The fuss over an outlawed commercial threatens to obscure the fact that the industry is reaping record profits for a poorer service
It’s been quite the year for Hollywood’s humanitarians. Olivia Colman took on pension funds for their role in fossil fuel expansion, Game of Thrones stars Kit Harington and Rose Leslie challenged high street banks’ role in the same polluting activities, and actor Dominic West starred in a Nationwide advert calling out the banks for their sweeping branch closures.
All shared the same satirical tone, but only one received so many complaints it was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The complaints, most notably from Nationwide’s rival Santander, were that the Nationwide ad was misleading in stating that: “Unlike the big banks, we’re not closing our branches” – which holds true only until 2028.
