Shopper spots ‘disturbing’ problem with centre’s Christmas decorations

At first glance, these Christmas decorations look innocent enough. But some shoppers claim there’s a disturbing problem with them.

A UK shopping centre’s festive display has gone viral for all the wrong reasons.

The cute decorations, which were recently set up at the Tynwald Mills shopping centre on the Isle of Man in the UK, featured a winter scene complete with polar bears and snowy Christmas trees.

But customers quickly noticed two of the animals appeared to have been placed in a very compromising position, giving the family-friendly centre an X-rated twist.

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On Monday, shopper Ruth Hogg snapped some pictures of the display on her phone before sharing them on Twitter.

Her post quickly went viral, attracting an outpouring of likes, shares and comments from amused social media users.

“Went to Tynwald Mills today and was quite amused yet disturbed by their placement of their Xmas polar bears,” Ms Hogg’s caption accompanying the photo reads.

Others claimed the bears seemed to be “doing it doggy style”.

Went to Tynwald Mills today and was quite amused yet disturbed by their placement of their Xmas polar bears 😳🙈🤣 #merryxmas #ohmy #naughtybears #feelingthelove #frombehind #bearbehind @Laughology pic.twitter.com/V5vvTgGmSB

— Ruth Hogg (@MrsManxTiger) November 18, 2018

“It looked like they were having sex — no question about it,” another social media user pointed out.

Others were quick to crack jokes and make innuendos at the centre’s expense, with one Facebook user claiming it was an example of “(Pro)creative marketing” while another said “Whoever did this deserves the Christmas bon(e)us and a big fat raise!”

Others praised the “humorous” display — and even begged the centre to leave it as was so it could continue to give shoppers a “laugh”.

“If anyone got offended they need a to get a life. It sure made me laugh,” one customer posted on Facebook, while another wrote: “Damn, was gonna pop down especially. Someone start a petition”.

Others pointed out it was genius move and questioned whether the entire incident had been a “clever PR stunt” designed to generate interest.

I agree... it could actually be a very clever PR stunt

— Ruth Hogg (@MrsManxTiger) November 19, 2018

“Best … viral marketing campaign EVER,” one Facebook user wrote, while another claimed the awkward fail had “definitely got the mills advertised”.

After the display went viral, the shopping centre took to Facebook to make a formal, lighthearted apology to shoppers.

“We’d like to thank our customers for getting a little too into Christmas this year with our Polar Bears in the atrium and can reassure you the display has changed somewhat since setup.

Apologies to anybody offended by our somewhat interactive display. #nightattheshoppingcentre #naughtybear” the statement reads.

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