The Day Count Chocula Cried

Ofcom, the UK's media regulatory agency, is bringing the hammer down on "junk food" advertisements during children's programming.

The restrictions are much harsher than the TV and advertising industry had been hoping for but fell short of a complete pre-watershed ban that health campaigners were seeking.

The surprise is that Ofcom has chosen to extend the restrictions to any programme any time of the day that has an "above-average" audience of under 16-year-olds.

It had previously been focusing on a range of options for restrictions on advertising to under 9-year-olds and during particular time periods.

Plans for some networks to use their characters to promote fruits and vegetables have been pushed aside; the full ban will be phased in before the end of the decade.