HAIR SENSITIVITY

My father was a redhead and two of my four wives were redheads but I still find this complaint amusing:

"A group of red-headed New Zealand men have succeeded in their official complaints about a television commercial they said reinforced negative stereotypes, making life difficult for people with their hair colour....

Although an unspecified number of red-haired men complained, the board quoted only a 21-year-old man identified as C Irwin, who said the commercial "is mocking people like myself in a nasty fashion".

He said, "The advertisement will add to the atmosphere of denigration that currently exists in New Zealand towards red-headed males and I am sick of dealing with the repercussions of such ill-thought out humour."

Advertising agency Colenso BBDO, which made the ad for The Rum Company, said its client, "who is himself ginger-haired" approved the concept and thought the commercial was "funny and not derogatory or offensive".