the entire amount back to the father with an apology. Later on a social media post that was deleted soon after, the store said even though the statue had been there since last November, it "had not brought any inconvenience to customers." It added the company would "learn from this experience to prevent similar incidents from happening again."

Perhaps the most ironic thing about the whole incident is that the Teletubbies statue is covering its eyes as if knowing what was going to happen!