Maybe campaign goes youth again
Marlboro’s Maybe campaign has re-introduced youth (possibly heading toward the boundaries of legality again with the advertising authorities in Germany). A ‘Maybe’ may not fall in love, it seems. The couple featured in the advertisement (left), seem to be spending romantic time out of doors. Maybe they have emerged after some physicality, giving the unshaven man some time to light up and demonstrate to his beloved that he does not intend to live long. Lovely sunrise, though.
Meanwhile, JSP seems to have de-emphasised the ‘glide’ technology that featured in their 
advertising towards the end of last year. They are just going for the no additives approach. The poster is a bit dull; I spotted this one through a snow covered roof at ‘sunrise’. Not a romantic location at all.
Finally, Pall Mall continues its advertising spend. I have not seen any big posters recently, but the ubiquitous cigarette machines are clearly suitable locations. This one captured today at Munich Airport (left). The spring flowers make a nice touch.
David Cameron’s speech on Europe
Long anticipated and it did not disappoint. It takes a lot to be criticised by former Prime Minister, Tony Blair, but Cameron has elicited a damning response.
“I think it’s a huge worry in circumstances where you put on the agenda the prospect of Britain leaving. Why would we do that? We don’t yet know what we are proposing, or what we can get negotiated. We don’t yet know what the rest of Europe is going to propose. This referendum will happen in four or five years time, if the Conservatives were re-elected. Why not wait and see what we actually get out of this, play our part in shaping the new Europe, but why be in the situation where now you are putting on the table the prospect, four or five years time, of Britain leaving so that we can no longer answer the question, when we are negotiating, is Britain going to stay a member of the European Union or not? We can’t answer that question any more.” (drawn from Andrew Sparrow’s Guardian blog).
Let us unpick that. We – and anyone who trades with us or invests in the country – no longer know if the UK will stay in the European Union. Should the Conservatives win the next election, that will represent at least 5 years or so of uncertainty. It will precipitate the end of the Union between England and Scotland, putting back on track the campaign north of the border to break free, even though an independent Scotland would need to reapply for membership to the EU (until now a disincentive to break free).
Why is David Cameron such a poor strategist? Even though many in his party – and many outside – loathe the EU, the EU remains the largest trading bloc for the UK. That is strategically significant.It is also the case, that a lot of what these people dislike are good things like the working time directive; 48 hours per day is long enough for anyone to work per week. There is a lot that is wrong, but Cameron has now dug in even deeper and diminished the UK’s influence over what is wrong. Not only will the UK not support efforts in Europe to support the Euro (see post: https://weiterzugehen.net/2011/12/10/26-to-1/), but now we are effectively leaving. On that basis, why negotiate with the UK? Moreover, as Blair said in his response, threaten to leave and someone will say “go on then”.
I had to laugh (though it was a painful speech to listen to) when he said that transport metaphors should be dispensed with – cast into some waste bin, only to serve up a platter full of them himself as he ‘progressed’. Astonishing.
Onward Marlboro Maybe
Filed under: Cigarette advertising | Tags: Germany, marlboro, maybe
Comments (2) 
The Maybe campaign goes on. New for 2013 is the poster on the left. In Marlboro Country, no doubt, the occupants of a car on the freeway gesture. I had to look up what the gesture actually means. It is called the Corna and seemingly has modern satanic origins; though in this poster it is more likely to mean “rock on”. If seen at a football match it may be an unpleasant gesture to the referee.
Suffice to say, the occupants of this vehicle are not ‘maybe’ers’. They know what they are about. Maybe.
Hand gesture info from http://www.languagetrainers.co.uk
Kate Windsor’s portrait
Filed under: Art, Royal Watching | Tags: Kate Windsor, royal portraiture
Leave a Comment The newly unveiled portrait of Kate Windor has proved to be quite a talking point. As usual with these matters. The subjects themselves are always delighted with the result. The Royal loyalists are always disappointed. The artists are castigated for being unfair; they present a distortion of reality, the true person.
Whilst this new portrait is as near as a photograph one is likely to get, the comments remain that it makes her look old; or as the Sun newspaper put it, looking like Ian Botham, former England cricketer (cue opportunity to post a picture of Ian Botham onto the newspaper’s website). It is also the fault, it seems, of the National Portrait Gallery for promoting the use of photographs by artists. Also, bad choice of artist. In this case the artist – Paul Emsley – is very good at doing animals.
Mrs Windsor and her husband are, true to form, said to be absolutely delighted by it.
What is great about art, and particularly portraiture, is that we get an opportunity to see the sitter through the eyes of another. I’m no artist, but I have been a life model and seen many depictions of my own body; I was always fascinated at how different emphases, light, angle, colour, perspective, etc., impacted on the outcome. It is not for me to say whether the likeness was true. In this case, if the artist thinks Kate Windsor has bags under he eyes and and Ian Botham’s nose then she has. I was not there when she sat for the artist, nor have I seen the photographs that he used.
Artists are artists because they see what most of us do not see – or in Kate Windsor’s case – be allowed to see stripped of normal media management. If I had the opportunity to talk to Paul Emsley I would be inclined to say that I do not really like his portrait because I cannot see the point in hyper-reality. But even then, Emsley has subverted the perfection of the Kate Windsor fascade. That seems to be a problem for the ‘critics’. But that is the point of art.
Picture: screengrab, Sky News
Why the release of a music track is not an event
Filed under: Journalism and News Reportage, Music | Tags: Bowie, online music marketing
Comments (1) 
I woke up yesterday morning to the Today programme on Radio 4 as usual to the ‘news’ that David Bowie would be releasing a new single at 0715 and that I would be one of the first to hear it if I stayed tuned. David Bowie is one of the formative characters in my life. I was listening to him and buying both singles and albums from the age of 12. Though I have never seen him play live (coming from Hull, that is not surprising). The release of a new single (and video viewable on youtube) is of interest, especially as I am informed that the song has references to Berlin and hence his most creative period in the 1970s.
It worked a dream – the newspapers are full of it; Radio 4 had another go this morning with a couple of eminent fans eulogising Bowie much to the incredulity of the presenter, Sarah Montague (the story became more her incredulity than their eulogising). Again, whilst it is great to have some new music, it is not an event. It is not as though he made an appearance on the programme. It does not warrant the time given to it on a flagship news programme. It is again lazy journalism; manipulation marketing.
Radio 4 did not even play the song.
Picture of David Bowie by Photobra|Adam Bielawski, sourced from Wikipedia; screengrab from Youtube from music video
New Year’s honours
I notice that I will have to wait at least another year to be awarded a gong for me to turn it down. The list of people who have turned down a gong, in history, is not very long. The Wikipedia page on this is as comprehensive as they come (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declining_a_British_honour), but my admiration goes in particular to: Alan Bennett (a persistent offender), Michael Foot, David Bowie, Stephen Hawking, L.S. Lowry (declined more honours than anyone else!), J.G. Ballard and Jon Snow (who later did a Channel 4 exposé of the honour system to make sure that he was never offered another one). I trust also there a lot of more admirable anonymous ordinary people who have turned down honours.
This year, it seems, one gets an award for having got a gold medal in the Olympics. Whilst winning an Olympic gold medal is quite an achievement, whether it warrants further recognition is questionable. In the case of Sir Bradley Wiggins who also won the Tour de France – clean of drugs – the receipt even then of yet another award seems excessive. And surely, Sir Bradley, a knighthood is secondary to the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award (can anyone tell me how such a non-award became so ‘important’ and ‘newsworthy’?)
Readers of this blog will know that I have a problem with the awards system in the first place. This year it is even more even further undermined because of Sir Jimmy Savile and now not Sir Fred Goodwin, he of Royal 
Bank of Scotland notoriety.
It is time to end this nonsense.
Photo of Jimmy Savile source: JMB, Wikipedia
Circuses
I spent a good part of my youth picketing circuses against the use and abuse of animals. Heady days. To a very large extent we won the argument. The circus is no place for animals. Big cats, elephants, horses, etc., should not be in captivity and transported around the country or Europe. Very few circuses now touring the UK bring non-domestic animals.
However, as I wander around Munich over the festive period, I see the circuses are in town. Circus Crone’s poster is iconic (above left). The two clowns holding a crown with images of wild animals charging and roaring through.
Also in town are three other circuses, not all with animals. Circus Baldoni-Kaiser (right) bring their Christmas circus to the city, here showing horses but no big cats or elephants.
By way of competition, the City hosts the Chinese State Circus with captive dragons for added fire risk.
Finally, Sleeping Beauty as circus is performed by The Circus of Imagination, albeit in a theatre. I suspect the beast is a human in disguise? 
Spoilt for choice nonetheless!
For anyone interested in reading further about why animals should not be in circuses, Animal Aid in the UK has published a useful factsheet on the topic: http://www.animalaid.org.uk/images/pdf/factfiles/circus.pdf
Marlboro’s new approach; Gauloises genius
The ‘Don’t be a Maybe’ Marlboro campaign has taken a new direction presumably in response to the criticism it received with respect to glamorising the product (for and by young people). First they launch the bearded man (see post 1 December 2012) and now – in parallel – we have the defiant very old woman. She clearly has done something that makes her not a ‘Maybe’, though we have no idea what that was or might have been. Her defiant pose – fist raised – suggests even now she is not to be messed with. It is actually a great photograph, but I suspect not too many smokers of Marlboro get to her age.
By contrast, the Gauloises brand continues to lunch out on Paris. A couple of packets of cigarettes wander around Paris having a good time. Genius.
Hunting with hounds – get used to being prosecuted
Boxing day brings the fox hunters out in their pantomime clothes and claims of victimhood. It is true it took an awful lot of parliamentary time to get this long-overdue piece of legislation in place. There is a solid majority in the parliament and country in favour of it. It is right. Simple. Get used to it. It does not outlaw the fancy dress and dog walking.
The tactics of the landed class to overturn it, however, are evident. Just before Christmas that most traditional and conservative of animal protection bodies, the Royal Society for the Protection of Animals, came under intense criticism for having committed £300,000 to convict two hunters from the Prime Minister’s local hunt, the Heythrop Hunt. Scadalaously, the loudest voice was the judge at the case. Will the Law Society or whoever regulates these people step in? I doubt it.
Going to law, however, was a no-brainer. An organisation committed to animal protection and the prevention of cruelty (it is in the name) with evidence of intended cruelty against animals legislated against in law, should see those responsible in the dock. And convicted. The State was not bold enough to do it.
Picture source: Michael Gwyther-Jones, Wikipedia
Christmas 2012
I did not do very well collecting pictures of really awful Christmas decorations this year. So, of the four that I did briefly upload, I nominate the Christmas tree at St. Pancras Station in London as the least impressive. I wrote: “St. Pancras Station in London has gone for an unimaginative concept – cashing in again on the Olympics with this tree adorned with medals and a slogan about what a wonderful summer of sport it was. Even if it was a good idea to squeeze any more out of the Olympics, it looks a bit rubbish.”
The best is Munich Airport: “Munich Airport generally puts on a good show. Usually – and this year is no exception – the displays are secular. The displays are always above the escalators to and from the S-Bahn. This gives the opportunity to give the sense of movement. Left is this year’s, featuring lots of polar bears, fishing seals and a sleeping man, complete with snoring.
Merry Christmas to all readers – normal business resumes…
Be informed 