Santander Advert

The TV ad begins with a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula One Scalextric box on the floor of a typical British living room. As the owner leaves the room we see the flap of the box move and a miniature Lewis Hamilton beckons to spectators and crew alike to join him in the room. What follows is a story of collective endeavour as full a Scalextric track is assembled on the floor by a miniature Lewis, his pit crew and spectators.

Everyone works in unison to create a track for a replica 2009 MP4-24 Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula One car, driven by Lewis, to race around.

The production process involved in creating miniature 1/32 scale people, building a normal size track in a normal size living room was an ambitious undertaking but was successfully realised. A shoot on a large sound stage at Shepperton Studios allowed cast members to interact with custom made models of Scalextric track, 32 times their normal size. This meant when these shots were replicated in a normal size living room the cast and props could be scaled down to fit the exact the proportions of the room itself. Natalie Graeme, the Group Account Director at WCRS commented that it was another fantastic opportunity to marry the dynamism of Lewis Hamilton and the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team with exciting range of bank accounts offered by Santander's UK brands. Keith Moor, Brand and Communications Director for Santander's UK brands stated that WCRSs imaginative combination of Lewis, Formula One and Scalextric brings to life the exciting world of Formula One and Santander's approach to banking in novel way that everyone can enjoy.

The TV advertising campaign kicked off on Sunday the 7th June and runs until 9th August. It will feature in the ad breaks of some of the most popular TV programmes, and in support of Lewis Hamilton in the 2009 Santander British Grand Prix. The TV campaign will also be supported through outdoor and a through the line campaign implemented by Abbey's other Engine agencies. An online campaign created by Altogether and a branch campaign designed by Woo will focus on Abbey's wide range of bank accounts. Alliance & Leicester will also be supporting its range of bank accounts through an integrated campaign throughout the summer.