Nationwide say they will talk to police after Twitter users got so angry about a pair of singing sisters on the building society’s adverts that some even said they wished they were dead.
The songs by comedy duo Flo and Joan to promote the society’s financial products have provoked rare online ire, as one user wrote: ‘So who’s chipping in to get these two singing sisters from the Nationwide advert brutally murdered?’
Another said: ‘I don’t condone violence of any kind. But it’d benefit us all if the women off the Nationwide advert were left on an uninhabited island far, far away. For the rest of their lives.’
A third added: ‘Hypothetically – If #floandjoan (the two singing witches from the Nationwide advert) were to suddenly go missing in mysterious circumstances, there’d actually be 60 million suspects.’
Flo and Joan, real names Nicola and Rosie Dempsey have been receiving abuse online since they have been singing on a series of adverts for Nationwide building society
Some Twitter users have had harsh comments about the singing sisters
Others suggested they would quite happily live without television to avoid them
This individual has tried to write their own poem criticising the two girls
The pair, whose real names are Nicola and Rosie Dempsey, do have some fans. The pair have been described as Marmite due to their ability to attract love and hate.
One user, Tyler Brogan wrote: ‘Love the Crimbo advert, so catchy.’
Emma Scott added: ‘Awesome work.’
Ross Fotheringham said: ‘Well done Nationwide. This is excellent.’
Yet, not all viewers have objected to the short video songs and appreciate the comedy
This Twitter user described Flo and Joan as ‘Marmite’ as you either love it or hate it
Emma said the performers are ‘great’ and cannot believe anyone would threaten them
Samantha Lloyd also issued her support for Flo and Joan describing them as ‘brilliant’
Nationwide’s Chief Marketing officer Sara Bennison told Ok! Online: ‘When we saw an audition tape for Flo & Joan, gut feel told us all that they were a delightfully fresh take on things like loyalty which are at the heart of Nationwide.
‘Social media has provided a great instant barometer of reaction – good and bad. The huge amount of likes and shares have been great.
‘But then there are others who have chosen to post the most vile, abusive and misogynistic comments about the duo. It is not just our Flo & Joan adverts that generate these comments, it is also our adverts that feature people of different colours, backgrounds and perceived sexuality, which attract the most criticism.”
‘That’s why it is important to call out those persistent offenders who put out vile comments on a regular basis and who should really know better.
‘That is why Nationwide is looking to work with other brands, industry bodies, such as ISBA, and the Met Police to look at the true scale of this worrying trend to spread hate from behind a keyboard and attempt to create a solution to tackle the issue.
‘It’s one thing not to like an advert, another to threaten to kill the stars of it. Abuse is abuse and that’s never OK in our book.’
In real life Flo and Joan are British sisters Nicola and Rose Dempsey.
They are veterans of the Edinburgh Festival, have performed with success in North America and their 2016 Song became a massive online hit, attracting 46million views across social media.
Their piano-and-percussion act has been compared to Flight Of The Conchords and Flanders and Swann.