Go On Lad

Go On Lad

A frame from "Go On Lad"
Agency	Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy
Client	Premier Foods
Language	English
Running time	122 seconds (2 minutes and 2 seconds)
Product	Hovis sliced bread
Release date(s)	12 September 2008
Directed by	Ringan Ledwidge
Music by	"History" (Working for a Nuclear Free City)
Starring	Brian Mackie
Production company	Rattling Stick
Produced by	Sally Humphries
Country	United Kingdom
Budget	£1,000,000 (production)[1] £15,000,000 (campaign)[2]
Followed by	Rolls
Official website	http://www.hovis.co.uk/

"Go On Lad" is a British television and cinema advertisement launched by Premier Foods in 2008 to promote its Hovis brand of bread. The 122-second piece was commissioned as part of a £15,000,000 brand relaunch designed to reverse Hovis' declining market share and profits. The commercial follows the journey of a young boy through 122 years of British history, from the establishment of the Hovis brand in 1886 to the current day. The campaign was handled by advertising agency Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy. Production of the commercial itself was contracted to London-based production company Rattling Stick, with post-production handled by The Mill. It was directed by Ringan Ledwidge. "Go On Lad" premiered on British television on 12 September 2008.

The advertisement, and its associated campaign, proved a popular, critical, and financial success. Its launch was covered by several national newspapers within the United Kingdom, including The Independent and the Daily Mirror, on television programmes including the Granada Reports and Loose Women, and by over 300 local and national radio stations. Sales of Hovis products jumped by over £12,000,000 in the weeks following the launch of Go On Lad, and over 1,000 unsolicited letters and e-mails were sent to Hovis praising the piece. The campaign received dozens of awards from the advertising and television industries, including Golds at the Creative Circle Awards, the Marketing Society Awards, and the British Television Advertising Awards. In 2009, the British public voted "Go On Lad" the best television commercial of the decade.