LONDON (Brand Republic) - The Advertising Standards Authority has rejected calls to ban posters for Spitfire beer, saying that Germans are unlikely to be offended by the “Bottle of Britain” campaign.
Nineteen complaints were made against the posters, which featured slogans such as “Have the sunbeds, we’re off to the bar” and “Votz zo funny about zeez posters?”, and London Underground ordered them to be removed from trains.
The advertising watchdog pointed out that no Germans had complained and accepted that the posters reflected “an aspect of British cultural history”. It also denied that one slogan, “Rear gunners drink lager shandy,” was insulting to homosexuals.
Kent brewery Shepherd Neame, which launched the beer in 1990 for the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, said the campaign was tongue in cheek and used similar humour to the TV show Dad’s Army.