The cinema ad, called ‘Sarah's story', showed a smartly-dressed woman entering a room and then being flung against a column before collapsing.
She is then pulled towards the wheelchair as her clothes are torn off and her body twists and contorts. The shot later cuts to the woman sitting on the floor, dribbling, before being dragged by one arm into the wheelchair. A voice-over states ‘Now you know how it feels to get Motor Neurone Disease. Help us fight back.'
The ASA received five complaints that the ad was offensive and distressing and not suitable to be shown before films rated 15.
While the advertising body acknowledged that the some viewers might find the ad distressing it concluded that it had sought to portray the physical and emotional effects of the disease and testimonials confirmed it did so accurately. In the context of raising awareness about the physical and emotional effects of the disease it considered the ad to be justified.
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