‘Recorded any new podcasts lately?’
I get asked this a few times every week.
The askees range from college attendees to retired adman.
As I pick the people I interview, they seem as famous as The Beatles to me, but they’re often unknown to the askees.
After offering up a name and watching a blank expression appear, I reach for a quick handle, something from culture that I think they’ll know.
Occasionally it’s an ad fact; ‘Set Up Fallon before his name was lopped off’ (Tom McElligott), but it’s better if it’s something that’s escaped from the pages of Campaign and the various awards annuals and seeped into the culture.
A good test is whether it would pique the interest of your parents.
For example, mine wouldn’t be fussed about who founded Fallon, but they might be interested in the bloke who ‘Created those Smash Martians and Cresta Bear ads, yet wasn’t John Webster‘ (Chris Wilkins), or the ‘Typographer who used to be in a band with David Bowie‘ (Dave Wakefield) or maybe the guy who ‘Shot all those Gary Lineker Walker’s ads’ (Paul Weiland).
Should I bump into another askee before I post this, and they haven’t heard the name Trevor Beattie, the problem wouldn’t be trying to think of a cultural link they may know, it will be trying to figure out which one is most relevant to the person in front of me.
I could create a very bespoke answer.
Because Trevor seems to have had a disproportionate amount of brushes with popular culture.
Here’s a few that spring to mind:
He went to school with UB40.
Worked for the bloke who wrote the R-Whites ‘Secret Lemonade Drinker’.
Did those Weetabix ‘Skinhead’ ads.
Got Bob Hoskins to do the voiceover.
Hired by the guy who wrote Campari’s ‘No, Luton Airport’.
Wrote those ads where people turn into Bertie Bassett.
Created an Irish Tourist Board campaign featuring Wendy Craig and Billy Beaumont.
Wrote ‘Cats Like Felix Like Felix’ in 1989 (it’s still used).
Discovered Holly Willoughby for Pretty Polly ad.
Wrote ‘Hello Boys’.
Shot with Hugh Hudson.
Did that ‘Cometh The Hour’ David Beckham ad.
Created that F.C.U.K. campaign.
Owns the biggest Muhummad Ali collection in the world.
Did a Unicef ad with Nelson Mandela.
Persuaded Chris Cunningham to direct his first commercial.
Shot an ad with David Lynch.
Used John Shuttleworth for Yorkshire Tea ads.
Rewrote Lionel Bart’s ‘Food, Glorious Food’ for McCain’s ad.
Pays for hundreds Veterans to go back to the beaches of Normandy to commemorate D-Day every year.
Approved ‘Double Life’.
Invested in ‘Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels‘.
Bought the original Abbey Road sign.
Approved Peter Kay’s John Smith’s campaign.
Oversaw the marketing for Tony Blair and New Labour for three successful General Election campaigns.
Created poster for that film ‘Layer Cake’.
Hired Zowie Bowie.
Produced the cult film ‘Moon’.
Made a documentary about Rudolph Nuryev.
Produced a documentary about the history of the Spitfire.
Producing a film about Brian Epstein.
Trekked to the South Pole with Buzz Aldrin.
Produced a documentary about Thalidomide (Attacking The Devil).
With Harold Evans.
Going to space in 2020.
(At the time of writing he’s desperately trying to make a film about Hilda Ogden.)
We had a great chat, hope you enjoy it.
MOSELEY SCHOOL OF ART.
ALLEN BRADY MARSH.
Weetabix.
AYER BARKER.
D.E.R.
Sharp.
Irish Tourist Board.
Wisdom Toothbrushes.
Basset’s.
Savlon.
BMP/DAVIDSON PEARCE.
Power Tool.
Felix Cat Food.
Bosch.
HOLMES KNIGHT RITCHIE.
Dyno-Rod.
TBWA.
Baby Bio.
World Wildlife Fund.
Wonderbra.
Nissan.
National Canine Defence League.
Playstation.
Sunday Trading.
Adidas.
TBWA.
Channel 5.
F.C.U.K.
Nicole Farhi.
Pretty Polly.
Labour.
Cadbury’s.
AS CREATIVE DIRECTOR.
John Smith’s Bitter.
The Tate Gallery.
Adidas.
Pretty Poly.
Playstation 2.
Waterstones.
The Sun.
Bic.
The Big Issue.
BEATTIE McGUINNESS BUNGAY.
First Choice Holidays.
Carling.
Christian Aid.
McCain.
Heinz.
Walls.
Yorkshire Tea.
The Independent.
Pretty Polly.
Taylor’s of Harrogate.
P.R.
FILM.
‘Layer Cake’ posters.
Nureyev Doc.
‘Moon’.
‘Spitfire’ Doc.
‘Attacking The Devil’ Doc.
‘Dating Eliza’ Short Film.
THE JACK & ADA FOUNDATION.
THE BANK OF MUM & DAD.
THE RACE TO SPACE.
TREVOR &…
Dickie…
Ali…
Nelson…
Buzz…
Duncan…
TREVOR’S STUFF.
THE ALI EXHIBITION.
THE BEATLE’S COLLECTION.
Enjoy your trip Trev… I met Jim Lovell in Lovell’s restaurant in Lake Forest, Illinois, and as he shook my hand I said i’d seen a spaceman’s underpants in the London Science Museum, so i asked him how he shat in space. his answer was… very carefully
Really interesting episode Dave. Great questions.
Fascinating insight… I didn’t know about the space / film interests & work. I remember going into TBWA to show my book following university, I was told that they hadn’t hired a team for 18 months. I gave up that dream job . Thanks Trev! Is breaking in any less competitive now? ‘People want to work for google’ instead as Trevor suggests?
…I didn’t really know what to expect but that turned out to be one of your most inspirational podcasts yet…I was a big Peter Marsh fan too but I kept that quiet as a young creative at BBH…just in case.
That’s weird?
I didn’t say that?
Why has it come out as me?
I’m guessing it’s Mark Denton? (There’s not a big overlap in the Venn diagram ‘Worked at BBH’ and ‘Liked Peter Marsh’.
Mark?
Dx
Trev. A top man and a decent short leg fielder. That was a great podcast, thanks.