A television advertisement for Wrigley’s X-Cite chewing gum has been withdrawn after attracting a record number of complaints.
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The advert, which featured a dog crawling out of a man’s mouth, received nearly 700 complaints from viewers who said it was offensive and also frightening to children.
“Some people said it made them feel physically sick,” a spokeswoman for the Independent Television Commission, which regulates TV adverts, was quoted by Reuters as saying.
UK-based Wrigley, a unit of the US chewing gum giant, released a statement apologising to viewers and said it had taken the decision to replace the advert.
The previous UK record of 544 complaints was held by a 1998 Levi’s Jeans advert which featured a dead hamster.
