8 December 2006

THE ADVERT CALENDAR OF ADVENT: 8: Irn Bru

irn-bru.jpgI have to make a confession. I haven’t actually seen this ad on the TV. I can’t remember seeing many Irn Bru ads down south for a while actually, and I guess the sugary pop market tends to advertise when they can hit the kiddies rather than me. It is quite probably a Scotland only advert. However it did pop up on an inspiration finding YouTube search and, well, it is rather good. Irn Bru take on the Snowman.

Parody ad’s are difficult to pull off, though here it seems they have the permission of Raymond Briggs, as this copy of the Snowman seems spot on. From that it is just a hop-skip and a jump away from an Aled Jones alike* singing some slightly off words and away you go. But what is nice is that the animation is nicely expressive, and whilst the joke is obvious, the craft in the whole thing does give you a genuinely good feeling. A better feeling certainly than having to sit through the whole bloody Snowman at Christmas. One assumes that Briggs allowed the ad because he took is sick to the back teeth with “we’re walking in the air” and its annual sap-fest. Its easy to forget that the majority of the Snowman is a silent movie after all, with this song rattling round constantly. What is nice about this ad is that it feels more like a beer commercial, a Carling ad from the late 80′s rather than a soft drink. And that is exactly the attitude Irn Bru want. (It misses a trick by not including a parodic Coca-Cola truck somewhere jacknifing on icy roads though.)

*Indeed, just like in the original, as Aled doesn’t sing on the original either. He just cashed in on it.


in FT • 3,786 views

Comments

  1. pˆnk s lord sükråt cunctør on 8 December 2006 #

    i inteviewed briggs once — he is the WORLD’S BIGGEST SOURPUSS EVAH with KNOBS ON x 10000000000000000000000000000

  2. Lucy on 12 December 2006 #

    I only know of one telly sighting in Scotland: my colleague saw it one night last week. Can you name all the tourist attractions in the advert, btw?

  3. Old Fart!!! on 14 December 2006 #

    OK!!! Here are the geographic references
    1) Falkirk Wheel!!!
    2) Forth Rail and Road bridges!!!! (Blooper alert!!!! The rail bridge looms first, and then on the next shot the road bridge before the rail bridge!!!!)
    3) A brief flash of Edinburgh Castle rock!!!!
    4) Edinburgh New Town, in particular George Street and the Assembly Rooms!!!!
    5) National Gallery of Scotland!!!!!!!!
    6) Princess Street Gardens!!!!!!
    7) The monster bit is obviously Loch Ness!!!! Maybe I’m seeing things but as they turned into the loch, the “monster” actually looked suspsiciously like a submarine, so I’m wondering if that’s a reference to the base on Holy Loch!!!!!
    8) The Glenfinnan Viaduct!!!! But what is that steam train goinf across it?!?!? It doesn’t seem like the Flying Scotsman…
    9) Urquhart Castle!!!!
    10) The video screen at the top of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall!!!!
    11) George Square in Glasgow!!!! (Blooper alert!!!! They’re flying into the opposite side of the square that they would be coming into if they came from the Concert Hall!!!!)
    12) That church off Buchanan Street!!!!
    13) Glasgow City Chambers!!!!!!

    So, as you can see, it’s about as geographically consisten as your average episode of Taggart!!!!!!!

  4. ailsa on 18 December 2006 #

    A pedant writes:

    9) is actually Eilean Donan Castle. You can see Urquhart Castle in the Loch Ness scene though, confirming that it is, in fact, Loch Ness.

    Surely the train on the Glenfinnan Viaduct is the Hogwarts Express?

  5. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    hey kirstie ithink your greet andmatty is a gay bhoi

  6. guess hoo on 18 December 2007 #

    elo elo elo, matty is a gay hahahahaha

  7. BUBBLE on 18 December 2007 #

    IM FIT INIT HEATHER-ROSE

  8. heatherrose downie baby x on 18 December 2007 #

    x hey kirstie do u agree then x

  9. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    ov corse xD

  10. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    ithink i turned him that way bugga me x

  11. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    nahh hee brought it on hisself,an this bloody keybored :@

  12. heva rose baby x on 18 December 2007 #

    omg idunt care nomore :P

  13. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    ?

  14. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    ahahaha y talk ?

  15. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    ridge is fit

  16. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    o0o00o00oo0o yess bruvv (H)

  17. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    weno right lauras a lucky bitch then she dumps him

  18. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    init,ah wana bee er :P(H)(Y)

  19. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    ME 2 BETTA THAN MATTY INIT

  20. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    RELPY BABY

  21. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    YESAHH LOL,HEE IS NICE AND THAT HAHA

  22. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    AND ONIN ABOUT RIDGE

  23. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    IF U GET ME ?

  24. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    YEA I NO LOLNOUT AS IF YA GONNA SAY BOUT MATTY INIT

  25. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    YESYES

  26. heatherrose on 18 December 2007 #

    YESH BHOIS LOL:o WUU2 PART FROM TERORIZIN MATTHEW THE GAY

  27. mee on 18 December 2007 #

    erm about to terroizee you !

  28. Matty on 18 December 2007 #

    Ladies, ladies, please. Show some decorum!

  29. Alan on 18 December 2007 #

    last IT lesson of term?

  30. heather-rose on 7 October 2008 #

    matty randall i love you really x x

  31. heather-rose on 7 October 2008 #

    im gay and a lsebian

  32. heather-rose on 7 October 2008 #

    im only jokin im sorry a aint im straight

  33. matty randall on 7 October 2008 #

    is a gay twta who loves himself n dunt give a shit \aBOUT ME

  34. _\|/_sugarshot_\|/_ on 7 October 2008 #

    hey heather i love you x

  35. heather-rose on 7 October 2008 #

    nope dont care

  36. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    hey babe, i love you. xxxx

  37. it on 11 November 2009 #

    gayyy john

  38. it on 11 November 2009 #

    ewww

  39. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    wanna make out??

  40. it on 11 November 2009 #

    yeah but not with u

  41. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    y not? xxxx

  42. it on 11 November 2009 #

    i think ur the best big bro ever

  43. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    i think im the best guy for you ever. xxx

  44. it on 11 November 2009 #

    nooo i dont think u r sorry

  45. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    bi4tch, i want to kiss you. xxx

  46. it on 11 November 2009 #

    im not sexually attracted to u sorry go awya

  47. john travolta on 11 November 2009 #

    oh i think you are x

  48. it on 11 November 2009 #

    i dOnt THINK I AM SORRY BYE

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