Remembering Tony Brignull (1937-2024)
The copywriting legend passed away from lymphoma on December 8 at the age of 87. Here, School of Communication Arts 2.0 dean Marc Lewis looks back on the life and work of his friend Brignull who leaves a legacy as a “towering figure in UK advertising.”
Running the School is a privilege that has given me countless reasons to be grateful, and becoming football friends with Tony Brignull is right up there.
They say you shouldn’t meet your heroes, but I think that’s nonsense. I believe in learning from them – and helping my students do the same.
I grew up and fell in love with advertising when Tony was at the very top of his game.
Not that this helps narrow it down as he was at the top of his game for decades. Even in his final year, he continued to create. His latest book of beautiful poems was published just recently.
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Tony’s poems have something for everyone, but the way he lived his life offers lessons for all of us. After an unparalleled career – becoming the most awarded copywriter in advertising history – he went back to school to learn a new way of writing.
Imagine that. After decades of winning every gold, shaping the defining work of each generation’s childhood – his pen behind so many classics – Tony chose to unlearn and relearn.
It reminds me of my favourite quote, by Alvin Toffler:
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
Tony embodied this idea, setting impossibly high standards for himself. He returned to school at Oxford University and, unsurprisingly, won prizes there too. Winning was second nature to Tony – as natural as breathing.
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Except when it came to Arsenal.
I started taking Tony to games in 2016, during that bittersweet season when we finished second to Leicester. Then fifth in 2017, sixth in 2018, fifth again in 2019. Frustrating, yes – but he never lost hope.
Even earlier this season, his emails brimmed with optimism. I’m convinced he passed away believing Arsenal were on their way back to the top.
Tony stopped visiting the School around 2019 for health reasons, but his influence on advertising – and on me – is enduring. He is such a towering figure in UK advertising history that I asked my students to make a film about him [shown, top].
Of all the things my students have created over the years, this film is one of the ones I’m most proud of. My thanks to Gordon and Amy at The Drum for helping to give it a wider audience – it deserves so much more than the 770 views it currently has.
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Please, watch it.
Watch it and feel nostalgic.
Watch it and feel the energy of a brilliant human who gave his all to everything he touched.
Watch it and remember a great man who was born into the Silent Generation (1928-1945) but spoke powerfully to all of us.
Tony Brignull. Thank you for everything.