A controversial billboard for Cougar Bourbon has been taken down just days after concern was raised by Perth LGBTIQ community.

The company has told OUTinPerth however that the sudden removal of the billboard was not due to the complaints, but was simply the end of the promotional campaign.

OUTinPerth contributor Claire Alexander raised her concern over the ‘Straight Up’ campaign highlighting the juxtaposition of a flamboyant performer, the phrase ‘Yes, You Do Look Ridiculous’ and the campaign’s tagline ‘Straight Up’.

Reaction to the campaign drew a mixed response with some commentators on OUTinPerth’s social media channels describing the campaign as ‘homophobic’, while others said they couldn’t see anything offensive in the combination of words and images. The campaign has drawn criticism on advertising industry site Campaign Brief.

While the billboard has been removed from the side of a building on Beaufort Street in Inglewood, it is still on display in other parts of the city, including one on Scarborough Beach Road in North Perth.

Images: Top Image – Claire Alexander, Bottom IMage: Graeme Watson