A FAMOUS prep-school in Oxford, whose alumni include Hollywood stars Emma Watson and Tom Hiddleston, changed the name of one of its houses that is now being used as a racial slur.

The Dragon School on Bardwell Road decided to rename the senior boys’ boarding house from Gunga Din to Dragon House because it has become a derogatory term.

When the Oxford Mail contacted the Dragon School about this, a spokesperson refused to comment.

However, in an opinion piece for The Spectator alumnus Alexander Pelling-Bruce criticised the decision and argued it 'sanitises the present by obliterating the past'.

The boarding house was named after a poem by Rudyard Kipling that tells the story of Gunga Din, an Indian water-carrier, almost 80 years ago by the then headmaster 'Hum' Lynam.

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Mr Pelling-Bruce wrote that Dragon School's governors justified the move in a letter sent to all alumni.

It said: "Sadly the term 'Gunga' has now become derogatory, and even used as a racial slur.

"Such potentially offensive language is against the Dragon’s ethos of inclusivity and diversity.

"Kipling’s poem was of its time and it is no longer appropriate to continue using the name Gunga Din."

The former student , who said the move is 'pure madness', even suggested that people connected with the Dragon School should not pledge any donations to protest the renaming.

Mr Pelling-Brude added: "Alumni who are dismayed by the Gunga Din nonsense ought to pledge to withhold any future donations (and withdraw any outstanding), and not attend any alumni events.

"Current parents, who apparently were not consulted over the name change, could collectively withhold fees.

"See how quick the reverse ferret is then."