He was the man who promised to ‘give you extra’ as he danced to the tune of Tom Jones’ Sex Bomb.
Customer representative Howard Brown rose to national fame after serving Halifax TV ads for eight years beginning in 2000.
But now, after the bank has been deluged by a wave of criticism for telling customers they can leave if they don’t like their new employee badge pronoun policy, some have called for Howard’s return.
The spat started this week when Halifax, which was proposed by taxpayers at £30 billion as part of a 2008 bailout, tweeted to his 118,000 followers Tuesday, revealing that the staff would allow staff to use their pronouns on their name badges. show, in a message that reads ‘pronouns are important’.
It showed a photo of a female staff member’s name badge, with ‘she/her/her’ in parentheses under the name Gemma, and said the policy was to avoid ‘accidentally misgendered’.
Responding to customers outraged by the policy, employee Andy M replied, “If you don’t agree with our values, you can close your account.”
Hundreds claimed they would boycott the bank, while many others said they had already closed their accounts.
Customers then called for Howard’s return. One wrote: ‘Bring back Howard Brown. He could teach AndyM a thing or two about customer relations.’
Another wrote: ‘Bring back Howard’s singing. The Halifax has gone to pot since he left.”
Howard, who won a competition to promote Halifax’s ads, left the bank in 2011, three years after his TV appearances ended.
He has since tried to keep his fame alive by appearing on the TV show First Dates and acting as a brand ambassador for a Glasgow-based start-up.
He was the man who promised to ‘give you extra’ as he danced to the tune of Tom Jones’ Sex Bomb. Howard Brown rose to national fame after starring in Halifax TV commercials for eight years beginning in 2000
A customer said, “Bring back Howard Brown. He could teach AndyM a thing or two about customer relations’
Another user wrote: ‘Bring back Howard Brown’. The star has not worked for the bank since 2011
Howard, who worked in a Halifax branch in Sheldon, Birmingham, beat 4,000 other candidates to lead Halifax’s TV campaign.
Howard’s portrayal of Sex Bomb came in his first advertisement for the company.
He was seen holding up a fish and singing, ‘Extra, extra, I know you want more.
“I’ll give you something extra when you walk through my door. Extra, Extra, though I can’t deny that. Conditions apply.’
Howard went on to appear in seven other advertisements for the bank, including one in which he sank “I’ll give you extra” to the tune of pop star Shaggy’s Angel.
He was also seen astride a giant swan while performing Gene Kelly’s Singing In The Rain umbrella dance routine.
Other users on Twitter also called for Howard’s return. One wrote: ‘Bring back Howard’s singing. The Halifax has gone to the pot since it left’
Another referred to former jewelry boss Gerald Ratner, who sent his company’s stock price plummeting when he labeled one of their own products “total crap.”
But Howard’s fronting commercials came to an end when Halifax stopped his television campaign.
He left the bank in 2011 after a stint in the public relations department.
The star made a comeback in advertising by appearing in a Hotels.com commercial in 2017.
On LinkedIn he lists his profession as ‘TV & Media Personality’.
Currently based in the West Midlands, he is a brand ambassador for Nude, a Glasgow-based company that operates a smartphone app for new buyers.
In February 2020, he appeared on Channel 4 show First Dates.
He met a receptionist named Bev, who said her ideal man was ‘Idris Elba’.
Howard Brown is featured in a Halifax ad. The role made him a national star
Howard is seen opposite another ad. The star defeated 4,000 other candidates to lead Halifax’s TV campaign
Animated: The company even turned Mr. Brown into a computer-generated character to promote its offers
The star returned to advertising by appearing in a Hotels.com commercial in 2017
He has since tried to keep his fame alive by appearing on the TV show First Dates in 2020
Howard, of Sheldon, Birmingham, said in an interview with LadBible last year that his first day on the job in his hometown after his first ad appearance was “incredible.”
“I mean, I couldn’t get in, they had to sneak behind me. I had to climb over the fence to get in, there were so many people,” he said.
He told how he was placed in a ‘safe house’ by his bosses after the publicity caused the establishments where he worked to be closed.
Howard said that when he was at his house, school kids knocked on his door and said, ‘Where’s Howard? We want to see Howard.”
The TV star also appeared in a Christmas special episode of Ricky Gervais’ comedy series The Office.
In his current role at Nude, he takes on the role of a ‘human cash mashine’ and gives away money to new buyers.