WHY SHOULD THE PHYSICALLY IMPAIRED HAVE ALL THE FUN?

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Sportswear giant Nike has cried foul over a promotional spin-off from the John Smith's beer advert starring Bolton comedian Peter Kay.

Brewery giant Scottish Courage designed a poster around the advert and sent it to pubs across the country in a £10m drive. But bosses at Nike want the campaign stopped - and their lawyers have called for it to be withdrawn.

The sportswear firm is unhappy the poster shows the John Smith logo turned to look like a "swoosh" and the words Just 'Ave It, similar to Nike's Just Do It trademark.

The popular TV campaign sees Kay playing football with a group of more skilful players. When one of them passes the ball to Kay, he kicks it over a fence and yells: "Ave it!"

In a letter, Nike's lawyers, Dickinson Dees, describe Kay as "an overweight and apparently unskilled footballer."

They claim his appearance is "detrimental to Nike's trademarks, which are registered in the main for sports clothing, tarnishing them and making them less attractive and less distinctive. "As a result, damage has or will be caused to Nike."

But John Botia, brands director at Scottish Courage, accused Nike of having no sense of humour.

"Nike's reaction is over the top and we've no intention of withdrawing this campaign," he said. "The slogan and tilted magnet are simply humorous twists."

A Nike spokesman said they had enjoyed the ads themselves and added: "Nike has contacted John Smith's and we are confident this will be resolved in the near future."