Gay poster ad upsets locals

A 6ft high poster of two men kissing each other has sparked anger after being fixed to the outside of a Leicester hotel.

Nicholas Coombes, who owns the Pineapple hotel, has defended his decision to display the poster, which has upset many rush-hour travellers on Vaughan Way. Coombes recently opened the Pineapple as a 12-bedroom hotel for gay couples.

The poster has been hung 20 feet above the pavement, and promotes energy drink Red Devil. Paul Hales, who passes the poster every day on his way to work, said: "I can't believe such a poster can be displayed in the middle of a city, especially on a main arterial road."

Pensioner Adrian Bowley said he was considering reporting the poster to the Advertising Standards Authority. A spokeswoman for the ASA said it had not received any complaints about the poster, although in the past it had rejected a complaint against a poster showing two women kissing.

Meanwhile Coombes is happily defiant: "It's not in bad taste, it's just two men kissing. This is 2001 and the growing awareness of gay issues is a fact," he said.