Over the years, Guinness has produced some of the most memorable TV ads. And its latest is certainly a bold addition to the genre.

Shot in black and white, it is about a magical clock which can make time fly or go backward in some European town in days of yore.

But listen carefully and the soundtrack will begin to seem oddly familiar. It is from the Hatikvah.
Could someone have mistaken Israel for Ireland, home of the famous stout? Or did Julie Burchill have a hand in the choice?

But there’s no subliminal Zionist message. The music comes from My Fatherland by Czech composer Bedrich Smetana — from which the tune of Israel’s national anthem is borrowed