In a conversation with Ogilvy Group UK vice chairman Rory Sutherland at Ad Week Europe today, comedian Jimmy Carr said British advertising was in danger of becoming boring, with clients and creatives too worried about offending audiences.
Carr worked in advertising and marketing before becoming a comedian and co-authored a book on comedy and humour with copywriter Lucy Greeves in 2006. In an entertaining conversation with Sutherland, he said that despite Britain’s rich comedic heritage (in film, TV and stand up as well as advertising), there are “very few funny ads being made” today.
Both Sutherland and Carr agreed this was largely due to a fear of offending left or right wing audiences – from Guardian to Daily Mail readers – but Carr said the industry should worry less about causing a little controversy.
Criticising those who claim to be offended on behalf of others (which he dismissed as “bullshit” and “patronising”), Carr said it was OK to offend people sometimes. “The Daily Mail is f*cking brilliant at being outraged…but being offended [by something] isn’t that bad. It’s just a fancy way of saying ‘I don’t like it’, he said.
Read the full article here.
