Some Messages From Our Sponsors...

Another one of those days when I can't think of anything to post about - I spent much of the day on a hospital appointment, then waiting for my vision to clear after the eye drops used in the examination, (it was an opthamology appointment, to check for any damage done to my eyes by the high blood pressure and diabetes I diagnosed with earlier this year - there was nothing permanent, as it turned out).  So, as ever, I'm falling back on that old stand by - a selection of TV commercials from my youth.

These are from around 1973and feature an eclectic collection of products.  I have to confess that I used to have a bit of a thing for those Findus crispy pancakes, although that was in the nineties, so I don't think this ad influenced me, particularly the cheese and bacon ones.  Everybody knows the R Whites adverts of course.  They were showing this one for years afterwards.  The secret lemonade drinker's singing voice was, of course, provided by Elvis Costello's dad, a noted vocalist in his day.  It's good to see Dudley Moore proving that size doesn't matter.  Tobacco products are another of those things that can't be advertised on TV any more.  Which is a pity, as the old ads they made for them were invariably glossy and eye catching, selling you the fabulous lifestyle you would enjoy if only you'd puff on a cigar or two.  But celebrities didn't just advertise cigars, here we have Arthur Fowler from Eastenders helping to sell the new Allegro.

It seems strange now to see a car generally regarded as the nadir of British car design being marketed as a technologically advanced giant step forward for the UK automotive industry.  But at the time it was initially well received, featuring a much more modern design than earlier BMC/BL designs and incorporating all sorts of then advanced features as front disc brakes, which are nowadays pretty much standard on cars.  The Vauxhall ad with the talking Griffin logo is nothing short of bizarre.  Although more fondly remembered than the Allegro, there are equally few Venturas, Victors and Vivas left on the road nowadays.  Mind you, I've never been kindly disposed toward the Vauxhall Viva after some bad experiences traveling in a friend's ancient Viva when we were students - these included the windscreen wipers failing during a rain storm, the accelerator sticking while driving around the back streets of Bristol and acceleration so poor that I thought that a cyclist we'd just shouted abuse at (he was wearing Union Jack shorts) was going to catch us up. 

As for the PG Tips ad with the chimps - well, we aren't allowed to be even mildly amused by these any more on account of the alleged animal cruelty involved in their making.