Agency adam&eveDDB in London has brought the Famous Five–a group of adventurous young children and their dog Timmy from the series of novels by English author Enid Blyton–back to screens for their first new adventure on Great Western Railway (GWR) since 2020.
Titled “Five Get There First,” this 60-second TV spot for British train operating company GWR begins with Uncle Quentin and Aunt Fanny waving goodbye to the children as they all set off for a day at the beach–Quentin and Fanny in their car and the Famous Five on the train. “Last one there is a rotten egg,” calls out Uncle Quentin as he speeds away.
Uncle Quentin and Aunt Fanny have a terrible journey with traffic delays, followed by farm vehicles spilling mud onto the windshield. With their view obscured, they accidentally crash through a barn–picking up a chicken–before careering their way through the streets of a quiet seaside town.
Meanwhile, the children have a far more peaceful journey, complete with lovely views, conversation and delicious cups of tea. By the time Quentin and Fanny arrive, their car is close to breaking down, and the children have already been there for some time. Finally reunited, Uncle Quentin and Aunt Fanny resolve to start traveling by train as well.
Merman and Not to Scale produced “Five Get There First,” with Guy Manwaring serving as director and Headless as animation director. VFX/post house was Glassworks Barcelona.
The ad brings to life the four key benefits of train travel–speed, sustainability, comfort and socializing–in an amusing way and celebrates the experience of train travel and the ways it is better than traveling by car. It aims to reignite the passion and excitement of rail travel around GWR’s beautiful destinations in the South West and South Wales in the post-COVID world.
This is the fourth GWR campaign to feature the Famous Five.
