September 17th 2024.
It's not every day that you come across a billboard that has stood the test of time for 40 years. But that's exactly what happened to Mick Sands, a former advertising copywriter who was shocked to discover that a poster he designed back in the 1980s was still up and intact at Charing Cross tube station.
Mick, now 65, used to work for a West End agency called Leagas Delaney and had the account for promoting hayfever spray, Otrivine. As part of the campaign, billboards were put up all over the country, including one featuring a garden gnome using the nasal spray and the tagline, "Otrivine. Specialist in nose care."
"I remember being part of the creative team that worked on the Otrivine poster campaign back in 1984," Mick shared with MailOnline. "We wanted to showcase the effectiveness of the product by using a relatable image, and what's more relatable than a garden gnome surrounded by flowers? The poster went up in various locations, including Charing Cross underground station in the mid-1980s."
Mick would often walk by the billboard during his daily commute and couldn't believe it was still there after 20 years. But it wasn't until recently, when he happened to pass by it again, that he realized it had been up for a whopping 40 years. "I can't believe the makers of Otrivine are still paying for the site," he said. "It's possible that it's just been forgotten about."
The poster has certainly caught the attention of many passersby over the years, with some even taking to social media to express their surprise. Mick added, "I'm sure that the thousands of people who pass by it every day have no idea that it went up as long ago as the eighties."
The Otrivine nasal spray, manufactured by Haleon, is still on the market today, but its packaging design has since changed. It's a mystery as to why the billboard has remained up for so long, and efforts to reach out to Network Rail, Westminster Council, and Leagas Delaney for comment have been made. Haleon did mention that they do not have a record of when the contract for the advertising space ended but are more than happy to take the ad back for archiving purposes.
It's safe to say that this 40-year-old billboard has caught the attention of many and serves as a nostalgic reminder of the evolution of the Otrivine brand. Who knows, maybe it will continue to stand tall for another 40 years.
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