10 TV Shows Made With INSANE Restrictions

While it's not uncommon today for TV shows to deal with an actress' pregnancy by either creatively shooting around it or simply incorporating it into the ongoing narrative, legendary sitcom I Love Lucy was constrained by network CBS' aversion to even discussing pregnancy.

During filming of the pilot episode, star Lucille Ball was visibly pregnant, but because CBS thought it was "bad taste" to discuss pregnancy on TV and an ad agency recommended they not show Ball pregnant at all, the decision was made to dress her in baggy clothing instead.

For the show's second season, Ball once again fell pregnant, and while this time it was incorporated into the show, this came with some serious language restrictions. 

Namely, the word "pregnant" couldn't ever be spoken on screen, because - gasp - it too intimately indicated that people had been having sex. The scandal.

Phrases like "expecting" and "with child" were used instead, lest a member of the audience hear the word "pregnant" and suddenly realise that Ball must've had sex with her husband both on-screen and in real life, Desi Arnaz.