2024 was one of my busiest years freelancing. I worked on a ton of projects that didn't happen; some of these were pitches, some was simply work that failed to get the green light. But some great names - Irn Bru, Mandarin Oriental, Qatar Airways, Alpen and Google are just some. Here's what 2025 has brought.
Samsonite TV
Samsonite were back with more 'Seriously tough'. but this time with a glint in the eye. Created for TRP with Kyle Ross and Tom Markovich.
World Holocaust Memorial Day
These short animations hope to keep the Hiolocaust front of mind in an age when it risks being at best diluted and at worst forgotten. Animated by Lucy Bayfield and Mark Kuilenburg.
Clownburn
My first foray into fiction. Clownburn follows the adventures of an eleventh century Anglo Saxon monk cursed to live for a thousand years - in Kilburn. Buy yours here.
Cover painting by Andrew Gadd.
Easter Radio
For Easter, we created a radio ad riffing off the popular BBC show, Traitors. Video is just for show. The ads went out on Global and Bauer stations across the UK. Created with Ali Burnett and Mark Kuilenburg for Saltsellers.
Samsonite TV
I love working on Samsonite for TRP. I dial in ideas from Tasmania and Kyle and Tom turn them into gems like these
Pitches, wins and fails
Working with Forsman + Bodenfors, we pitched and won Betfred and Boyle Sports, though my ideas din't make the final cut. I did a second round of scripts for Google Gemini with the awesome Jospeh Ernst that went nowhere, again. Nor did pitches for Didi and Shine with TRP in Australia. You can't win them all, even if you want to.
Langfords
Explaining to care workers with limited grasp of English what their enterprise agreement is going to be is a tough brief. We created some little characters and made around fifteen short videos that got the job done. Created with Tom Smith for Commmotion.
21 Madison
Wow. What a huge effort for zero gain. Still, as Michael Jordan famously said, "You miss 100% of the shots you never take." This was my short-lived company, the aim of which was to add human CD polish to AI generated ads. Not even a Mumbrella interview could gain any traction. Zero enquiries, zero income, and an object lesson in listening to AI telling you "that's a great idea."
Mumbrella
In November, I began a regular two weekly column for marketing website, Mumbrella. Here's an example of what you can expect.
Church of England
Concerned that a carol service run by populist agitator, Tommy Robinson would be a repeat of his highly successful Unite the Kingdom march earlier in the year, the Church of England wanted to distance itself from the event. This poster made headline news in the UK and garnered thousands of online comments. Created with Martin Casson, painting by Andrew Gadd RA.
Saltsellers: Celebrity Dance-Off radio
This radio ad aired on Global's Heart stations across the UK. If you're a fan of Strictly Come Dancing, you'll get it. If not, you'll hopefully still be entertained. Produced by Mark Kuilenberg.
Bay Church: Christmas Copy
You've not made it until your copy has appeared in the Kingborough Chronicle! This was to promote church attendance over Christmas 2026.
