Channel 4 rapped for showing "distressing" Fear the Walking Dead ad during a kids' film

The advert, which was played on a Sunday afternoon, showed scenes with panicking crowds of people, a sick man falling over, eerie figures in shadows and people in bio-hazard suits.

Three complaints were made to the Advertising Standards Authority, who said that the content of the ad "created a build-up of suspense that could be distressing to younger children, but that would not be unsuitable for older children to see".

Figures show that Rango, a film about a pet chameleon, was watched by a reported 927,000 viewers that day, including 150,000 aged between four and nine.

The advert had been given the green light by Clearcast, a company that approves ads for Channel 4 and other commercial broadcasters, with no timing restriction.

The regulator has told Channel 4 to ensure ads that may cause distress to younger children were "sensitively scheduled" in future.

A Channel 4 spokesman said: "We take our responsibilities as a broadcaster very seriously and we are putting measures in place to prevent this from happening again."