Watch the full ad here:

Steve's thoughts:

"One of Aardman’s most iconic campaigns is the early 90s classic for Heat Electric starring sweatband wearing Frank the jogging Tortoise.

Unscripted real voices were given to hand-crafted clay animal characters to make truly groundbreaking ads. Director Nick Park praised its pioneering approach ‘There really was nothing like this at the time and now it is everywhere – it is the authentic thing to do’.

To dial up the humour the visuals subvert what’s being said, just as painfully slow, Frank talks about his hectic lifestyle. His performance is both exaggerated and nuanced. His little mannerisms: the wide dry mouth, the eyes that dart nervously as he thinks what to say next, his slow over-pronounced swallow and his overly expressive hands that describe his shower as ‘turn off and on-able’ - all make it a unique and memorable watch.

So yes, it’s the adlibs, but it’s also what’s not being said. It’s the awkward pauses, the fluttering blinks and the thumby clay gulps, that prove a campaign doesn’t have to be slick and hard sell to really resonate.

The phrase ‘Creature Comforts-style’ has since joined the cultural lexicon, and as with all of Aardman characters there’s a real humanity that makes you root for them."