I hate to begin the new year on a party pooper note but P&O’s new cruise ad featuring Rob Brydon – an attempt to show that cruising isn’t all about being stuck on a boat – is like something from the 1970s, and not the good stuff.
Signing up Brydon – one of those many UK comedians who used to be ‘alternative’ but is becoming more mainstream with age – guarantees attention but he comes across as just another, well, boring cruiser. Reeling in one-time bad boy chef Marco Pierre White – whose main outlet seems to be TV ads these days – hardly adds a contemporary touch.
P&O and agency Founded no doubt know what their market is – or what they would like it to be. All this seems to do is guarantee a kicking for Brydon next time he’s on Have I Got News For You.
MAA creative scale 3 (we’re going to be tougher with these this year).
You haven’t seen ‘The Trip to Italy’ then?
That’s probably why they chose him for this.