Don’s the star of a new glossy ad

Groomed for success . . . the Dulux dog Don with owner Maureen Pearson

EVERYBODY loves that big shaggy dog from the Dulux paint adverts.

And now that playful pooch is six-year-old Old English sheepdog, Don, from Royton!

While Don was in the birthday spirit he helped to celebrate another anniversary — 50 years of the Dulux dog — by filming a new ad, the first for more than a decade.

Don, owned by Maureen and Alan Pearson, is shown bounding around helping the people of Britain with their decorating problems and doing a few tricks he was taught by his owners in the new ad, first aired on Saturday.

Mrs Pearson said: “He does everything we ask and he’s great with children — but he’s very high maintenance. It takes me about a day just to do his coat!

“He loves the attention and we don’t get him to do anything he doesn’t enjoy doing. He gets lots of tasty titbits when he learns new tricks.”

He was originally spotted at a dog show by scouts from ICI (now  AkzoNobel) and they immediately wanted him to appear in the popular telly ads.

The TV mascot was first played in 1961 by a dog called Shepton Dash. It was thought a fluffy white dog would make the ads on a black and white telly, look more friendly.

Thirteen dogs have gone on to play the role and it seems stardom runs in the family as Don’s dad, Tom, was the previous Dulux dog. Another of the Pearsons’ dogs, Paddy, was the dog in Dulux’s 30th anniversary ads in 1991.