The average smoker needs over five thousand cigarettes a year. That’s the message in the “Get Unhooked” campaign released today in the UK. The UK Government’s national Department of Health has released four posters and four television adverts portraying adults with fish hooks through their mouths. Timed to coincide with New Year resolutions, the campaign encourages readers and viewers to “Get unhooked”, call 0800 169 0 169 or visit getunhooked.co.uk
Launching the campaign, the public health minister, Caroline Flint, said: “Many smokers will be considering stopping as part of their new year’s resolution. These adverts highlight the controlling message of tobacco. We know 70% of smokers would like to give up.”
Robert West, professor of health psychology at University College London, said: “The nicotine in cigarette smoke can be as addictive as heroin and crack cocaine. By getting ‘unhooked’ you are freeing yourself from a lethal cycle of addiction.” The ads “psychologically make a lot of sense” because they set up the “trigger” – the addiction of smoking – but then provide a solution: a phone number and website that will give details of NHS smoking cessation services.
For 2000×1000 copies of the images visit the Smokefree campaign site.
The Get Unhooked advertising campaign was developed at Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy by creative director Paul Briginshaw and Malcolm Duffy with agency producer Russell Taylor and photographer Nick Georghiou.
Get unhooked is a disgusting advert and should be removed before we have people trying to immitate this fish-hook ad which could cause a lot of suffering and infection in ones mouth. It’s in very bad taste!
Well I personally think that the ads do a very convincing and believable job making smoking look like a nasty habit. And to be honest, ever since I have seen these ads, whether subconsciously or not, when smoking has been thought of or looked at, these ads have came to mind which is what I think the rhetor(people giving the ads) was intentionally trying to do