Displaying 109 - 144 of 709 results
THINK! - Drug Drive Paranoia No-one should underestimate the challenge of creating a decent public information film. Selling your audience tasty ice-cream is a walk in the park when compared with the task of changing people's lifestyle choices....
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
David Cameron won't serve a third term as Prime Minister. We know because, he's just told us on the telly. Which is odd, as he hasn't yet won a second term. Many hope he doesn't. Anyway, there'll be plenty of time for political manoeuvring and...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
A few weeks ago, I urged you not to read my latest blog. So if you took my advice, well done, and I hope you enjoyed the five minutes of your life that I kindly gave back to you. If you didn’t, thank you for loving my writing too much. Note to...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
M and M Direct - Start Saving Quite how a catalogue clothes company manages to use that name, without falling foul of the chocolate people (whose ad we reviewed last week), I'm not sure. Perhaps it's because their ad is so anodyne and dull, the...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
When does homage become theft? And when does inspiration tip into plagiarism? Can a creative endeavour ever be called completely original? These were the questions facing a U.S. court, which last week found in favour of the family of the late soul...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I am excited. And worried. And excited again. It’s now officially the afternoon and I’ve done next to no work. Naughty boy. But why? Well, on Tuesday, I acquired a new puppy, and he’s adorable (see above). But here’s the...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Capital FM - Biggest Hits I'm not overly fond of Capital Radio. Over the last decade they've set about eradicating truly local music radio, and ensuring its replacement is nothing more than banal yammering. But what of their advertising? Well, not...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
“Superfast broadband is much faster and more reliable than standard broadband. It lets you make video calls, do homework online and stream music, all at much higher speeds - and all at the same time.” That’s what the Government...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I'm serious. Quit while you're ahead. Or rather, quit while you're not as far behind as you will be if you keep reading. Apart from its arguable entertainment value, it will not enrich your life, make you cleverer, funnier or wealthier. Or even feel...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Mars - Winning Yes, we all know they're much smaller than they used to be (Mars have admitted as much). But they're still one of the leading chocolate brands, and need the power of advertising to maintain that position. Fortunately, the Mars people...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Mussel meat A leading discount frozen food company is selling bags of 'mussel meat'. I may be wrong, but I suspect these are the unfortunate shellfish deemed too manky to be sold whole, and are therefore mushed up and flogged in a heaving mass. Good...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Let's face it, if you're going to have your face on millions of coins, you're going to want to be pleased with the chosen image. So let's hope Her Majesty is not going to be ordering any beheadings after this morning's unveiling at the National...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
McVities - Sweet Friends The image of two tough-nut window cleaners going all soppy over some soft toys is undeniably amusing, and that's what we find in the latest execution of McVities 'Sweet' campaign. Clearly a lot of time and money have been...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
A couple of weeks ago, we covered some of the commercials filling the breaks in the Superbowl - one of which came from Coca-Cola. That particular spot invited viewers to submit negative tweets to a hashtag, whereupon the words would be transformed...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I don't know about you, but I'm getting a bit bored of reality TV shows. If we're not biting our fingernails during Masterchef just because the soufflé hasn't risen and Mr Big Food Critic is poking at it disapprovingly, then we're waiting for...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Barclays - Code Playground There can be few things more important to a kid's education right now, than teaching them code. Whilst nothing is guaranteed, it's surely their best bet for a productive career in later life. So Barclays have launched an...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
A few years ago, the politician and journalist Matthew Parris made a film for Channel 4’s ‘Without Walls’ strand, in which he declared public relations to be an utterly pointless industry, without merit or use. He was forced to eat...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Jackpot Joy - Bus Stop There's so much to baffle me here (which leads me to suspect these people are not really addressing me). Does Barbara Windsor really need money so badly that she's forced to appear in online bingo ads? Can't Eastenders give...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Whenever financial commentators comment on the fiscal possibilities of social media, the focus falls of Facebook. Understandable, I suppose. A fifth of the world's population has an account and the whole platform seems permanently balanced between...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
So, it looks we have a winner in the Eton versus Harrow battle. Yes, Eddie Redmayne toddled off with the BAFTA for Best Actor last night, leaving Benedict Cumberbatch with a more enigmatic expression of stiff-upper-lippedness than ever. Oh, sure, I...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Jamie Casino - Casino's Law It's hard to overstate the importance of the Superbowl to Americans. Ostensibly a sports final, it's actually a televisual event which unites the country annually - and the commercial breaks are just as important as the...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
The golden age of the pop video brought us a buffet of treats, didn’t it? Who could forget Simon Le Bon lashed to a windmill sail in ‘Wild Boys’? Or Paula Abdul flirty dancing with a cartoon cat in ‘Opposites Attract’....
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
There's something I don't like. 'Quelle surprise!' (that's your actual French) I hear you cry. It's when people start emails off like this: Ashley. Blah blah blah. Message message message. J. Now, for all I know they might not have been frowning...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Persil - Dual Action Mums Agency: TMW | Executive Producer: Kate Myles Who does the washing? Women do! Of course they do! This is the 1950s after all. No, hang on, it's 2015 - and women still do the washing, but they're cool women now. Not only are...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Think back about fifteen years or so, and you'll probably see yourself slowly (very slowly) browsing the internet on your dial-up connection, looking at websites and thinking 'I've gotta get myself one of those'. If you're a designer or art director,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
It's Monday morning. Email hell beckons. I've got my Creativepool blog to write but I do also need to try and whittle down the daily glut of Groupons, StumbleUpons, Voucherclouds, More Groupons, and LinkedIn's “congratulate Billy-Bob on his new...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Why do they bother? Politicians, I mean - and specifically their ideas concerning technology. Because each and every time they open their mouths on the subject, they make utter fools of themselves. A shining example of this idiocy appeared last...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I rarely, if ever, blog about television programmes I happen to like - largely because it would be a bit off-brief if I did. This is, after all, a blog that is specifically supposed to appeal to Creativepoolers, with features, advice or opinions on...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
eHarmony - Popcorn There's some furious competition between TV dating sites right now, and that means a plethora of TV ads. One campaign simply shows happy daters on happy dates, but eHarmony have gone more leftfield, using a bizarre scenario to...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Something extraordinary has happened to me. Not a new brand of tea bag I rather like, but something properly extraordinary. As you'll know, almost a week ago, armed men stormed the offices of the French magazine Charlie Hebdo; shooting and killing...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Today, one of the great British brands is celebrating its 100th birthday: Ladybird, publishers of children's books with an instantly recognisable format and feel, and - during the Second World War - absolutely identical in terms of number of...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Warner Brothers - 'American Sniper' All too often, ads for movies contain too much information and far too much of the movie itself. In short, they're a bit desperate. But this is much more like it. Lean, intriguing but giving little of the story...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Ah! There you are. I trust the festivities were kind to you? But now, here's 2015 in all its fresh-faced glory. Swollen with potential and pitfalls, what will this new year bring? Frankly, I have no idea - but I do know there are a few troublesome...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Hello and happy new diet to you. No? Happy new gym membership, maybe. Not that either? Happy new I’m-only-drinking-alcohol-at-the-weekend. Getting warmer? Or perhaps the number one aim in the Land of You is get a happy new job. If so, good...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Iceland, Peter Andre: When this low-market frozen food retailer had the strapline 'That's why Mums go to Iceland', they attracted enormous condemnation from those who pointed out, quite rightly, it was very sexist. They need worry no longer, for now...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I'm not a hipster. That particular role is denied to me thanks to my great age, and my inability to grow a thick bushy beard. But that doesn't mean I can't have a little taste of the hipster world. So last weekend, I headed for the achingly...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw