Our favourite campaigns: the work that still inspires our creativity

Creativity fuels everything we do here at EM. Behind every idea lies a spark, often inspired by some of the industry’s great campaigns from the past. We asked three members of our creative team to share the campaigns that continue to inspire them. From iconic copy to bold design, this is some of the great work that reminds us why we love what we do.

Ben Broadbear, Creative Production Lead: British Airways, ‘The Magic of Flying’

I’ve always been fascinated by how technology can transform creative ideas, and The Magic of Flying from Ogilvy One for British Airways is a perfect example of that. The campaign used digital billboards that reacted in real time to actual BA flights passing overhead. Every time a plane flew by, a child on the screen would stand up, point at the sky, and the billboard would display the flight number and destination.

What I love most about this campaign is its simplicity. Visually, it’s just one shot of a young boy looking up. The rest of the magic happens behind the scenes, through some seriously clever data and engineering. God knows how they managed to pull that off. It was an incredible use of technology and environment, and for me, it marked the start of things getting truly digital in advertising. It showed how tech can be subtle, seamless, and emotionally engaging.

Rob Sproston, Copy Director: The Economist

I first saw the original “I never read the Economist” ad (created by David Abbott of Abbott Mead Vickers) while studying marketing at university. I remember being blown away by its simplicity and precision. No frills or gimmicks – just clever, razor-sharp copy on a big red background. It’s not just the intelligent wit of the headline that makes this ad great. It’s about its confidence to speak unapologetically to people who want to be challenged and informed. The fact that it launched one of the longest-running campaigns in marketing history is testimony to its brilliance.

Subsequent headlines have included:
“Lose the ability to slip out of meetings unnoticed.” and “Not all mind expanding substances are illegal.” More recently the campaign has focused on the rise of AI: “Make AI worried you’re going to take its job.”  “Do you have an unprompted onion?” For me, this campaign is creativity at its simplistic best.

Pete Wrayford, Design & Creative Services Director: Carling Black Label

A Carling Black Label ad from the 1980s (created by WCRS) always springs to mind for me. The ad features a group of cowboys in pursuit of a thief, who displays superhuman strength to avoid capture – prompting the famous phrase “I bet he drinks Carling Black Label.” You think the ad has ended but the cowboys then ‘invade’ two subsequent fake ads – one for a love songs album and another for washing powder.

When it was broadcast back in 1986 it stood out because it broke all the rules of conventional beer advertising. Rather than taking on a familiar pub setting, it disrupted the flow of TV with surprise, humour and parody. By spoofing other ads and then crashing into them, the cowboys grabbed attention, made people laugh, and left the brand message to land as a natural, memorable payoff. The fact I still remember the ad some forty years later proves that when creativity entertains first and sells second, the campaign lives long in people’s minds. It shows just how powerful a disruptive idea can be.

Turning inspiration into impact. The best ideas start with curiosity, and grow into something powerful.

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