Ryanair told to remove ‘misleading’ adverts following thousands of complaints
Britain's advertising watchdog has told Ryanair to remove their 'misleading' travel ads after the body received more than 2,000 complaints from viewers.
Britain’s advertising watchdog has told Ryanair to remove its ‘misleading’ travel campaign after the body received more than 2,000 complaints from viewers.
The airline’s recent TV ads were accompanied by the slogan ‘Jab & Go‘ – in reference to COVID-19 vaccines.
A voiceover on the adverts promised that “vaccines are coming – so book your Easter and summer holidays with Ryanair”, proposing holiday destinations such as Spain, Italy, Portugal and Greece.
But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has denounced the campaign, claiming that “the ads misleadingly provided consumers with a reassurance that being vaccinated against COVID-19 was likely to allow them to go on holiday without restrictions.”
The ASA added: “It’s important that all travel companies take particular care, at a time of significant uncertainty about when lockdown restrictions will end, not to mislead or over exaggerate when it will be possible for people to go on holiday.”
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Ryanair said it disagreed with the “baseless” ruling, but has pulled the advertisements regardless.
A spokesperson for the airline commented: “The ASA’s ruling flies in the face of the UK’s successful vaccine rollout, however even though this ruling is baseless, Ryanair will comply with it and the Jab & Go adverts will not run again.”
Ryanair’s ‘Jab & Go’ campaign had been part of its mission to increase bookings following an extremely tough year – with the airline recording enormous losses since the beginning of the pandemic.
This week, the firm revealed that traffic was down 88% to ‘1.3 million guests’.
It also reported a Q3 loss of €306m – compared to a Q3 profit of €88m in the previous year.
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The company’s latest financial statement said that 2021 was set to be the “most challenging year in Ryanair’s 35 year history,” predicting the airline could face “a net loss of between €850m and €950m.”
Strict travel rules have kept hundreds of flights grounded in 2021 – with new rules requiring passengers entering the UK to show proof of a negative COVID test and isolate for 10 days upon arrival.
People visiting or returning from 30 ‘high-risk’ countries must stay in specific accommodation for 10 days.
Restrictions are expected to remain in place for some weeks, with the travel industry looking ahead to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s roadmap for exiting lockdown – due to be announced on the week of February 22.
Manchester Airport’s grand opening of its multi-million revamp of Terminal 2 has also been delayed until at least April, but the first images of the transport hub appeared online earlier this week.
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‘A new kind of night out’ – new competitive social games venue opens in Manchester city centre
Emily Sergeant
A brand-new competitive social games venue is opening in Manchester city centre this week, bringing a completely original format to the city’s nightlife scene.
Gameface has made itself at home inside Manchester‘s Printworks complex.
Built around 10 games designed and developed from scratch, Gameface turns a standard night out into a fast-paced, shared experience.
The 5,400 sq ft venue has capacity for 120 players and has been created by CONDUCTR, the creative innovation studio powered by technology, meaning every game has been built in-house – with bespoke mechanics and technology developed specifically for the experience.
Having been in development for over a year now, and becoming the first venue for the brand – with further expansion planned in the future – Gameface joins an already-competitive socialising scene at Printworks, alongside venues like Boom Battle Bar, Tenpin, and Treetop Golf.
However, unlike existing concepts, all games at Gameface are completely original and do not exist anywhere else.
So, how does it work then? Well, groups move between games in a 60-minute session, competing for points across physical, reactive, and problem-solving challenges, before heading straight to the bar.
Rather than putting technology front and centre, Gameface uses it to ‘quietly power’ the experience.
Score tracking, reactive gameplay, and dynamic challenges all sit behind the scenes, designed to make each game feel intuitive, fast and competitive from the first round.
New competitive social games venue Gameface opens in Manchester city centre / Credit: Supplied
There are no long instructions or complicated rules. Players arrive, tap in, and start competing within seconds, so the result is apparently something ‘closer to a house party than a traditional activity venue’.
“It’s a night out where you’re actually doing something,” explained Leanne Casey, who is the General Manager at Gameface. “You’re moving, competing, laughing, and it gets competitive almost instantly. People care about the score quicker than they expect.”
Alongside gameplay, Gameface also features a fully stocked bar and is designed for group occasions including birthdays, team socials, and nights out.
Bookings are now open at gamefacebar.com, so what are you waiting for? Get playing.
Featured Image – Supplied
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AO Arena are hosting an ‘Evening 4’ Ricky Hatton in memory of the legendary Manchester boxer
Danny Jones
Manchester is set to host a night of remembrance and celebration in honour of the late, great, local boxer, Ricky Hatton.
Coming this summer, the AO Arena – where Hatton enjoyed so many of his iconic moments – will be holding the first-ever ‘Evening4Ricky’ later this year.
Held at the legendary sports and live entertainment venue just in time for summer, we still know very little about what the actual event will entail.
Sharing the news on social media, AO Arena said: “Join us for an unforgettable night of entertainment as Manchester comes together for Evening4Ricky.
“This will be a spectacular, unique celebration of the life, spirit and legacy of one of the city’s most beloved icons – Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton.”
With seats priced at £25, fans are being encouraged to join the early bird sign-up to secure access to discounted tickets.
They go on to add: “Hosted at the legendary AO Arena, home to so many of Ricky’s big fights, featuring a superstar cast of legends from the worlds of boxing, music, comedy and entertainment.”
So, we do at least know there’ll be some famous faces coming along to help make it a memorable Manc moment, just a few months on from the city and beyond uniting for his public funeral procession.
Ricky was beloved not only by the Greater Manchester community but was a popular figure and friend to many in the sporting and showbiz industries.
The homegrown ‘Pride of Hyde‘ tragically left us on 14 September 2025 at the age of just 46, but his passing has once again helped reassert the importance of having more conversations around wellbeing, suicide prevention, and most specifically, men’s mental health.
You can find more information and see how to grab tickets right HERE.
This isn’t the only charitable in memoriam event happening across the region in the coming weeks, either, as Mancs will be gathering to pay tribute to another fellow inspiring sportsman.
The Manc -
3rd February 2021 
