AN OUTDOOR advertisement that faced a church drew complaints from the public to the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland on the grounds that it was offensive.
The advertisement for Toffee Crisp quoted Robin Hood saying that he had "crammed in an extra crispy" and the reply given was "Like Tuck you did". In a second advertisement, Cleopatra says she crammed in an extra crispy and the reply was "You did on your Asp". The complainants said this was particularly inappropriate in an advertisement aimed at children.
In its defence, the advertiser, Nestle Rowntree, said the campaign was aimed at teenagers and was designed to appeal to the teenage sense of humour.
It said Friar Tuck was "famed for his healthy appetite". Similarly, the asp was clearly connected with Cleopatra and the word was "not used in isolation". They would try to avoid locations near a church in future campaigns.
In response, the ASAI said it noted the response from the advertisers and it would not uphold the complaint because it concluded the advertisements had not caused serious or widespread offence.
Another complaint was received from a woman who said she suffered from arachnophobia and travelled to work by bus every day. She felt that a Smirnoff vodka advertisement at bus stops was sadistic: it portrayed a spider's web on a person's bare neck and shoulders with a tarantula crawling up their back.
The ASAI complaints committee said a small number of people had been offended but concluded the advertisement had not contravened the code of advertising standards. The complaint was not upheld.
A complaint from a person who claimed a special offer on a computer was misleading was upheld. He wanted to purchase a computer from Dixons which was quoted at a price of £1,899.
However, when he arrived at the store he was informed that the model was not in stock and was offered a more expensive alternative.
Two days later a newspaper advertisement offered his original choice at a discounted price of £1,799. However, when he inquired he was again informed that there were no models in stock.
In response, Dixons acknowledged it was temporarily out of stock at the time the advertisements ran. However, stock records were showing it to be in stock. Dixons said it would always ensure that its advertisements contained only products that were in stock. It was an isolated incident caused by a genuine error, it said.