Crown Paints advert: Regulator responds to sexism row

Crown Paints has rejected accusations that its television commercial contained sexist tropes about women as the advertising regulator began reviewing “potential” problems identified by hundreds of viewers in the commercial.

The advertisement, which is part of a series called Life Stories, includes a song about the fictional characters Hannah and Dave, who viewers learn met at an illegal rave four years previously. It shows the couple painting the spare room.

Lyrics from the advertisement’s jingle state: “Now a baby’s coming and they don’t know what it is. Hannah’s hoping for a girl, Dave’s just hoping that it’s his.”

It continues: “They’re happy that their spare room’s no longer grey, because there’s a baby on the way.”

While Crown said the advertisement was meant to be