This Surreal British Airline Commercial Takes You on a Wild Trip Indeed

Travel has become more accessible for Londoners, thanks to easyJet, whose latest “Why Not?” campaign by VCCP has a pretty basic premise: It’s the story of the many adventures awaiting a woman whose flight is about to take off. 

Strange little details give the ad unexpected vivacity. It opens with a molting man made of flowers running across the runway like Alice’s White Rabbit. He’s late, he’s late! Suddenly our heroine is yanked right out of the plane and into the hangar, where tropes of a European vacation—open-air markets, street artists—are given the Gulliver’s Travels treatment, transforming the exotic into the surreal. 

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Don't Vacation in the Office, Says This Hilariously Deadpan Ad From Virgin Atlantic

The U.S. is the only industrialized country in the world with no minimum paid vacation leave, which at least explains the in-office purgatory many people suffer over the summer. The U.K., however, scores No. 7 for average number of paid vacation days (37!), making it a little less clear why one in three Brits would shirk that time to fill out more TSheets. 

That’s “progress” for you, I guess. But it’s obviously also bad business for an airline like Virgin Atlantic. So, with a hand from adam&eveDDB, it’s launched #GetOutOfOffice.

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A British TV Network Ran Knitted Versions of Well-Known Spots for an Entire Ad Break

In work you may have missed last year, here’s a crafty campaign from British TV network ITV, which is riding fresh exposure after winning a Silver Lion in Film Craft at Cannes last month. 

The network’s in-house team, ITV Creative, meticulously recreated well-known ads from various advertisers, using knitted wool and stop-motion animation. The commercials aired in a block on Dec. 18 during ITV’s annual Text Santa program, which raises funds for organizations like Macmillan Cancer Support, Make-A-Wish U.K. and Save the Children.

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Skittles Sheds Its Rainbow to Celebrate London Pride

Much of Skittles advertising is built around the candy’s rainbow profile. But to honor the LGBT pride celebrations in London this past weekend, the brand stripped off its colors. 

“So this is kind of awkward, but we’re just gonna go ahead and address the rainbow-colored elephant in the room,” reads an uncharacteristically monochromatic open letter from the marketer, addressed to revelers, published in print on Friday. “You have the rainbow … we have the rainbow … and usually that’s just hunky-dory. 

“But this Pride, only one rainbow deserves to be the centre of attention—yours. And we’re not going to be the ones to steal your rainbow thunder, no siree.” 

See the letter here. Click to enlarge:

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SOPA Defeat Haunts Efforts to Rein In Illegal Copying, British Official Says

Michael Weatherly, a member of Parliament and adviser to Prime Minister David Cameron, says copyright owners will look to efforts beyond legislation.



A Gossipy Newsletter Aims Higher

The weekly email Popbitch has used a business model others are now catching up to, but it has entered new waters with an iPad magazine for $2.99 an issue.



Leaner and More Efficient, British Printers Push Forward in Digital Age

Despite steady declines in revenue, automation has allowed big printing companies to produce magazines and other publications quickly and at less cost.

World Briefing: Britain: Ex-Editor Says He Was Told to Take Blame for Phone Hacking

Clive Goodman, the former royal editor at the now-defunct News of the World, told a London court on Wednesday that senior officials of News International pressured him to avoid implicating others.

    



Afghan Militant Group Declares Itself Reporter’s Killer

A little-known Islamist militant group said it was behind the killing of Nils Horner in Kabul, claiming he was a spy for Britain.

    

Testimony at Hacking Trial Gives Peek Into British Tabloids

Rebekah Brooks, in her phone hacking trial, gave a rare view into the skating-on-the-edge culture of the popular press.

    



Tony Blair Emerges as Figure in Tabloid Hacking Case

According to an email read at trial, the former British prime minister told a major figure in the scandal, Rebekah Brooks, to “keep strong,” and offered to act as an “unofficial adviser.”

    



Cigarette Ads Come Back to British TV

Electronic devices are bypassing a loophole in the 50-year-old advertising code, but health officials and critics still have their doubts.

    



The Media Equation: Where Freedom of the Press Is Muffled

China and Britain both underscore how transparency, however painful in the moment, allows democracy, business and the citizenry to thrive in the long run.

    



Fates of Brooks and Coulson in Tabloid Hacking Case Are Diverging

Once friends, colleagues and lovers, Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson are on trial on charges of illegally intercepting voice messages at The News of the World, but she appears to be faring relatively better.

    



Editorial: British Press Freedom Under Threat

A chilling inquisition aimed at The Guardian over publishing leaks highlights how, unlike the United States, Britain has no constitutional guarantee of a free press.

    



BSkyB’s Shares Fall After BT Takes Over Champions League

Investors were concerned that subscribers would flee British Sky Broadcasting, which has built its subscriber base with soccer programming.

    

British Intelligence Chiefs Say Leaks by Snowden Hurt Security

In open testimony before Parliament, the three top intelligence officials in Britain said their ability to keep the country safe had been compromised.

    

Tabloid Hacked Phone of Prince Harry’s Secretary, Jury Is Told

A message seeking help on a term paper led to an article in The News of the World, with some details left out, the prosecution said.

    



British Tabloid Editors Charged in Hacking Scandal Had Affair, Prosecutors Say

Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, former editors of The News of the World, now defunct, are charged with conspiracy in connection with phone hacking.

    



Memo From Britain: British Tabloids on Trial, Along With Ex-Editors

The trial of former editors in Rupert Murdoch’s media empire is expected to be aggressive and detailed, with the potential for more revelations about the inner workings of British tabloid journalism.