It is customary for the chairmen of the judges in previous years to take this soapbox opportunity to slag off the creativity of the entire crop of entries, to lecture everybody on how disappointed they are personally, and to generally Lord it up. While this is very tempting, it would not be true in this instance.
In many ways, things were better this year than before, and that is partially due to a change in the judging process. The categories were altered from being medium-specific (for instance, best use of newspapers, outdoor, etc) to being sector-specific (such as best travel and leisure campaign or best media and entertainment campaign). For the first time, Campaign recognised the contribution made by individual sales teams in print, outdoor and broadcast media with new awards categories carrying a cash prize.
This wasn't earth-shattering, I grant you, but it did give a more natural and broader canvas on which some exceptional work was demonstrated. We had a record year for entries with more than 200 in total. The folders were so large that I had to wear a weight-lifter's truss to avoid a serious hernia.
Out of all of the entries, the Channel 4 work for Indian Summer by Michaelides & Bednash received universal acclaim, and is the deserved Gold winner.
Channel 4 also picked up the best media and entertainment award for its imaginative Andy Warhol exhibition in and around London.
On the media owner side we enjoyed some very spirited and inspiring presentations at the shortlisted stage, with Emap Men's Creative Solutions worthy of particular praise for being so creatively consistent. JCDecaux also proved how innovative it can be, and Viacom Brand Solutions showed how it can efficiently harness its media properties to offer advertisers added value.
So finally, congratulations to the winners, well done to those shortlisted, and tough shit to the rest. Awards are important and I am honestly proud to have been able to read so much great work.
Thank you to all those who entered and thank you to the judges.
THE JUDGES
Phil Georgiadis - PARTNER, WALKER MEDIA
David Abraham - GENERAL MANAGER, DISCOVERY UK
Marie Oldham - MANAGING PARTNER, MEDIA PLANNING GROUP
Derek Morris - CHIEF EXECUTIVE, PUBLICIS
Polly Cochrane - CONTROLLER OF MARKETING, CHANNEL 4
Jerry Hill - GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE, INITIATIVE MEDIA
Jonathan Durden - CHAIRMAN, PHD (CHAIRMAN OF THE JUDGES)
Fiona McAnena - CHIEF EXECUTIVE, MEDIAEDGE:CIA
Neil Jones - COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR, CARAT
Rob Norman - CHIEF EXECUTIVE, OUTRIDER
Sheila Byfield - DIRECTOR OF CONSUMER INSIGHT, MINDSHARE
Mike Anderson - MANAGING DIRECTOR, EVENING STANDARD
Sally de la Bedoyere - FORMER MANAGING DIRECTOR, EVENING STANDARD
Brian Aspin - HEAD OF MEDIA DEVELOPMENT, ROYAL MAIL
Will Collin - PARTNER, NAKED COMMUNICATIONS
