Ryanair escapes condemnation for post-bombings Churchill ad

by Daniel Farey-Jones, Brand Republic 10-Aug-05, 08:30

LONDON - Despite 319 complaints, Ryanair was in tune with the popular mood and not guilty of serious offence in its 'London fights back' press ad placed in response to the suicide bombings on July 7, the advertising watchdog has ruled.

Complainants accused the airline of seeking to use the attacks for commercial advantage and of offending the memory of Winston Churchill and those who died in World War II's London Blitz.

The full-page press ad, publicising a ticket sale, appeared in The Independent and The Telegraph eight days after the attacks, which Ryanair judged a suitably respectful length of time.

It echoed Churchill's famous speech of defiance during the Second World War, where he vowed that the Allies would "fight them on beaches, fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills, we shall never surrender".

With the headline "London Fights Back", the ad used a picture of Churchill giving his famous V for victory sign, and a bubble reading "We shall fly them to the beaches, we shall fly them to the hills, we shall fly them to London!"

Ryanair refused to pull the ad despite 192 complaints on the day of its debut, saying that the campaign was to help London get back on its feet after the attacks.

The Advertising Standards Authority said it acknowledged that the complainants had found the approach extremely tasteless.

However, it judged that the ad referred to the "positive and determined response of Londoners to continue with life as normal" rather than the attacks themselves and thus "stopped short of causing serious or widespread offence".

It added that it considered that the use of Churchill's speech and image was in context with the message and theme of the ad and was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence.

Both newspapers admitted that they published the ad knowing some readers would have problems with it, but decided that most would not be offended.

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