‘Prehistoric’ and ‘sexist’ Rustlers ads enrage members of the public

Rustlers, the microwaveable burger and sandwich brand, has caused
outrage with its latest TV ads, featuring a scantily-clad girl lounging
with a provocative look.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 93 complaints from
members of the p…

rustlersRustlers, the microwaveable burger and sandwich brand, has caused outrage with its latest TV ads, featuring a scantily-clad girl lounging with a provocative look.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 93 complaints from members of the public and has launched an investigation.

Complainants say the ad depicts women as pieces of meat. One called the ad "prehistoric sexist nonsense."

The execution, which has been created by Dublin-based agency Chemistry, is part of a £4.5m relaunch campaign for Rustlers. It shows a young couple returning from a night out. The woman sits on the sofa, still wearing her coat, while the man goes into the kitchen, puts a Rustlers burger into the microwave and sets the time. The sofa is then shown rotating, and by the time the burger is heated up, the girl is wearing only her underwear. A voiceover says: "If only everything was 0 to tasty in 70 seconds."

• BSkyB’s advertising campaign attacking Virgin Media and warning Virgin Media subscribers that they could lose access to Sky channels has led to more than 110 complaints despite only launching on Monday.

An ASA spokesman says the complaints will be passed to Ofcom as the ads have not been paid for and so do not fall under the ASA’s jurisdiction.

Ofcom has had ten complaints directly so far but is waiting to get the dossier from the ASA before deciding whether to investigate.