Work of the Week

When the former Conservative prime minister Harold Macmillan was once asked what the most troubling problem of his Prime Ministership was, he replied, “Events, my dear boy, events”.

Unsurprisingly, this article isn’t about the events of Macmillan’s six-year premiership, but if there is one thing we can take from this famous quote is that, when talking of events, it is unlikely that the last prime minister to be born in the Victorian era was speaking of the birthday kind.

This week is of course the third (or is it fourth?) act of ‘Partygate’ — the ongoing saga of leaks detailing parties at Number 10 Downing Street during the various peaks and troughs of lockdown. Indeed, just last night the Telegraph rep orted two more parties occurring at the house of Boris Johnson, on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral (wherein the Queen had to sit alone) no less.

This week’s work is fortunately less hypocritical than the goings on of Number 10, with much of the work not only staying true to their respective brand messaging but also understanding the wider contexts we all live in. Read on to see some of our members' finest work this week.

“Betty-Hoo-Hoo”, Domino’s and Engine Creative

A star is born! Domino’s new campaign builds on its successful “Domin-oh-hoo-hoo” creative from last year (the yodelling ones), this time bringing back one of the more tantalising of the characters within the plot: Betty.

Betty raised eyebrows last year when she failed to state her order in the first “Domin-oh-hoo-hoo” campaign. This time however, Betty is in charge, asking the other characters “Who fancies a Domino’s?”

The work lands because it reacted to a mystery of its own making, capitalising on consumer intrigue and being flexible enough to allow the reaction to the previous spot define the latest one.

“Look Away Now”, Dettol and McCann London

Two years into a pandemic, how do you keep up your health messaging surrounding germs relevant? The trick is to turn the dated category on its head, switching to a more self-deprecating tone and hitting reset on how cleaning products are advertised.

This is exactly what Dettol and McCann London did this week with “Look Away Now”, a semi-ironic campaign that lauds those that came before by presenting the ridiculousness of the dramatisation of germs.

“Welcome to Advertising Kit”, The Change Collective

A group of senior creatives banded together and created a set of hard-hitting ads designed to challenge and confront the sexual harassment and misogyny young people in advertising face in the industry every day.

The work twists the trope of welcome gift bags that new recruits to the industry often receive from HR, positioning them as kits that highlight the disparities and dangers each gender still encounter in adland today.

“RAF Air”, RAF and Engine Creative

Communicating roles in defence today can be a tricky job. Gone are the days of conscription, and today many of recruiting age were born in the shadow of the Iraq war. On top of that, the rapidly changing face of war means that there is often confusion as to what is needed to be communicated.

So when a campaign comes along that is able to simplifies the message down to its core: that the job of the RAF is to defend the UK airspace — it’s a job well done.

“Green Planet”, BBC and BBC Creative 

A fitting end to this week’s work is an honourable mention of BBC Creative’s Green Planet Green Park takeover. If ever was evidence that for every action there is a reaction it is climate change — a lesson soon to be learned within the bass-thumping walls of Number 10.