麻豆社

China - manufacturer of Nunzilla the fire-breathing nun, the Egyptian mummy-shaped elastic band holder Mummified Mike, and the Dashboard Jesus.

Britain - home of the creative types who send these ironic, sometimes blasphemous, novelty gift designs to the Chinese for manufacture.

What do these throwaway gifts tell us about our own society and our relationship with China?

While our economic relationship flourishes, our respective cultures remain poles apart.

Writer and comedian Anna Chen follows a novelty toy from design through manufacture to the gift shops.

Workers on the production lines in a south Chinese factory give their take on what on earth it is they're making - and British designers try their best to deconstruct the joke.

Producer: Sally Heaven

First broadcast on 麻豆社 Radio 4 in March 2010.