±±¾©Èü³µpk10

Ogilvy & Mather has launched a hard-hitting campaign warning of the

dangers of fireworks as part of the Department of Trade and Industry’s

annual safety drive.

The work, which aims to reduce firework injuries caused by hooliganism,

includes a cinema campaign for the first time, as well as press

work.

The cinema ad will appear in Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and

Glasgow.

The ads break on Friday and will run until 7 November, two days after

bonfire night. This covers the firework sales period, including the

school half-term holiday.

The posters target fashion-conscious teenagers by imitating fashion

pages in magazines. Young people are shown wearing hip clothes, and

style credits are printed at the side. However, the boys and girls are

all imperfect in one regard - they have all been maimed by fireworks.

The copy on one such ad, featuring a girl in a bra top with a scar on

her face, reads: ’Jacket by Puma, cords by Wrangler, face by boyfriend

showing off with a firework.’

The cinema ad warns the audience that they could be injured for life if

they hold or throw fireworks. A hand is shown holding a lit firework, as

young voices call out a countdown from ten. However the firework

explodes at ’four’, and we then see the hand with a couple of fingers

missing and the line: ’Blast off.’ Underneath are the words, ’Throwing

fireworks. It’s not worth the risk.’

The message will be reinforced by school visits from characters in ITV’s

Gladiators, and a retail campaign highlighting the laws that ban selling

fireworks to minors.

The cinema ads were written by Alun Howell, art directed by Marcus

Vinton and directed by Tim Pope at Cowboy Films. The posters were

written by Ian Heartfield and art directed by Matt Doman. Media for the

COI’s cinema work is handled by Universal McCann, while poster buying is

by Concord.