“Why Are You Ruining Christmas?” Viewers Fume As Standards Board Considers Chrissie Ad Ban

“Why Are You Ruining Christmas?” Viewers Fume As Standards Board Considers Chrissie Ad Ban

It’s the season for all things Christmas, no more so than clever little festive spots rolling in from the UK retailers.

In mid-November, grocery chain Sainsbury’s unveiled its annual offering. Nothing too groundbreaking – shy kid on stage at annual Christmas concert who plucks up the courage and nails the performance.

The ad’s the work of Wieden & Kennedy London and is set to the New Radicals 1998 hit You Get What You Give.

However, a seemingly innocuous scene in the ad has got some viewers seething over safety concerns.

Check out the ad below and at the 1.20 minute-mark a kid dressed as an electrical plug dives perfectly into a socket.

The UK’s Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has now received 35 complaints about “plug boy” amid fears kids could start playing with sockets themselves.

The ASA said it was “weighing up” whether or not the complainants had a case and whether it would consider banning the ad.

However a number of people have rushed to the ad’s and Sainsbury’s defence saying complainants were “trying to ruin Christmas”.

Screen Shot 2018-12-04 at 10.10.35 am

One fan of the ad tweeted: “Let’s be honest, if your kids runs face first into a plug socket after watching the #SainsburysXmasAd then that’s on YOU for raising a moron!”

Another added: “People complaining about the Sainsbury’s plugboy, what next, you going to complain about the kid dressed as a turkey in case they jump in the oven and cook themselves for 2 hours??!!”

While another penned: “If you complained about #SainsburysXmasAd #Plugboy then you need to go have a hard look at yourself.”

“To all 35 idiots complaining about the @sainsburys advert……#plugboy is brilliant! If you want to be all “health and safety” you clearly all didn’t watch the advert properly as he is wearing a helmet and his hands are nowhere to be seen,” fumed another.

An ASA spokesman said in a statement: “The general consensus of the complaints is around health and safety, fears of children seeing fit to play with plug sockets.

“We are assessing these complaints and weighing up whether there appears to be a problem. If not, we will close the case and inform the complainants.”

Sainsbury’s has not yet commented on the complaints or offered to modify the ad.




Please login with linkedin to comment

Christmas Sainsbury's

Latest News

Veridooh Snatches Prashand Menon From ScentreGroup
  • Advertising

Veridooh Snatches Prashand Menon From ScentreGroup

Out-of-home OOH) and digital media leader Prashand Menon (lead image) has joined OOH ad tech company Veridooh as group business director within NSW and QLD. Menon joins Veridooh from his most recent role as ScentreGroup’s group business director and brings with him more than 10 years of experience in Australian media. Previously, he held positions […]

Kat & Co Transforms Into THE WORLD OF Experiential Agency
  • Advertising

Kat & Co Transforms Into THE WORLD OF Experiential Agency

After more than twelve years of producing experiences for some of the world’s most innovative brands, including Hermes, Van Cleef & Arpels, Louis Vuitton, and Tiffany & Co, Kat & Co has quietly metamorphosed into THE WORLD OF. THE WORLD OF is an experiential agency at the juncture of culture, technology and the human condition. […]

SMG Studio Launches Risk: Global Domination X Dune Part Two
  • Campaigns

SMG Studio Launches Risk: Global Domination X Dune Part Two

Through a licensing agreement with Legendary Entertainment, SMG Studio inked the rights to adapt Dune: Part Two into a game based on Risk: Global Domination, Hasbro’s interactive board game. Inspired by Denis Villeneuve’s cinematic masterpiece, Dune: Part Two, this new digital adaptation, RISK: Global Domination X Dune: Part Two, is poised to captivate players from […]

QMS: Taylor Swift, Lunar New Year & Mardi Gras Were Boon For OOH Market
  • Marketing

QMS: Taylor Swift, Lunar New Year & Mardi Gras Were Boon For OOH Market

Taylor Swift, Lunar New Year and the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival have had a dramatic impact on the number of people moving in and around Sydney over the past month, drawing big crowds into the heart of the city and its surrounding suburbs. New data from digital outdoor company QMS reveals a […]

MKTG Launches PR & Talent Division Realigning Business Structure
  • Marketing

MKTG Launches PR & Talent Division Realigning Business Structure

Dentsu‘s MKTG Sports and Entertainment has unveiled a significant evolution, including the launch of a specialised PR and Talent Marketing division, investment in expanding its Creative Services group, and a centralised approach to brand and rights holder servicing with increased production capabilities and a strengthened in-stadium sports presentation team. Lead Image: MKTG CD Ross Allen; […]