Stop right now: Tesco removes Mel B advert in UK following Spice Girl’s complaint
A Tesco advert in the UK that used an image of Mel B has been taken down after the Spice Girl complained.
The image of the singer, also known as Scary Spice, was used in an advert for the supermarket’s new Clubcard Plus.
Alongside an image of Mel in a leopard print catsuit, taken at the Brit Awards in 1997, the advert reads: “Stop right now. You get 10% off two big shops a month for £7.99.”
The advert is a play on words from the group’s hit single Stop, which contains the lyrics: “Stop right now”.
The singer posted an image of a bus stop advert on Instagram and wrote: “Can the CEO OF TESCO DAVE LEWIS PLEASE CONTACT ME URGENTLY. Thank you.”
Tesco said it has now removed the image from its campaign.
A Tesco spokesman said: “Here at Tesco we are really big fans of Mel B and were excited to feature her photo in our campaign.
“We had authorisation to use this image, but we’re sorry Mel B is unhappy so we’ve stopped using it.”
The advert was part of Tesco’s latest campaign that features British cultural references from the past 100 years for its 100th anniversary, with the tagline: “Prices that take you back”.
Other celebrities, including comedy duo Morecambe and Wise, have also been used in the campaign.
