Swearing Parrots Separated

As reported by The Guardian:

Five foul-mouthed parrots have been separated after learning to swear at a Lincolnshire zoo.

The parrots – named Billy, Elsie, Eric, Jade and Tyson – joined Lincolnshire Wildlife Park’s colony of 200 grey parrots in August. But soon after, they started encouraging each other to swear.

“We saw it very quickly – we are quite used to parrots swearing but we’ve never had five at the same time,” Steve Nichols, CEO of the wildlife park, told PA. “Most parrots clam up outside, but for some reason these five relish it.”

The parrots have since been distributed to different areas of the park so they do not “set each other off”.

The Sound of Real Food

This commercial is intended to be music to the ears of dog lovers.

Protect Your Shins

From Brazil: the best thing that I can say about this print campaign for Marluvas Safety Boots is that it is attention-grabbing.

ROM Buzz- Event Sponsorship

For the launch of ROM Buzz- a chocolate wafer with rum filling- Romanian chocolate brand ROM has come up with a campaign that is, true to its tradition, smart, funny, and audacious.  It is proposing a rather unusual event sponsorship offer.  It is offering to sponsor- hold your breath- cancelled major events.  Here’s a link to a video that presents the idea.

In addition, it has released a series of videos that feature direct pitches and reminders to the people behind very specific events such as “the tennis tournament where everybody dresses in white”. Each pitch is a delight to watch.

• Cancelled Football Tournament pitch
• Cancelled Tennis Tournament pitch
• Cancelled Superheroes Event pitch
• Cancelled Music Festival pitch
• Cancelled Football Tournament pitch reminder
• Cancelled Tennis Tournament pitch reminder
• Cancelled Music Festival pitch reminder

Last but not the least, the actual sponsorship packages make for interesting reading.

IKEA- Sleep Campaign

Looking to rejuvenate yourself? Rather than use pills, energy drinks, and anti-ageing creams, IKEA’s brilliantly designed posters make the case for having a good night’s sleep (with its range of bedding, of course).

Ads So Bad, Customers Want Refunds

According to this report:

In further evidence of the perils of bringing your creative in-house, a Brisbane car dealership has unveiled a series of ads so terrible customers are threatening to return their vehicles.

Zen (Season 1)

Right after I finished watching this crime drama, my first thought was: I’m gonna miss this.

It’s set in Italy and is loosely based on a series of novels by British crime writer, Michael Dibdin.  The title character- Aurelio Zen is his full name- is a police detective of Venetian origin, working in Rome. As played by Rufus Sewell, he is dapper, charming, and with loads of self-deprecating humour.  He also has “a reputation for scrupulous integrity” that, in the dark corridors where politics and policing mingle, isn’t necessarily considered an asset.  Over the course of three feature-length episodes, we see him work on cases that include murders, suicide, and kidnapping.

While the cases are unexceptional, and their resolutions rather facile, it is the journey that they take Zen through that is interesting.  Even more is watching Zen balance the constantly conflicting interests of the powers above him, while extracting his own little pound of flesh, so to speak.  Most of all, it is the characters, the performances, and the atmosphere of the series that I found utterly fascinating and which linger on for me.

The series was originally aired in 2011 but despite a respectable viewership (and eight more source novels available), was never renewed.

Here is a link to the trailer.

Uber Eats- Mark Hamill vs. Patrick Stewart

Star Wars vs. Star Trek. Baseball vs. Cricket. To-may-toes vs. To-mah-toes.  This new commercial for Uber Eats features a rib-tickling face-off. 

US Senator Compares Herself to Attila the Hun

A U.S. senator has just released this ad, that touts her as being “more conservative than Attila the Hun”.  It’s an ad that is bizarre on so many levels that it makes me question the intelligence and the sanity of those behind it.  It also leads me to wonder about the thinking of those who found it worthy of serious comment and critical analysis.

mycar- People First

From Australia: this commercial for mycar Tyre & Auto lovingly, and humorously, contrasts cars and people. 

OkCupid- Voting Campaign

After a recent survey, based on which, it somehow concluded that “voters make better lovers”, dating website OkCupid has launched an election-linked campaign in the U.S. that includes merchandise with a message.

Balthazar (Seasons 1-2)

This is a French police procedural in which the title character is a “forensic examiner” with the ability to make brilliant deductions that frequently solve crimes.  He also has a knack for involving himself in more aspects of police work than his profession might rightfully allow for, and has the physical skills and an ample amount of time to be able to do so.  However, none of that stands up to his most notable quality: his endless supply of mischievous wit, because of which, there is almost never a dull moment, when he’s around. 

Overall, I found Season 1 to be very entertaining.  The plotting in Season 2 was way over-the-top for my comfort.  Since each episode is an independent story, it makes it easier to watch as long as your interest remains. 

A couple of things worth bearing in mind.  Firstly, the trailer and promotional blurbs make a lot of Balthazar’s ability to “make the dead speak”.  It’s a personality quirk that he has these imaginary conversations with the dead which include hearing them offer advice on his personal life.  Secondly, there is an unresolved aspect of Balthazar’s back story that is dangled throughout as a hook for watching more of the series.  Even at the end of Season 2, the resolution of that remains unclear.

Here’s a link to the trailer.

Ryan Reynolds Narrates Hugh Jackman Commercial

If this tweet by Jackman is to be taken at face value, the commercial is “an honest glimpse” into a day in his life.  Regardless, the narration is creative genius.

Alternative link

Financial Times- Lost for Words

The new commercial from FT features a chucklesome compilation of business and world leaders, at a loss to express themselves.

The Hour (Seasons 1-2)

The Hour tells the story of a fictional BBC news show, set in the 1950s.  It is a newsroom drama with an ambitious narrative.  On one hand, it is propelled by world events like the Suez crisis and the Hungarian revolution, jostling for airtime with local stories of crime and espionage.  The more interesting and dominating storyline, though, involves the people bringing the news- their ambitions, compulsions, determination, and frailties. 

It is a fascinating mix that is made even more so by the rich detailing of the characters and the top-notch performances.  Even though some of the plotlines suffer from credibility issues, this is a very compelling dramatic thriller.

The Hour first aired in 2011 as a 6 hour miniseries.  It was renewed a year later, for another six hours.

Here’s a link to the original trailer.

Here’s a clip from the first episode.

Bravecto for Cats

The amusing silliness of cat videos packaged into an effective commercial.

Protect Yourself From 2020

That’s the basic hook being dangled by Canadian insurer, Mosaic Life, in its pitch to millennials.

Liquid Death- Killer Baby Namer

Continuing its uniquely extreme marketing approach, the brand has now come up with a “killer baby” name generator.

HBF- Holding Out For a Zero

From Australia: HBF Health Insurance has come out with an inspired reimagination of an 80s classic to highlight the fact that unlike other insurers, its premiums won’t be going up this year.

Link to 30 second spot

Link to 60 second spot

Burger King- Love Conquers All

Burger King’s latest campaign, to coincide with Helsinki Pride Week. 

A part of me wonders if a rejoinder might be in order: “I’m lovin’ it”.

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Social Distancing Teapot

As Britons return to offices, this witty new commercial from Yorkshire Tea reimagines the workplace ritual of “making a brew” for your colleagues.

The Good Bits

From the description on the website:

Impassioned words for passionate sex.

The Good Bits is run by women, for women… and anyone else who cares to join.

We are diverse, sex-positive, and anti-shame. We curate female-friendly erotic stories and sex positive writings, as well as supporting you to inspire your desire through courses and professional advice. And our new erotic podcast brings sexy to your ears. Because we believe in inspiration beyond porn—and we know your imagination is key to sensual, passionate sex.

And we believe that good sex stories make a better sex life.

Jack Taylor (Seasons 1-3)

If witty crime drama is your sort of thing, then this Irish series is worth checking out.  It centres around a hard drinking, wisecracking, middle-aged policeman-turned-private investigator, brilliantly essayed by Iain Glen.  He has an unfailing knack of being in conflict with the law, and attracting trouble and beautiful women. 

A note of caution: don’t keep your overall expectations too high.  Glen’s presence and performance is easily the best thing across the series.  The supporting cast and characters, especially in the first few episodes, are very good: they greatly add to the entertainment value. However, as the series progresses, their impact diminishes.  While the plotting, in general, is not worth writing about, some episodes have a rather convoluted narrative.

I’d recommend watching the first episode (which I thought was pretty entertaining), and then deciding if you’d like to watch more.  Each of the 9 episodes (so far) features a self-contained 90 minute story. 

Here’s a link to an extended trailer.

upGrad- Kick Ass, Don’t Lick Ass

From India: this ad for an online upskilling platform is one of the most crass and bizarre commercials that I have seen in recent memory.  It makes me seriously question the sensibilities of the person(s) who conceived this ad.  It makes me want to stay away from hiring any person who decided to do a course from this platform based on this ad. 

The Polite Type

This is a unique initiative to keep online hate speech and cyberbullying in check.  It’s a font that automatically replaces offensive/ hurtful words with more polite alternatives.  If it can’t find one, it simply blurs out the word.  There’s no better way to see it in action than to try it out yourself.

The Big Apple- COVID-19 Wit

The Big Apple is probably one of the best websites to check the origins of phrases, quotes, sayings, and a lot more.  It now also features a massive compilation of COVID-19 puns and wisecracks.  Here’s a short selection:

All countries got Coronavirus eventually, but China got it right off the bat.

And in the end mankind used so much toilet paper, they wiped themselves out.

Have you been traumatized by the toilet paper shortage? You may be entitled to constipation.

I never thought in my entire life that my hands would consume more alcohol than my mouth.

I ran out of toilet paper, so have begun using old newspapers… The Times are rough.

I’m deeply disturbed by how many people seem to see washing their hands as a new thing.

I’m excited that the phrase ‘get the f*** away from me’ is no longer rude but a PSA.

I’m just a girl, standing 6 feet away from a boy. Asking him to maybe move back another foot.

It takes a village to raise a child…and a distillery to home school one.

Maybe they should call it the Squirrel Flu because everyone is nuts and hoarding everything.

The buttons on my jeans have started social distancing from each other.

In Defence of Tony Abbott

Amid reports that the controversial former Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, may be potentially a trade ambassador for the U.K., the U.K. government has found itself on the defensive.  This clip from Sky News features a cringeworthy rebuttal by the U.K. Health Secretary, the low point of which was probably this:

Anchor: He’s a homophobe and he’s a misogynist.

Health Secretary: Well, he’s also an expert in trade.

Telefoot- The Foot

This dedicated French soccer channel announced its launch with this unusual tribute video.

Lay’s Bestseller

In the words of the company, this is “a totally inconspicuous hollow book designed to hide your bag of Lay’s from the snack thieves in your life.”