Buy Nothing Day, Advertise Nothing Day

By Hazel Last edited 196 months ago
Buy Nothing Day, Advertise Nothing Day
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Curious and curiouser: we got a tip-off from a mysterious source that the District Line had a distinct lack of advertising over the weekend. Could this have anything to do with Buy Nothing Day, which took place on Saturday? Those baffling adverts coyly suggesting you need more fibre in your diet - or maybe it's oestrogen or hair that you're lacking - all seemed to have disappeared, leaving the carriages refreshingly blank and clear.

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Buy Nothing Day was a 24-hour "consumerism detox" and it may have escaped your notice because the best way for participants to mark the event was to not buy anything, to refrain from shopping as a pastime or to purchase anything just because you had some time on your hands and a few quid in your wallet. Not exactly the marching, banner-wielding, rallying kind of involvement of Reclaim the Night which also took part on the same day but just as important.

According to the photos we were sent, at least one District Line train took part in Buy Nothing Day and was denuded of anything that encourages gratuitous spending. Looking closer at the photos, could it be true? Was this a TfL sponsored, active participation in this day of reduced consumerism? Can we believe the stickers? They are extremely convincing and yet... and yet... it doesn't seem very likely. Any more light you can shed on this curiosity, please share!

With thanks to Christy Malry for the photos.

Last Updated 26 November 2007