Sure, there are more pressing things to think about on a desert island. Shelter. Fresh water. Why the handprint on that football keeps looking at you funny. But here’s me, thinking about Emmerdale.
And Specsavers. And Irn-Bru. And a schnapps ad that scared the bejesus out of me as a kid.
So, while I ponder what Bear Grylls would do in a pickle like this, here are some ads I either wish I’d written, or have just been taking up valuable space in my brain over the years.
Revisiting ads you loved in the 90s can be a risky business. But the Judderman passes the it-was-a-different-time test. Which is good, because it’s been frozen into my consciousness ever since. Maybe it’s the avant-garde eeriness. Maybe it’s that it really did capture how the long-lost alcopop felt as it juddered its way into your bloodstream. And hey, even though it’s been retired for a decade or two, it would be very welcome on a desert island night.
LIFE360 – I THINK OF YOU DYING
I chortled at this long before I became a dad, but boy does it grab me in the short and curlies now. Kudos to the writers. Hell, kudos to the client who bought it and ran with it. Real insight, super brave. Bravo.
Ads, of course, don’t have to be ads. They can be idents. And I love these from Specsavers. They’re cheeky and silly and pack a whole lot of drama into 10 seconds. Not a beat wasted. And not a pair of specs in sight. The magic lies in years of “Should’ve gone to…” being hammered into our heads. The king, queen and emperor of single-minded ideas that opens the door to all sorts of fun, like this.
IRN-BRU – THIS IS NOT A SOFT DRINK
I am a sucker for an Irn-Bru ad. (And an Irn-Bru, come to think of it.) “This is not a soft drink” is such a perfect, chef’s kiss of a line. It’s got that wonderful wish-I’d-thought-of-that quality to it. So simple, so obvious. But so very easy to miss.
Just a good old dose of fun. Wait, no. There’s no “just” about it. This ad does the lot. Heroes the jacket, calls out would-be wearers, keeps us gripped to the end. A gem that pleases client, creative and non-ad types in equal measure – as they all should. And let’s be honest, I could probably do with one of these when the island storms go all biblical on me.
Ben Tyson is a copywriter at Dinosaur.
