Morrisons under fire for advert casting call banning anybody 'from Liverpool' or 'the characters on Benefits Street'
A “third party casting agency” has landed Morrisons in trouble after putting out a casting call which warned that “nobody from Liverpool” need apply.
Looking for extras to front a local social media campaign, the casting call was looking for “proper working-class people, but not at all like the characters on Benefits Street”.
As an added stipulation, “they should not look or sound posh and should skew towards northern accents,” claimed the Yorkshire Evening Post.
Facing a backlash on social media, the Bradford-based grocer was quick to blame a third party agency for the casting call, saying: “We are angry and we apologise that a third party has published a statement using our name without our knowledge.
“Everyone is welcome at Morrisons and we work really hard to ensure our marketing represents the whole of the nation."
The advert was issued by casting firm Casting Networks. It comes at an unfortunate time for Morrisons as it tries to reposition the brand with UK shoppers. A recently launched campaign sought to push it's 'made local' values and show that's it's a part of the community.