Cummins & Partners reveal why the answer to life is 42 in Australian Red Cross blood campaign
Cummins&Partners has created an answer to the question posed by Douglas Adam in his novel series, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, why 42 is “the answer to the great question of life, the universe and everything”.
In a campaign for the Australian Red Cross blood service, Cummins&Partners created a television commercial featuring a dad reading The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’s to his sick son, who dreams about a 42 celebration day only to ask the question “but 42 what?”.
The conclusion of the ad shows the father and son in hospital as text appears on the screen saying “42 days is how long donated blood lasts”.
Alongside a TV commercial, the number 42 was written in the sky, on street posters and stencilled on the pavement.
The campaign will also run across radio, digital and out of home.
Tom Ward, chief strategy officer at Cummins&Partners, said in a statement: “We’re not sure whether Douglas Adams was a blood donor or not, but the fact that 42 also happen s to be the exact shelf life of a blood donation is either a coincidence of galactic proportions, or the answer we’ve all been searching for.”
Cummins&Partners handled all the creative, media buying and media strategy for the campaign.
Samantha Bartlett, marketing director at the Australian Red Cross Blood Service, added: “Most Australians are aware that giving blood is a good thing to do, but what they might not know is that their donation has a finite shelf-life. . From the moment they donate, it has just 42 days to get to someone in need.”
Abigail Dawson was Mumbrella's senior content journalist covering event content. She left Mumbrella to move into an agency role in 2020.
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This is sublime
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I’ll raise a pan galactic gargle blaster to that…
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If we are so starved of decent work here in Aus that we think this is great, then that’s a crying shame.
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This is excellent. Such great work.
Well done C&P.
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