The new face of advertising: the BBC's contentious PSA

The British Broadcasting Corporation has dropped an animated promotional ad for its digital TV service after some viewers complained that the PSA was "horrific" and "disturbingly psychotic."

Some 1,300 complaints arose from the Faces campaign, which featured a giant animated head made up of smaller heads. The BBC had gone to the ad's defense, saying that the small heads represented the viewers who could now watch digital TV.

The announcement "finished slightly early", after it "achieved its goal," a BBC spokesman said. The BBC will now concentrate on promoting its Christmas schedule, he added.

"The digital faces trail was one of a very long series designed to capture the attention of viewers and stimulate interest in the BBC's digital services," the Beeb said in a statement. "The latest, which was first transmitted on 5 November, has been very successful in this respect, and early indications are that it has achieved its goal.

"We have been very conscious that some viewers disliked the nature of the trail, although clearly it was not our intention to offend.

"Given that we feel the trail has achieved its aims, we feel that we can now conclude the campaign and use the airtime to let viewers know about the fantastic Christmas in store for them on the BBC."


The ad featured a dismembered animated head bouncing over the hills. Its constituen tiny heads morphed into the faces of such familiar hosts as John Simpson.

The campaign consisted of four PSAs.

"I wish to protest that this image is disturbingly psychotic. Its unacknowledged aggression could make a fragile viewer ill," Freelance UK quoted a registered psychotherapist as saying.

"Anyone else think this is the single most terrifying thing ever, or is it just me?" asked a post on EuroGamer in early November. "Creepy in spades is what it is. Terrifying. Given