The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld its ruling on The Otley Burger Company and its 'offensive' Mother's Day advertising, which used images of missing child Madeleine McCann and mother Kate McCann.
On Sunday 27 March 2022, The Otley Burger Company posted a photograph of Kate McCann with missing daughter Madeleine in the background, adding a text overlay which read: “With burgers this good, you’ll leave your kids at home. What’s the worst that could happen? Happy Mother’s Day to all the mums out there”.
There were similar copies of the advert (which the owner stated 'is not an advert …' in its caption) on Facebook and Twitter - all of have been deemed 'likely to cause distress'.
The watchdog said it had received three complaints about the adverts, which were upheld.
This morning, the ASA said that the Otley Burger Company's posts 'trivialised the circumstances surrounding Madeleine’s disappearance and made light of a distressing news story concerning reports of child abduction and serious crime'.
The watchdog said: "The ASA considered the nature of the content to be of such a concern that we asked the relevant social media platforms to remove the content and suspend the account pending our investigation.
"The Otley Burger Company said that they would not use photos of Kate McCann in that manner again or superimpose images of Madeleine McCann being kidnapped. They said that all ads had been removed and would not be appearing again. They also said the image was a meme and there was no product placement, so it was not advertising.
"Meta stated that they had reviewed the content in the Instagram post and had removed it for violating their policies. They undertook a broader review of the Instagram account, removed further content and placed restrictions on the account.
"Twitter said the tweet had been deleted."
Since the controversial social media posts were published, the Leeds takeaway owner has received backlash, including for the comments made on Mother’s Day where the business uses an offensive Madeleine McCann.
Madeleine McCann was abducted whilst on holiday with her family in 2007 and has remained a high-profile missing person case around the world ever since. / Image: Gideon, Flickr
On Instagram, arguments broke out about the post with some suggesting the meme-style advertisement was uncalled for: “Let’s start a PR stunt using someone else’s dead daughter. [You’re] just a greasy burger flipper stay in your lane”.
Other said: “Madeleine McCann and her mum in this post ? Seems a bit sick and in very poor taste” to which the Otley Burger Company, clearly unphased, replied “only thing sick here is our photoshopping skillz”.
The ASA took the high-profile case of Madeleine McCann's disappearance into account, along with the date - Mother's Day - that the images were posted.
Their statement continued: "We noted that the ads were all posted on 27 March 2022 which was Mother’s Day. We considered that in combination with the images, the posting of the ads on that date was intended to further add to the shock factor and offensive nature of the ads. We also considered it was likely to have compounded the distress of those who saw the ads, and particularly for those who may have experienced the disappearance of a child."
The Otley Burger Company has been told not to republish the advertisements to avoid 'causing serious and widespread offence and distress'.
The Otley Burger Company has not yet publicly comment on the ruling.
Feature Image- The Otley Burger Company
Leeds
Team behind Headrow House and Belgrave to take over and reopen Woodside just one year after opening
The foodie-favourite restaurant and bar is now under new management.
The eagle-eyed amongst you may have noticed that Woodside has sadly been closed for a few months.
We certainly have, and ever since December we've had a Woodside Sunday roast-shaped hole in our hearts that's been gasping for one of their glorious Marmite glazed parsnips.
But luckily, it has now been confirmed that Woodside isn't going anywhere as Superfriendz, the team behind Headrow House, Belgrave and many other top Leeds spots will be taking over. Hallelujah.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Woodside opened at the end of 2024 from the owners of The Brunswick and The Melbourne.
Labelling itself as a 'neighbourhood eatery and bar', Woodside quickly became a favourite amongst Leeds foodies and was known for its smoked meats, great cocktails and stellar Sunday roasts (do I need to talk about the parsnips again).
The menu was fresh and innovative, with oysters topped with kiwi granita and an incredibly garish banana split standing out as highlights.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
We hope that the new management continues to maintain Woodside's brilliance, but mainly we're just so glad that it's sticking around.
Superfriendz take care of a whole host of spots in the city, including proper Leeds favourites Headrow House, Belgrave Music Hall and Waterlane Boathouse.
Announcing the news to Instagram, Woodside said: "After a longer-than-expected winter break, Woodside is back and will reopen on Thursday 19th March!
"Your favourite neighbourhood bar and eatery returns with the same warm welcome, but an all new management team.
"We can’t wait to see you so keep your eyes on our socials for news on great food and drinks, big screen sports, quizzes and more.
"We’d also like to thank Sam and the original team for all the hard work that went into setting-up the venue. We hope we can do it justice."
A new female-founded business has opened in Leeds and it’s a trinket-lover’s paradise
Clementine Hall
Lisa Angel has just opened inside the Victoria Gate and it’s an Aladdin’s Cave full of jewellery, prints, gifts and everything in between.
The best part? It’s a female-founded brand that has chosen our wonderful city for their first Yorkshire site. We absolutely don't blame them.
Founded in 2004 by Lisa hand making jewellery which she sold at craft fairs local to her Norfolk home, the business has gone from strength to strength every since.
The brand is now a recognised part of the British high street landscape, boasting seven other stores across Norfolk, Suffolk, and the Midlands.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Shoppers can expect beautifully handcrafted jewellery, unique trinkets and wonderful staff who are open to have a natter.
It's the perfect shop for when you don't exactly know what to buy that someone special, just pop in here and you'll be hit with a wave of inspiration immediately.
We could've genuinely spent a good hour in there and come out with a much lighter wallet.
Lisa herself spoke about the opening: “As an independent retailer, we are thrilled to launch in a destination with such a reputation as Victoria Leeds.
"We believe retail should remain grounded in inspiration and discovery, and we look forward to bringing just that to the vibrant city of Leeds, in our first store in the north.”
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Managing Director James Moody said: “We're incredibly excited to be opening our first northern showcase store in such a prestigious location.
"Victoria Leeds represents exactly the kind of vibrant retail destination where we can bring the full Lisa Angel experience to new customers. This is a significant milestone for us as we continue to grow our retail presence."
The Hoot -
20th April 2022 
