'Homophobic' TV ads suspended

A TV commercial in which a man is teased for standing in a football changing room with his hand on his hip has been taken off the air because it might encourage homophobic bullying.

The advert, for the "alcopop" drink WKD, is being suspended indefinitely by the Independent Television Commission over a sequence in which a group of burly players mockingly urge the man to look at the bottom of his shoe. Two other footballers then enter the room and leer at him in an apparently predatory way.

The ITC's action comes after complaints about the "bullying" tone of the advert, which is also being shown in cinemas.

A further complaint has been made about gay stereotyping in another WKD commercial, in which a young woman arrives at her boyfriend's flat to find his mates "camping it up" with pinnies and feather dusters.

The ITC's decision to suspend the WKD commercial comes just two weeks after it pulled an ad for the internet company Yahoo! on similar grounds. Fifteen people had complained about a scene in which a naked man is left at the mercy of a stereotypical "cruising" homosexual after being left tied to a tree by his friends.

An advert for Virgin Mobile, in which the rapper Wyclef Jean is shown trembling at the prospect of picking up a bar of soap in a communal prison shower, is also under investigation.

The spate of complaints about the depiction of gays in adverts follows weeks of homophobic press coverage in the wake of revelations stemming from the Paul Burrell trial and moves to grant gay couples adoption rights.

Last night, Beverage Brands, the company that produces WKD, denied that the changing room ad was homophobic – saying it was based around the simple concept of "lads having a laugh".

"The changing room concept in the latest WKD TV advertising campaign is not intended to cause offence in any way," said a spokesman. "It conveys 'lads having a laugh', demonstrating the personality of the drink.

"Our target drinkers find the WKD TV advertisement light-hearted and amusing.

"Beverage Brands is committed to a non-discriminatory advertising policy and actively supports events and campaigns related to a large number of social groups, including the gay and lesbian communities."