Victoria Beckham is considering taking legal action against a restaurant in Tyneside called Sidhu Golden Fish and Chips after it used a caricature of the fashion designer in an advertisement. The disturbing ad depicts a skeletal Beckham wearing a bikini and sash that reads “anorexic fashion icon”. According to People, the ad is being displayed on the Sidhu Golden Fish and Chips’ delivery vans in order to promote the restaurant’s new pizza, which has tastelessly been dubbed the “Victoria Beckham Thin Crust” because it’s “only 2 mm thin”.
The restaurant’s ad is appalling and infuriating as it makes light of a very real and serious eating disorder just to sell pizza. The ad completely disregards the feelings of those who have to live and struggle with this disorder. For these reasons, Victoria Beckham may pursue legal action. A spokesperson for Beckham told Fox News: "It is highly inappropriate to trivialise such a disorder, and defamatory to be so thoughtless with a person's reputation in this way, therefore we are seeking legal advice."
Thoughts on this? Charities slam takeaway owner in N. Shields for trivialising anorexia. Advert offers pizza thinner than @victoriabeckham pic.twitter.com/IzFTbnvAdX
— Nathan Lee (@NathanLeeTV) August 8, 2017
After the ad began getting media attention yesterday, Sidhu's manager posted a lengthy statement on the restaurant's Facebook page, which started: "I as the manger on the behalf of all our staff and owners would like to state we recognise how serious eating disorders are and would never make light the seriousness of people with eating disorders. We are not a fly by night, business trying to make a quick buck. Anorexia and any mental illness are very serious."
Then, just three hours ago, a photo featuring the blank back windshield of one of the restaurant's delivery vans was posted to Sidhu's Facebook page. Accompanying the photo was a note that started: "Its Gone! As of 5:15pm Tuesday Aug 2017, we have had no official complaint from Mrs Beckham or her legal team." It then goes on to say: "No complaint has been made to us about the advert on our van but with the media hype the whole account has left our staff dejected" and "It’s a sad state of affairs when in England 2017 an innocent joke is twisted and turned into an opportunity by some to cause distress." These two sentences in particular make it seem as though the restaurant's management may not actually recognise how disgusting this advertisement truly was and the hurt it could have caused to those dealing with anorexia and Victoria Beckham herself.
If you are struggling with an eating disorder, please call Beat on 0345 634 1414. Support and information is available 365 days a year.
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