Cannes Matters 20.06.25

Amidst much talk of AI and the dazzling array of ad tech on display in Cannes this week, our UK advertising industry has shown the very best of its creative soul winning another stellar set of LIONS. Congrats to everyone who has turned that tricky client brief into award-winning creative work, including Ogilvy UK who won a Grand Prix for Dove’s ‘Real Beauty’. Winners for Gold Lions include adam&eveDDB’s ‘Missed Birthdays’ for ITV and CALM, Leo Burnett UK’s ‘Redditor Edit’ for Skoda, and 4Creative’s ‘Considering what?’ for the Paris Paralympics and Channel 4. That’s a total of 89 Lions at the time of writing.

Congrats too to our Young Lions, who were shortlisted in Digital and Marketers competitions. And to the 40+ companies on our trade mission who have been working tirelessly to build out their businesses through international networking. The programme was made possible thanks to our fantastic partners Bauer Media, Pinterest, Sky Media, Mail Metro Media, Seedtag, Channel 4, Marketreach and the Department for Business and Trade.

We kept ourselves on the Front Foot with the return of our Leadership Lunch in partnership with Pinterest (gallery here). Meanwhile the Gold theme was even on display at Bauer Media’s Breakfast with the Stars where Spandau Ballet’s Martin Kemp confessed he still doesn’t know the lyrics to perhaps the band’s most famous tune.

Our must reads & watches, from the Croisette:

• The UK secured 169 shortlisted entries at Cannes across the 12 categories published on 15 June. And VCCP scored the most placings of any UK agency across Sunday’s shortlists. (Campaign) 
• UK Advertising’s daily wrap-up videos are a must-watch – check out our favourite here. 
• Ad Net Zero has announced updates to its sustainability framework for emissions calculations and supply chain reporting. (Media Leader) 
• ITV, Channel 4 and Sky discussed their new collaboration for smaller advertisers to access a premium video advertising marketplace (The Drum)

Our pick of UK wins:

• Our Ad in the A is VCCP London and Girl & Bear’s ‘Daisy VS Scammers’, created for O2’s new initiative which uses a 78 year old AI granny to waste scammers’ time.
• Saatchi & Saatchi London OOH mural ‘Til I Died’, created for the British Heart Foundation and focussed on young football fans who died from heart disease.
• MullenLowe UK for Dirt is Good collected some Lions for ‘Football’, ‘Running’ and ‘Kickboxing’ as part of the ‘Every stain should be part of the game’ campaign. 
• Golin took home a creative effectiveness Gold for ‘The Misheard Version’ for Specsavers featuring now-Croisette legend Rick Astley.
• McCann London’s humorous launch of the ‘The Cheeky Controller’, created for Xbox. 

Meanwhile, back at home…

• Our Chief Executive Stephen Woodford explains the incoming LHF advertising regulations and sets out how to approach the changes from October. (Campaign) 
• Channel 4 and 4Creative have released a ‘public broadcast apology’ for its DEI efforts called ‘Sorry, not sorry’, featuring a montage of Channel 4’s content illustrating its representation of everyone in society. (LBB) 
• Pete Markey has stepped down as Boots CMO, referring to the company as “an incredible business”. (Campaign)
• The ASA has released new research on how older people are portrayed in adverts – with 58% of the UK public saying advertising shapes how society sees ageing. (The Drum).

And finally, sticking with the theme of Gold, my co-author of Trusted Advertising, James Best, chairman of the Codes of Advertising Practice and Credos, along with Kerry Glazer, former chair of TimeTo, the AA’s programme with NABS and WACL, and Phil Smith, director general of ISBA, have all been awarded gongs in the King’s Birthday Honours. (Campaign). It’s fantastic to see all their hard work and efforts recognised in this way!