Since the Ofcom adjudication report on David Bedford’s complaint against the advertising campaign of directory enquiries provider 118 118, there has been a spate of articles and editorial comment on the finer points of that decision. Reaction has, in part, depended on the age of the commentator.
Followers of sporting events in the 1970s had little doubt that the characters in the advertisement were based on the former distance athlete David Bedford, whereas younger observers were less likely to make that association. The issue of identification will be a critical element of the result of the claim being brought by Bedford against The Number (UK), based on the principles established by motor racing driver Eddie Irvine’s successful action against the radio station Talk Sport.
