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Eurostar launches its drive for more summer travellers this weekend

with its sponsorship of Channel 4’s coverage of the Tour de France. The

push is backed by a pounds 2 million press, TV and radio campaign by St

Luke’s.

The TV commercials, entitled ’summer of love’, feature three couples at

different stages of their relationship on a Eurostar train. The viewer

is introduced to the couples in three separate 30-second ads, which are

each followed two weeks later by a ten-second epilogue telling us what

befell them.

One story focuses on a husband who is a worrier, but - despite himself -

has an enjoyable day shopping in Brussels with his wife. Another

passenger, Gavin, finally admits to his partner that he has a roving eye

and the pair end up fighting over custody of the cat.

The most romantic outcome, however, is for a young couple, who agree to

marry during their daytrip to Paris.

The commercials were created by Andy Lockley and James Gillham and

directed by John McFarlane through Great Guns. Media planning and buying

is through Manning Gottlieb Media.

MGM also struck the pounds 180,000 Tour de France sponsorship deal with

Channel 4, for which St Luke’s has also prepared 20 sponsorship bumpers.

The series is based on the film, Il Postino, in which an Italian postman

makes a tape of the sounds of Sicily for a friend.

In the Tour de France films, a man is shown recording the sounds of

France - including a moped in Paris, lunch in Lyons (he gulps down an

oyster while pressing his microphone to his throat) and ’Madame

Bertillon’s bicycle’ creaking across a flat landscape.

In a more esoteric execution, viewers are also treated to the sound of

brie melting. At the end of each, the words ’Tour France with Eurostar’

change to ’Tour de France, sponsored by Eurostar’.

The bumpers were created by Suzanne Hails and Alistair Campbell and

directed by Clive Richards of Syndicate.