Irn Bru 32 ad cleared of being too aggressive
An advert for Irn Bru 32 has been cleared by the Advertising Standards Authority of being too aggressive following 34 complaints.
The advert, which features Derek the Cuckoo terrorising a bored student in a library has been cleared of the complaints, including one from the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit of Strathclyde Pole and one from the clinical director of Glasgow Royal Infirmary’s A&E Department.
The Advertising Standards Authority’s reports stated that: “The language, theme and tone of the ads were likely to be taken as humorous and referring clearly to a comic Glasgow stereotype. We consider the ads were unlikely in themselves to increase violent behaviour and that they were unlikely to cause serious, widespread or general offence.”
After axing the original television advert, which were created by The Leith Agency, the advert was dubbed using a polite, English accent.
Gerry Farrell, Creative Director, said; "This is good news for our client and good news for the industry. We work within much tighter constraints than the entertainment industry and despite the inevitable complaints we get for maintaining Irn-Bru`s maverick brand image we`re proud to say we`ve never had a complaint upheld against us. We do not set out to create controversy, just to make sure our clients brands get talked about - after all, if an ad agency isn`t getting its clients brands talked about, what exactly is it betting paid for?"