PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR DEBENHAMS

As the mother of a teenage daughter and working as I do in the wonderful world of advertising, I have always been aware of the airbrushing furore which has raged ever since the technology became available to marketeers.

Look at this picture taken a few years ago for Ralph Lauren, where the model’s waist and hips were smaller than her head:

I’ve never understood society’s fixation with anything resembling a stick, and an increasing body of research indicates the obvious, that distorted images lead to young people having unrealistic expectations of perfection.

This before and after image doing the rounds says it all:

I was therefore delighted to see that Debenhams is now refusing to allow airbrushing of any images in their marketing materials and is launching a lingerie campaign where none of the images have been digitally retouched.

It’s also a great consumer-engagement ploy. I’ve never been a Debenhams shopper, but seeing this news has made me determined to beat a path to the store’s door to show my support for their initiative.

Now all we need is for companies catering for a younger, more impressionable audience to jump on the bandwagon and inject some real life into the world of fashion …

 

 

STRONG WOMEN ON SUNDAY NIGHTS

Did anyone else learn about the War of the Roses in history lessons when they were growing up? I remember it as many years of fighting between the Lancastrians and Yorkists heavily featuring the likes of Richard III and Henry Tudor.

But there is a female angle to the conflict, in amongst all the battles, which was brought to life in Philippa Gregory’s novels about the era.

And now the lives of Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret Beaufort and Anne Neville have been transferred to the screen in a 10 episode drama starting on Sunday night on BBC1 at 9pm.

The White Queen is directed by James Kent with costumes designed by Nic Ede.

And it features a whole array of UA clients including Ashley Charles, Joey Batey, Rupert Graves, Shaun Dooley, Frances Tomelty and Caroline Goodall.

Here’s the trailer to whet your appetites:

I for one will definitely be watching, just the thing to take my mind of an impending Monday morning.

 

NEW HOBBIT TRAILER

I have to say I’m not very impressed with WordPress’ mobile site. I started to blog about the new trailer for The Hobbit on the bus going to a meeting, and instead of saving my first few words, it posted them! So if you are subscribed sorry about the weird email you must have received.

On to that trailer … here it is in all its glory:

Luke Evans makes his entrance in this film as the Bard and of course Richard Armitage and Graham McTavish are there as well.

Not sure if I can bear the suspense for another 6 months - the glimpse of the town, which I saw in the flesh on the set, brought back all my New Zealand memories and the idea of having to wait until December 13th is not a good one!

I can feel a long night of Tolkien DVDs coming on …

 

 

 

BUS STOP PRANKS

We’ve all heard and talked about consumer engagement, but how about this from Adobe with a little help from photoshop artist Erik Johansson:

It took place recently in Sweden but you can bet it’ll come here. I will be very suspicious next time I’m waiting for the 55 to appear … or will I be desperately making faces and waving at random parked vans in an effort to get my image on the screen?

Adobe must be pleased, it’s had over 12 million hits since it went live last Friday.

WALKING WONDER

Every Tuesday I dust off my trainers and walk the six miles into work in my quest to keep fit.

I do a lot of walking, pounding pavements, hiking up hills, and frolicking along beaches in any weather. And of course, as I am a 21st century sort of woman, I always carry my mobile phone. I say “phone”, apparently I should be calling it a “platform” as making or receiving calls is the very least of its functions.

The only problem with said masterpiece of technology is the battery runs down in what feels like minutes and there are never any convenient electrical sockets when you are on the go.

However, I have discovered what could be my perfect accessory on Kickstarter: Solepower.

SolePower is a power generating shoe insole for charging portable electronics while you walk. And brilliantly, it’s removable, so you can put the insole in anything from trainers to hiking boots and wellies. Genius!

It’s waterproof and weather resistant, simulated to 100 million steps and takes just between 2 1/2 and 5 miles of walking to fully charge something as battery-draining as an iPhone.

I cannot wait to get my hands on one when they go into production …

 

CHAMPIONING ALDI

Now as you may know, I’m a big fan of Aldi’s wonderfully funny commercials. Perfect examples of a brand understanding their consumer on a traditional platform.

They have one series in particular featuring “Dave” and Aldi’s answer to Special K:

 

And now Special K have taken umbrage to this cheeky brand comparison and have issued their own commercial on YouTube in an effort to discredit their rival:

The whiskers and ears are apparently a reference to Aldi being a copycat. Kelloggs said: They say imitation is the highest form of flattery and our internet spoof is a light-hearted way to bring our new recipe to life and highlight the point of difference against these products and show Special K has a sense of humour.

Sense of humour? I’m sorry Kelloggs but you will have to do MUCH better than that if you want to give Aldi a run for their money …

IBM SMARTER CITIES

After feeling excluded by Heineken, I was put back into a positive frame of mind when I discovered IBM’s new “People for Smarter Cities” campaign.

The company launched the three year Smarter Cities Challenge in 2011, an initiative which sees IBM collaborating with local governments to co-fund technology based solutions for specific problems. IBM aims to help 100 cities across the world address urban issues with $50 million worth of their technology and expertise.

Sounds good doesn’t it?

Cities have to be prepared to match IBM’s investment with their own commitment of time and resources, and a team of IBM experts visits each winning city and spends three weeks working with local authorities to analyse the city and recommend smart city solutions. They address  issues ranging from administration, citizen engagement, economic development, education & workforce, environment, public safety, social services, transportation and urban planning.

Then, IBM documents the experience and learning from each city into an executive report or case study and shares this on the Smarter Cities Challenge website – giving other cities and thinkers the opportunity to explore solutions.

Have a look at this brilliant idea for wireless parking in San Francisco:

To demonstrate the capabilities of its technology, IBM created the game CityOne – a virtual simulation of an urban city and the challenges it faces.

As a city dweller I am a fan … we just need London to jump on the bandwagon now.

 

HEINEKEN DROPPED

What is it about men and beer? Has anyone else noticed that when there’s no comedy involved it’s all heroism, drama and bravery?

And Heineken, true to this maxim, have developed an integrated campaign where a documentary-style series looks at what men are truly made of when taken out of their daily lives and dropped into the great unknown.

The first lucky candidate is lifted from his comfortable sunshine-filled life in Madrid and literally “dropped” in the middle of Alaska from where he has to find his way home.

Heineken’s global communications director, Sandrine Huijgen said we want to go further than inspiring men to be resourceful and open to the world … we are giving a few of them the opportunity to go beyond the borders of their comfort zone. “Dropped” is a social experiment that will challenge the participant to display their true character and if they do, have a legendary travel experience.

Said men have the opportunity to upload a video of their version of a legendary take on an everyday journey, and a winner will be chosen to feature in their very own Heineken Dropped adventure.

I’d love to have a go, being both a beer drinker and not averse to a bit of adventure, but unfortunately Heineken appear to have firmly got their sights on a male audience and, as a woman, I am obviously incapable of legendary behaviour.

So it’s back to the pink room with fluffy cushions and low calorie drinks for me. Sigh …

SAMANTHA BARKS AND HER BLOG

UA client Samantha Barks has joined the world of blogging with a new site devoted to her ideas on diet, fitness and lifestyle called Samantha Barks and Blogs.

Expect some interesting, insightful posts on healthy living.

I for one will definitely be following her!

And you can read Samantha’s very first post HERE.

WIFI MADNESS

Monday morning and something utterly bonkers to start the week.

Dtac, a mobile telecoms company in Thailand, recently decided to advertise its new moving WiFi service by attaching small routers to dog collars and sending the dogs out onto the streets of Bangkok. Pedestrians could then pick up the internet by sitting near said canines.

According to the company’s statistics, the stunt was wildly successful … but what I want to know is why on earth didn’t they just hand out the routers to people?

Maybe you just had to be there …

TIME TRAVEL ON A FRIDAY NIGHT

It’s Friday, the weather looks set to possibly behave in the manner we expect for the beginning of June and I intend to go home and relax before the start of the weekend.

And tonight I’m going to be incredibly traditional and sit in front of my television set.

Last year, UA client Ian Mortimer published a fascinating book called The Time Traveller’s Guide to Elizabethan England. Being a history fiend I of course devoured it and loved the vivid evocation of 16th century life in Britain. The book was brilliant and unsurprisingly has made the transition from page to screen.

Tonight, at 9pm on BBC2, Ian explores the fact that, instead of the popular idea of all Elizabethans being courtiers in fine clothes living it up in lavish palaces, many people were horribly poor. He offers advice on how to survive on a wage of fourpence a day, and examines the realities of finding work, getting around, and living in a smoke-filled countryside hovel.

There’s a great extract on the BBC website where Ian talks about medicines which include worms, mercury and the powdered skull of a man killed in war. You can watch it HERE.

And don’t make any plans for the next couple of weeks as there are 2 more episodes to go, unless of course you want to be modern and watch it on iPlayer instead.

SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS …

I never understood the attraction of collecting football cards to stick into books even though I’m a fan of the beautiful game.

It was the exclusive preserve of the boys at school who could not seem to get enough of them.

And now, for everyone who still hankers after their heroes’ faces staring up at them, Topps has the answer. The ultimate fan site has just launched a digital album of English footballers.

If you are that way inclined, you can buy digital images of the likes of Peter Shilton, David Seaman, David Beckham, Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker and Sir Bobby Charlton to stick in your virtual album.

It gets better though … instead of swapping and comparing in the playground, you can use Facebook to turn your collection into a complete thing of beauty.

Can’t say I’ll be rushing to take part, but bet there will be someone out there who is feeling very happy right now.

 

 

FROM CROWDFUNDING TO SHOPIFY

A follow-on from yesterday’s post …

Once you have successfully funded your marvellous new business idea thanks to crowdfunding, you need to get on with making your millions. Unfortunately you can’t do that from the site which enabled you to get your idea off the ground.

But of course, because the global community thinks of everything, there is a site that will help you sell your wares.

Founded in 2006 by three snowboarding enthusiasts who wanted to create a better way to sell their snowboards online, Shopify is an ecommerce platform that allows individuals and businesses to create online stores. It currently hosts over 50,000 online retailers, including big hitters like Amnesty International and General Electric.

Recognising that crowdfunding is a growth area, the site has cleverly introduced a specific free theme called Kickstand.

Pebble, which is one of Kickstarter’s most successful projects, has a Kickstand website where you can pre-order your watch, as does Panda the eco-friendly bamboo sunglasses manufacturer.

And of course, as you’d expect, Shopify has an entire YouTube channel dedicated to helping you out with those thorny technical questions:

Right, I’m off to start an online shop …

 

 

 

CROWDFUNDING MADE SIMPLE

Crowdfunding is an online phenomenon I think many of us take for granted now. Apparently it raised a whopping $2.7 billion in 2012 from more than 1 million individual campaigns, with the industry projected to grow to $5.1 billion this year.

I’m always browsing sites like Kickstarter and RocketHub to get an idea of the amazing advances in new technology which seem to appear every day.

And now Nesta have done something incredibly useful for all those budding entrepreneurs out there. They have created a new UK directory called CrowdingIn which gives a comprehensive overview of different crowdfunding platforms. And all the information is free.

So, if you have a brilliant idea, get on the site and make your millions!

 

IT’S OK EVERYONE, COCA COLA HAVE THE ANSWER TO WORLD PEACE

I’m not a cynic, but I’m afraid this simplistic, schmaltzy piece from Coca Cola definitely left me cold.

In the latest Open Happiness installation from the company, they set out to break down barriers and create a moment of connection between two nations, India and Pakistan. Their Small World machines, located in what appear to be shopping centres, allowed people on both sides of the border to connect in real-time, touching hands and drawing symbols together to unlock a free Coca Cola can.

The idea is to “unite” the two nations and bring them together:

We are all idiots, if only we’d realised the path to world peace was so simple …

DAVID BECKHAM, FOOTBALL AND NIKE

I’ve never been a Man U fan (my loyalties lie to the west), but David Beckham’s announcement last week that he is to retire really feels like the end of a footballing era.

However, references to Beckham’s amazing skills on the pitch have almost completely been drowned out by the commentary relating to his incredibly lucrative sponsorship deals.

The man in the pants has made himself a brand magnet, and I’m sure that companies like Adidas will not be regretting their investment of many, many millions of pounds.

In amongst all this furore, I came across an initiative, sponsored by Nike, which I think may well have found the Beckham of the future.

The Chance was launched in 2010 and saw scouts travel to 55 countries to watch 150,000 football players in action with Facebook the platform to spread the word and create a buzz. Just 100 players made it through to the Global Finals, where they put their game on the line to compete for 16 places on a once-in-a-lifetime training tour.

Great engagement don’t you think? Grass roots, global reach, social media …

Have a look at the film and see if you can pick the next footballer to become the richest athlete on the planet:

 

 

MAKING MY LIFE EASIER

It’s been a hell of a week at work and I have finally made it to Friday feeling like what I can only describe as a wet rag.

If anyone else is crawling, I have come across a gadget which could just have made our lives a little easier.

The Livescribe Echo Smartpen is not just a pen. Rather like one of those James Bond accessories it is much, much more.

Not only does it let you to record audio while you’re taking notes, it allows you to save and share interactive notes to your computer, iPad or iPhone via a micro-USB connector that also enables you to recharge your pen.

And the memory storage holds a whopping 400 or 800 hours of recorded audio, depending on the model.

Talk about multi-tasking – I could have been thinking about an agenda out loud for one of my many meeting whilst writing comments on a contract.

Knowing my brain though, I’m not sure whether I could deal with all that. Have a look at the demonstration and see if you agree:

DRACULA

Everyone here at UA was very excited when lovely Oliver Jackson-Cohen landed the leading role of Jonathan Harker in NBC’s new drama series based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

And they have just brought out a first-look trailer to whet our appetites:

In this take on the classic story, Count Dracula poses as an American entrepreneur who wants to bring modern science to Victorian society, but secretly hopes to take revenge on those who cursed him with immortality centuries earlier.

I have to say it all bears very little resemblance to the original plot of the novel, but it looks like good fun and just the sort of thing we need on our screens as the weather starts to turn colder and winter sets in.

HAAGEN DAZS DOING WHAT THEY KNOW BEST

I very rarely talk about traditional commercials given my love of all things new-media.

However, for all you Bradley Cooper and ice-cream fans out there I just had to share the new ad from Haagen Dazs.

It features UA client Jana Perez who, I have to admit, totally upstages both Mr Cooper and the ice-cream.

Might not be a ground-breaking digital experience, but I think the brand know their consumer-base rather well.

Let me know if you agree:

 

THE MELTING MACHINE

Why don’t I live in Argentina?

The soft drinks brand 7Up came up with the brilliant guerrilla marketing idea of placing a “vending machine” made entirely of ice in the middle of a Buenos Aires street where, unlike here, it is hot. As the ice surrounding the cans melted, passers-by could grab a free drink.

There was of course a whole social media element round the stunt, with fans of the drink invited to place bets on Twitter as to when the last can would fall from the ice. The winner received a free six pack of 7-Up.

Clever don’t you think?

HANNIBAL ON SKY TONIGHT

When I was old enough to know better, I put myself through The Silence of the Lambs. It took me months to shake off the terror I felt watching Hannibal Lecter in that cinema.

And now, some 12 years later, I think I might be foolish enough to go through all that again. NBC’s thriller Hannibal is coming to our screens tonight at 10pm on Sky Living HD.

The series focuses on the growing relationship between FBI special investigator Will Graham and Dr Hannibal Lecter, a forensic psychiatrist destined to become Graham’s most cunning enemy. And we, the poor audience, all know what danger he is in ….

Will Graham is played by Hugh Dancy and his trusting regard for Lecter was brilliant to watch in the sneak preview I got my hands on.

Definitely not for the faint-hearted, but if you can steel yourself, worth a watch as it has had rave reviews in America where they have seen the first 4 episodes already.

SHAPE SHIFTING PHONES

It’s my birthday today, and I’m wondering whether anyone will give me a phone that changes shape when someone calls me.

MorePhone is being developed by researchers at Queen’s University in Ontario.

It is a smartphone made of thin, flexible electronic plastic, and sandwiched beneath the display screen are a number of shape memory alloy wires which allow the phone to curl its entire body, or up to three individual corners.

Each corner can be tailored to convey a particular message. For example, you could set the top right corner of the MorePhone to bend when receiving a text message, and the bottom right when receiving an email. Rather fabulously, corners can also repeatedly bend up and down to convey messages of greater urgency. Like waving!

At the moment it is still a prototype, but you can bet in about 5 years we will all be carrying thin, paper-like mobile devices that flap around ….

LILY COLE AND BLACKBERRY Q10

It’s been a Lily Cole week for me this week.

I was in Selfridges on Oxford Street this morning at 7.30am with Lily for a photoshoot in aid of the new BlackBerry Q10 launch. If you want to get your hands on the latest model you have to rush off to a Selfridges as the phone is being sold exclusively in their stores this weekend before general release.

Being a tech-lover I was very impressed – all the features of a bang up-to-date smartphone with the BlackBerry keyboard. Most smartphones have touch-screen keypads only and I really enjoyed being able to type properly when I had a go. Much more like a teeny tiny mobile computer than a phone.

Lily sees BlackBerry as a natural partner given her involvement in Impossible.com, so we had a good morning.

Here’s a picture of Lily and the phone both looking beautiful!

 

THE GOOD LIE

I’m off on holiday this week, but thought I’d leave you with a good news story from UA.

Our client list is long and varied, and the UA website is a good place to keep up with all the news.

I was pleased to see that Sean Gascoine’s client Arnold Oceng is starring in The Good Lie opposite Reese Witherspoon after the producers conducted open auditions all over the world in an effort to find their cast.

The Good Lie is a feature film based on the true story of four Sudanese children who escape Southern Sudan by walking a thousand miles to the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya.

Ten years later and now young adults, they emigrate to America with the help of the UN.

You might have seen Arnold in the brilliant Channel 4 drama Top Boy and the feature films Adulthood, The Knot and My Brother The Devil.

He’s obviously destined for great things!

 

HEINEKEN

It’s not often that I write about a conventional TV commercial, but I watched the new Heineken offering this morning in aid of the brand’s UEFA Champions League sponsorship and it really made me smile.

The film ties in with the usual Facebook activity – the brand has a significant fanbase with over 12 million likes on its page.

The new content is a game based on the scene in the commercial where the Heineken hero shoots a ball between the two bottles in what we assume is a border control post. I was useless when I had a go – see if you can do better HERE.

The commercial itself is cheerful and well made - I think Heineken know their audience and have got their engagement just right on this occasion:

Right, having become a Heineken fan, I’m going off now to play their other game Starplayer in an effort to win tickets – see you at Wembley!

SMART GARDEN

I’ve returned to the office determined to do something to curb the effects of the large number of chocolate eggs which I managed to consume over Easter. Obviously a week of abstinence is on the cards with lots of salads and not a cocoa solid in sight.

I think I have found the gadget to help me on my quest – the Smart Herb Garden brought to us by Click and Grow wowing everyone via Kickstarter. Even if you have black rather than green thumbs, this high-tech flowerpot will do all the work for you and keep herbs alive to cheer up a boring low-calorie salad.

Apparently all I have to do is plug it in, give it some water and then harvest herbs. The plants survive on a nanotech material engineered to supply their roots with the right amount of oxygen, water and nutrients. Very clever I have to say and the ideal solution for when I go on holiday … although I’m not sure if I’d spend the $79 it would cost to have one of these in my kitchen.

Have a look at the video and decide for yourself:

GAME OF THRONES SEASON 3

As we seem to have entered another mini Ice Age, I thought I’d leave you with something appropriate as I battle my way up north for the Easter break.

So rather than fluffy bunnies, daffodils and chocolate eggs how about the return of Game of Thrones on Sunday night? Season 3 is set in a country I recognise from our TV screens as mid-Wales in March full of ice and darkness, or as the blurb says where “winters can last a lifetime”.

It is of course utterly gripping, so throw yet another large log on the fire, get the whiskey or hot chocolate out, draw the duvet ever tighter round you, and settle down to watch the host of UA clients fight their way through the next 8 weeks or so.

There’s a useful guide in the Guardian for those of you who are not familiar with the epic which you can read HERE. For everyone else, here’s a preview:

Maybe at the end of this season we might just see the first glimmerings of that phenomenon called the sun. Happy Easter!

 

IT’S ALL OVER FOR ME … I’M JUST TOO OLD

It seems to me that to get on in life now you either have to (a) get up at the crack of dawn or (b) become a teenage entrepreneur. I can definitely do the former but I’m now beginning to wonder if it is enough.

Yahoo announced yesterday that it has acquired mobile news aggregator Summly.

Summly is an app which enables users to easily find news they’re interested in. It displays snapshots of articles from a variety of news sources using artifical intelligence and natural language processing. You can separate the snapshots into customisable categories and it is definitely the sort of thing that is addictive and of course useful.

Wait until I tell you that Summly was developed a couple of years ago by Nick D’Aloisio, who was then, wait for it, working out of his London bedroom and FIFTEEN years old!

The teen raised an initial $300,000 of funding in September 2011, and a further $1.23 million a year later from such luminaries as Ashton Kutcher and Yoko Ono. Apparently more than 90 million summaries have been read through the app since its launch in November 2012.

Yahoo will be rolling it out under their umbrella shortly.

Note to self, put pressure on teenage daughter. She is obviously not working hard enough …

SAMANTHA BARKS

Lovely Samantha Barks continues to sparkle on her way to stardom.

She fought off strong opposition to pick up the Best Female Newcomer gong at the Empire Awards last night for her role as Eponine in Tom Hooper’s Les Miserables.

Congratulations Samantha!

Click HERE for her acceptance speech here’s an interview:

 

THIS THIRTYSOMETHING LIFE

I think a success story today because it’s Friday …

Ariella Feiner at UA looks after an author called Jon Rance whose short story, This Twentysomething Life, was released yesterday as a free eBook and is a prequel to his novel This Thirtysomething Life.

Not very newsworthy I hear you say, until I tell you that Jon self-published This Thirtysomething Life on Amazon in 2011 after his previous four novels had all been rejected by agents. After putting it up there Jon got on with his sixth book and didn’t give the fifth much thought until late 2012.

Then, he decided he really should do some PR, and after reading some other writers’ blogs, signed up to the Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing free five-day promotion offer.

This lead to a very pleasing snowball effect with This Thirtysomething Life eventually reaching the top 10 list of paid Kindle books.

Not an agent, or publisher in sight – just word of mouth and the global community at work. As a result, Jon was signed by UA and now has a 2 book deal with Hodder and Stoughton.

It’s an example I think of crowdfunding and shows that if content is good then the public at large will respond if you get it out there into the wonderful world of online.

So all you budding novelists, what are you waiting for??

 

 

SCI-FI IN THE KITCHEN

Does anyone know why large kitchen appliances always decide to give up the ghost at the same time? No sooner did we grit our teeth and buy a new oven than the dishwasher turned up its heels and died. And now the fridge which has been talking to itself is definitely getting worse.

My daughter is rather pleased about the impending demise of the fridge. She sent me a link to something which looks unbelievable but maybe the norm sooner than we think.

Yuriy Dmitriev is obviously a man of great vision. He has designed a cold environment to store food, I can’t call it a fridge because it bears no resemblance to that appliance.

Every year, Electrolux holds a global competition for creative design students with a prize of 5,000 euros and a six months paid internship at one of the company’s design centres.

Yuriy’s Bio Robot cools biopolymer gel through luminescence. (I don’t quite understand how it does that, but then I don’t understand how my iPod works). A non-sticky gel surrounds food items when they are pushed into the gel, creating separate pods. There are no doors or drawers, and the food is apparently individually cooled at its optimal temperature thanks to the robot.

Not only is it open, it can be mounted vertically and horizontally (even on the ceiling!), and can be modified to any size.

Sounds amazing, but I wonder if Yuriy has really thought this through?

How do you dust it? Can you wipe it down? What happens if you commit the sin of forgetting about something at the back and discovering a brown liquid some weeks later?

And of course how do you prevent children from keeping their naughty hands out of it? (maybe that’s why it has the ceiling option).

Although possibly flawed, I take my hat off to Electrolux and their engagement with young designers.

If you feel inspired have a look at this year’s competition, the deadline for entries is the 15th March, so you’ve still got time to submit your idea:

 

BROADCHURCH TONIGHT

Something to keep you on the sofa tonight and for the next 7 Mondays …

ITV’s new thriller Broadchurch starts tonight at 9pm and stars Olivia Colman as DS Ellie Miller, who with her rival DI Alex Hardy (David Tennant), investigates the death of an 11-year-old boy in a quiet Dorset town.

The series explores what happens to a small community when it suddenly becomes subjected to the full glare of the media spotlight.

Olivia’s character Ellie has to find reserves of patience and toughness to negotiate a professional relationship with the difficult and unyielding Alex Hardy (Tennant). And Ellie is also emotionally involved in the case because her son Tom was the dead boy’s best friend.

Costume Design for the series is by UA’s Ray Holman, it is edited by Mike Jones and the lead director is James Strong.

So, get that cup of tea (or maybe something stronger to settle your nerves) and watch. Here’s a preview:

IT’S NO GOOD, YOU CAN’T AVOID COMIC RELIEF

It’s that time of year again – Comic Relief. Things have been going on for some weeks now in the build up to the night itself on March 15th.

If you have somehow managed to miss the comedy madness and mayhem I think you should give Let’s Dance for Comic Relief a good go especially because not one, but two UA clients have made it through to the final.

Coronation Street star Antony Cotton amazed everyone with his tap dancing prowess(not only can the man act, he is a veritable Fred Astaire), and comedian Katherine Ryan did some serious enormous bootie shaking in her very energetic performance of Starships by Nicki Minj.

And here they are to cheer up your Friday:

Let’s all get voting.

THE GREAT OUTDOORS …

Working with the wonderful world of advertising as I do, I am the annoying person who is ALWAYS looking at commercials whether still, online, outdoor, indoor - if there’s an advert in my sightline then I’m there.

Research came out yesterday from Route, an audience research body for outdoor advertising, looking at the way we encounter outdoor advertising in this country.

The research was extensive, starting in 2008, and included the largest GPS travel survey tracking 28,000 people over a nine day period, resulting in the creation of 19 billion GPS records.

Eye tracking techniques were also adopted to identify the adverts participants saw whilst travelling, and included the measurements of 360,000 frames for road, bus and the tube.

In an average day someone will make eye contact with around 27 roadside posters, 14 bus adverts and by taking a trip on the tube, they will come across an average of 74 adverts. Apparently the average distance travelled out-of-home each week is 241km at an average speed of 19.94 km per hour and according to the research, men travel faster and further than women.

Here’s the film Route made about the project:

I think the research is interesting, but don’t we really need to know what place outdoor has in driving sales?

Is it key? Or has the rise in mobile meant that we are all glued to our devices when travelling on public transport blissfully unaware of the advert opposite us on the tube (unless you are me of course).

I’d be really keen to see some findings about that ….

 

 

JAMES MCAVOY IS MACBETH

Back at my desk and fully up to date with all the Oscars news. But far away from the gossip and hype of the red carpet in LA, is the London West End stage.

And gracing that stage is a UA client who is very familiar with Hollywood and the world of film.

James McAvoy is starring in Macbeth, Shakespeare’s darkest work at the Trafalgar Studios until the 27th April and I advise you to beg, steal or borrow tickets as he gives an utterly amazing performance as the tormented Scottish lord struggling for power, fuelled by ambition and paranoia.

The reviews have been amazing:

It would be a cliché to say that James McAvoy inhabited the part; also inaccurate. It’s much closer to the truth to say that he was possessed by it. Every beautifully rolled Scottish word, sounded like it had just occurred to him and issued forth that moment for the first time. His take on  the character, as someone composed of equal measures of courage, doubt and a dark sense of humour at his own predicament, was innovative yet true. He is no Hollywood star, trying to prove something. He is a supremely talented, consummate professional who holds nothing back. [Huffington Post]

You could say that he is always the man of action even when laying bare – in incisive and pungently Scots-accented verse-speaking – the knotty nuances of his innermost fears and torments. And the actor makes that seem perfectly natural in a gripping, no-holds-barred performance that will impress fans of his work in the X-Men movies and unlock for youthful newcomers to Shakespeare some of the poetic and psychological riches of the play. [The Independent]

Be ready, too, for an excellent and harrowing performance from McAvoy. His Macbeth is possessed with manic brutality. We often glimpse, unnervingly, the whites of his eyes and the sudden blaze of his smile. He is a man of action whose words go awol: he chokes on “amen” and the names of the men he has killed. [The Guardian]

You can buy those tickets HERE.

WE SAVED YOU A SEAT …. IN IRELAND

Anyone who has visited Ireland recently can’t have failed to notice banners and signs everywhere all promoting ”The Gathering“.

The Gathering isn’t a rock band, but an initiative to persuade the great Irish diaspora, which apparently numbers some 70 million worldwide, to return home (and spend lots of  money).

Described in terms designed to pull at the heart-strings of anyone with a smidgin of Irish blood in them, Ireland will open its arms to friends and family from all over the world, inviting them home to locally organised gatherings in villages, towns and cities. There are clan gatherings, festivals, special sporting events, music and concerts taking place across the country, all year long.

As part of the marketing drive, the fabulous Andrew Maxwell is fronting a very funny short film to mobilise everyone to pack their bags and get over to the old country in 2013:

I think I might have to pin my 1/8 of an Irish person badge on and get over there!

HATS OFF TO NORWAY

I read an article in Brand Republic yesterday which revealed that Norway is the most advanced nation in terms of consumer adoption of digital media. That means they are more engaged with the world of  IPTV, smartphones and tablets than any other country on the planet.

ZenithOptimedia undertook the research which discovered that 38.8% of the Norwegian population have digital devises.

And 64% of them have smartphones compared to an average of 44% across the top 19 global markets.

The top 10 makes for interesting reading. Norway is followed by France, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark in the top 5 with South Korea as the only non-European nation to feature in the top 10.

You’d think the UK would have been up there, but surprisingly we scraped in at a poor number 10, whilst the US was even lower at number 12 and predicted to fall even more by 2015.

Fascinating stuff and you can read an overview of the report HERE.

BBC PREMIERING CONTENT ON IPLAYER

Another example today of the move of all things away from television and onto the internet.

The BBC, of all people, announced on Friday that they have decided to take 40 hours of content and release it on iPlayer instead of terrestrial television.

The programming appears to be rather vague at this stage, with a spokesperson stating that there will be a range of content and the 12 month trial will start sometime this year.

The BBC have already flirted with piloting original content on iPlayer with Feed My Funny. This initiative made seven comedy pilots available exclusively on iPlayer and YouTube (several featuring UA clients of course), and lead to a commission of one of them, the hidden camera show Impractical Jokers.

And last year Pond Life – a series of five Doctor Who mini episodes, was downloaded 5 million times no less.

I see this as an interesting development, and maybe a pigeon step on the way to a world where we choose what we watch, when we watch it and on what platform. I am sure that the current TV scheduling will eventually become a thing of the past, maybe sooner than we think?

Here’s Diane Morgan  and Nick Mohammed in Games On from Feed my Funny to give you an idea of the format and high quality we can expect:

MORE UNDERWEAR BECAUSE IT’S FRIDAY …

Why is everyone appearing in their pants this week? Firstly it’s Beyoncé in the O2 commercial in a state of undress, and this morning when I got off the bus on Oxford Street there was a giant screen in the window of H&M with David Beckham running around in just a pair of knickers.

David Beckham is an advertiser’s dream. The football hero, giver to charity (he’s donating his Paris St-Germain wages to a children’s charity), keeper of the Olympic flame and all-round good egg is keen to embrace endorsements and at 37 obviously well aware that his days on the pitch are well and truly numbered.

So partnerships with Sainsburys, Samsung, Burger King, Adidas  and H&M are obviously vital to maintain his wealth.

The relationship with H&M is a new line in pants called Bodywear launched last Friday and the short film, directed by Guy Ritchie no less, is definitely going to make a splash as Beckham effortlessly jogs in just the said pants.

H&M uploaded it to YouTube on Wednesday and it already has well over a million hits. Interestingly the brand’s Facebook page doesn’t appear to have any pictures and very little activity but their Twitter account is far more active with 1.8 million followers.

I think H&M have hit the right spot making a short film – they don’t need a big mainstream advertising campaign when they have a semi-naked David Beckham running for them.

Have a look at the film and see if you agree with me:

MOBILE PHONES ARE TAKING OVER THE WORLD

I was having a quick look at Mashable yesterday (one of my favourite websites), when I noticed an article which said that by the end of this year there will be more mobile devices on the planet than people.

Plus by 2017 there will be more than 10 billion mobile-connected devices and mobile network speeds will have grown by seven times what they are now.

What does that say about advertising? Will mobile take over from television before we know it? Are people in ad agencies and marketing departments poring over the statistics?

I will be very interested to see what happens … In the meantime, have a look at Worldometers where you can watch global mobile phone sales zooming ahead before your very eyes. Scary stuff!

BEYONCE IN A STATE OF UNDRESS

As part of O2′s very broad consumer engagement strategy, the brand offers a priority ticket purchasing scheme for gigs around the country. So, if you are an O2 customer you can get excited about Beyoncé touring here in April and have the chance to buy tickets 48 hours before everyone else with O2 Priority.

Given the fiercely competitive world of phone providers, brands have to work incredibly hard to generate consumer loyalty and this is a clever initiative to persuade us all to shop with O2 - especially as their relationship with music is already so well established.

The ticket scheme is supported by the usual cross platform campaign from a TV commercial to tie-ins on Facebook and Twitter as well as a behind-the-scenes video available on O2’s YouTube channel.

I’m afraid I’m not persuaded by the TV commercial though – Beyoncé appears to have forgotten to put most of her clothes on and bears a striking resemblance to Barbie-as-Marie Antoinette (minus the dress of course).

Despite the glitz it is a rather underwhelming affair, but then if you have Beyoncé do you need to worry about the creative?

I’m sure her fans aren’t worried and I’m also sure that there will be a big consumer shift to O2 as a result.

Here’s the commercial in all its glory; and, by the way, Priority ticket sales open at 9.30am on the 21st February.

WINE, WOMEN AND HEMINGWAY

Who fancies a bit of hot Mediterranean sun?

Luckily we don’t have to go too far as the world premiere of Fiesta, the adaptation of Ernest Hemingway’s first novel The Sun Also Rises, opens tonight at Trafalgar Studio 2.

The play has been adapted and directed by Alex Helfrecht who is one of the creative forces behind Oiffy (the other being the incomparable Jorg Tittel). Fiesta fuses live jazz (courtesy of Trio Farouche) and dynamic choreography into a piece which explores the sensual beauty and raw brutality of Hemingway’s tale of love, loss and decadence.

Fiesta is set in the 1920s where American writer Jake lives a bohemian life in Paris with fellow expat novelist Robert Cohn, until the arrival of the irresistible Lady Brett Ashley throws their lives into turmoil.

Jake’s obsession with the testosterone-fuelled world of bullfighting takes them to Pamplona in Spain where in the sweltering heat they meet the beguiling bullfighter Romero and a violent spectacle unfolds. We are promised sizzling choreography, brutal fight scenes and cascading wine which all sounds amazing - you can buy tickets HERE. See you there!

In the meantime here’s the trailer to whet your appetite:

DAWN FRENCH AND THE DOG

This post needs no introduction, all you have to do is watch the wonderful Dawn French shining in the latest Churchill commercial:

The ad kicks off a new campaign created by WCRS which will follow the relationship which develops between Dawn and that dog.

Who’d have thought that a woman interacting with a large, fake canine could be so watchable.

I know, I can hear you saying I’m biased, but you have to admit she’s amazing!

 

COOKING WITH SAINSBURYS

What do we all think about Channel 4′s relationship with Sainsbury’s? It all started last summer with the Paralympics sponsorship and a new initiative links the two brands even more tightly.

What’s Cooking? from Sainsbury’s Kitchen is a lunchtime cookery programme fronted by Lisa Faulkener and Ben Shephard which will air every day on Channel 4.

Set in a purpose-built interactive studio at a Sainsbury’s store with a studio audience, the show will use Sainsbury’s products and the supermarket’s branding will feature within the programme’s title sequence, credits and on cue cards held by the presenters. The audience at home will also be able to get involved and ask questions through Twitter and Facebook.

Sainsbury’s describes the show as ground breaking – they are going to have to work hard to justify that label.

But this is or course the way I see television going: totally ad-funded content set alongside traditional commercials and the ad-break sponsorship ident we all know and love.

And the comment by Lucus Green from Superhero TV who made the series adds weight to my theory: The partnership between Channel 4 and Sainsbury’s allows us to reach out into viewers’ lives way beyond the TV screen. We will have a deeper relationship with our audience than ever before thanks to the huge number of platforms provided by Sainsbury’s and Channel 4. This represents far more than just a new way to fund programmes. This is the two companies exploring the arena of consumer engagement with a big budget behind them.

I don’t have any problem with brands paying to produce content as long as they are transparent about it, can justify the programme, and the production values are exceptional. Audiences are pretty discerning when it comes to content and I don’t think they would be prepared to sit through what could effectively be just 30 minutes of advertising.

The series airs at the end of this month, and of course I will be taking a keen interest. I am intrigued to see whether it will make a difference to Sainsbury’s in the battle between the big supermarkets for customer loyalty and if so, how will the other retailers compete?

Interesting …

 

GUARDIAN NOWNESS

I wouldn’t immediately associate the Guardian newspaper with a luxury brand website but I noticed yesterday that the publication has developed a partnership with Nowness.com.

Nowness is the editorially independent website of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and apparently serves as a daily resource for the culturally curious by premièring inspiring stories from the forefront of contemporary culture and global lifestyle, (in both English and Chinese interestingly). The Guardian’s role in the partnership involves choosing and hosting any Nowness.com’s videos it considers of interest to subscribers of the paper’s website.

I’m intrigued by this relationship. Whatever it claims, surely Nowness can’t be entirely independent, and what does it say about the Guardian’s readership? No longer a left-wing view of the world but champagne socialism running riot?

The commercial model for the venture is based on revenue from pre-roll ads to be split 50/50 between the parties.

The first video to feature on the Guardian’s site is a film shot by fashion photographer and filmmaker Jacob Sutton in the resort of Tignes featuring snowboarder William Hughes careering down the snow-covered French slopes in a bespoke LED-encrusted suit.

I discovered that the video isn’t exactly new – it’s been around for a year and here it is on Youtube:

Sorry Guardian and Nowness I think you are going to have to do better than that …

Let me know if you think I’m being too harsh!

 

THE START OF DEREK

It may be the end of January, and I was able to go outside without thermal gloves this morning, but I definitely still feel winter-bound and in need of some comedy to take my mind off what I always think of as the bottom of the year.

Luckily Ricky Gervais might just have come to my rescue with his new series Derek starting tonight on Channel 4.

Filmed in a mockumentary style, it is written, directed and stars Ricky and features great performances from Karl Pilkington, Kerry Godliman, Ashley McGuire and David Earl.

Set in an old people’s home, the series centres around the care worker Derek, and portrays the home’s staff and residents as unhappy outsiders disadvantaged, excluded and unwanted by mainstream society. There’s an interesting interview and behind the scenes film on the Channel 4 website.

Yet again we see Ricky Gervais confronting issues that are often considered outside the realms of the conventionally acceptable. I like the fact that he pushes boundaries and makes the viewer uncomfortable – he is still the enfant terrible of the comedy world.

So, 10pm tonight on Channel 4. In the meantime here’s a little teaser:

 

 

DIGITAL THEATRE

It was my father who told me about Digital Theatre.

He’s a keen lover of classic plays, but lives too far from any metropolis to make theatre-going a routine pleasure.

Luckily he embraces all things technological, and has recently found the perfect way to enjoy award-winning productions.

Not only can you experience theatre in cinemas. Now, thanks to Digital Theatre, you can download productions to your desktop, iPad, or stream to your TV if you happen to own a Samsung Smart TV app (I can guess which television my parents will be buying next …)

UA client Hattie Morahan recently wowed audiences with her award-winning performance as Nora in the Young Vic production of A Doll’s House directed by Carrie Cracknell and with Music by Stuart Earl.

Such was the furore surrounding the play that it was sold out, and for many reading about the awards was all they got to see of the production.

Luckily it is returning to the theatre for another run at the end of March.

However, if like my father you probably cannot get to the Young Vic, you can now watch A Doll’s House in all its glory courtesy of Digital Theatre.

I think this is a brilliant way to bring classics to us all. You might not get the live theatre atmosphere, but you can still see great performances and it’s a snip at £8.99 to own or £3.99 to rent.

Henry IV Part 1 anyone?

INTERACTIVE CREAM CHEESE

The world of cream cheese tubs is no longer simple. Gone are the days when we read the ingredients and worried about the calories. Now it’s a whole new ball game.

Philadelphia are changing our relationship with said tubs by “blipping” them.

Thanks to Blippar technology (see my post which explains everything), a tiny container can now deliver a whole new experience.

Blip a tub and reveal content such as the new TV ad, recipes, and even a game with the chance to win £200 worth of shopping vouchers by catching falling ingredients from special Philadelphia recipes with your shopping basket.

Bit like going through the back of the wardrobe, and of course makes me want to rush out and by some just to have a go!

THE BRITISH INVASION OF AMERICA

I am constantly amazed at the number of Brits popping up in high-profile US television shows as Americans.

The influx appears to be in only one direction though, as I’m having trouble thinking of one American actor over here who has recently played an English character.

Matthew Rhys is just one example of the “taking America by storm” phenomenon. After five years starring in the hugely successful Brothers and Sisters as a US lawyer, he is about to headline in a new high profile drama series called The Americans – about Russian sleepers operating in the States in the 1980s.

In FX’s new spy thriller, Matthew plays Phillip Jennings, married with two children and living in 1981 suburbia.

All is not as it seems however, as Phillip and his wife are really Soviet KGB agents, who have spent the last fifteen years pretending to be Americans.

The series premieres in the US on FX on the 30th January and hopefully we can all see it over here as well. There is some footage with interesting comments on FX’s Facebook page worth having a look at.

And here’s the trailer:

ANNUAL PAT KAVANAGH AWARD

I was having a look at the UA website yesterday – the home page is a mine of information with an ever-changing news section – when I noticed that our annual Pat Kavanagh Award had been bestowed on a lucky winner last week.

Pat was an amazing literary agent who died far too young four years ago.

The award in her memory was set up by UA and Goldsmiths University to reward the most outstanding student on the university’s MA course in Creative Writing.

Julia Rotte is the recipient of this year’s award for her collection of short stories called Cat’s Cradle.

You can read the full article HERE.

Congratulations Julia, and lovely to have a reason to think about Pat again.