"Happiness is a cigar called Hamlet" was an advertising campaign for Hamlet Cigars, which ran on television from 1966 until all

tobacco advertising Nicotine marketing is the marketing of nicotine-containing products or use. Traditionally, the tobacco industry markets cigarette smoking, but it is increasingly marketing other products, such as electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products ...

on television was banned in the UK in 1991. The campaign returned in

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

s in 1996, continuing there until 1999, with the final commemorative advert and the modified tagline, "Happiness will always be a cigar called Hamlet."

History

The slogan and the entire campaign was created by the

Collett Dickenson Pearce Collett Dickenson Pearce & Partners (CDP) was a British advertising agency which operated from 1960 till 2000. It was founded by John Pearce and Ronnie Dickenson who bought an existing agency owned by John Collett. The agency played a pivotal ro ...

agency in 1966. The premise is that a man finds himself in an awkward or embarrassing situation and lights a Hamlet cigar. Lighting and smoking this cigar makes him smile and forget his woes. The adverts used an excerpt from a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

rendition of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

Air on the G String "Air on the G String", also known as "Air for G String" and "Celebrated Air", is August Wilhelmj's 1871 arrangement of the second movement of Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068. The arrangement differs from the ...

, played by

Jacques Loussier Jacques Loussier (26 October 1934 – 5 March 2019) was a French pianist and composer. He arranged jazz interpretations of many of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the ''Goldberg Variations''. The Jacques Loussier Trio, founded in 19 ...

and his trio, which is still frequently associated with the brand. The advertisements featured in television, radio and cinema commercials, various print media, and on billboards. One advert featured the 1982

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

blocks forming the number 5, then rewinding and then forming a jumbled mess, which then turned into a face with a cigar, making it smile. This advert was played from 1982 until 1989.

Celebrity appearances

Numerous celebrities appeared in the adverts, including

Ian Botham Ian Terence Botham, Baron Botham, (born 24 November 1955) is an English cricket commentator, member of the House of Lords, a former cricketer who has been chairman of Durham County Cricket Club since 2017 and charity fundraiser. Hailed as one ...

Ronnie Corbett Ronald Balfour Corbett (4 December 1930 – 31 March 2016) was a Scottish actor, broadcaster, comedian and writer. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show ''The Two Ronnies''. He achieved promine ...

, and

Gregor Fisher Gregor Fisher (born 22 December 1953) is a Scottish comedian and actor. He is best known for his portrayal of the title character in the comedy series ''Rab C. Nesbitt'', a role he has played since the show's first episode in 1988. He has also ...

also

Brian Glover Brian Glover (2 April 1934 – 24 July 1997) was an English actor and writer. He worked as a teacher and professional wrestler before commencing an acting career which included films, many roles on British television and work on the stage. His ...

in the guise of his " Baldy Man" character (from ''

Naked Video ''Naked Video'' is a BBC Scotland sketch show that was aired on BBC2 from 12 May 1986 to 18 November 1991. The show was created by Colin Gilbert who had previously created ''A Kick Up the Eighties'' and ''Naked Radio'' (the latter being a radio ...

''), attempting to use a

photo booth A photo booth is a vending machine or modern kiosk that contains an automated, usually coin-operated, camera and film processor. Today, the vast majority of photo booths are digital. History The patent for the first automated photography ma ...

and later attempting to get a

family portrait Family Portrait may refer to: Portraiture painting * Family Portrait (Hals, four persons), ''Family Portrait'' (Hals, four persons), a 1635 painting by Frans Hals * Family Portrait (Hals, five persons), ''Family Portrait'' (Hals, five persons), ...

The actor and comedian

Russ Abbot Russ Abbot (born Russell Allan Roberts; 18 September 1947) is an English musician, comedian and actor. Born in Chester, he first came to public notice during the 1970s as the singer and drummer with British comedy showband the Black Abbots, la ...

spent years advertising Hamlet cigars.

Recognition

The advert was listed as the eighth greatest television advertisement of all time by

in 2000. Both the original Channel 4 ident and the Hamlet advert spoofing the ident were made by

Martin Lambie-Nairn Martin John Lambie-Nairn (5 August 1945 – 25 December 2020) was an English designer. He was the founder of his branding agency Lambie-Nairn and was the creative director of branding agency ML-N. He is recognised for having redefined television ...

. Furthermore, the advert was ranked as the ninth greatest advertisement in an

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

list made in 2005 and as the third funniest television advertisement ever by Campaign Live in 2008.

References

External links

AdSlogans.com
includes links to a print ad and television commercial in QuickTime and Windows Media Player format

Hamlet advert by Martin Lambie-Nairn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Happiness Is A Cigar Called Hamlet 1966 in British television Advertising campaigns British advertising slogans 1966 neologisms British television commercials Tobacco advertising