The Best Adverts of the 1980s
Cocky, confident and characterful, these are the best adverts of the decade, as chosen by industry experts.
It was a decade that saw cuts, strikes, Thatcherism, Reaganomics, Chernobyl, the AIDS epidemic and the fall of the Berlin Wall. Beyond the austerity, the possibility of prosperity in cities came in its wake. And, with this, the birth of the 'yuppie'.
In this new greed-is-good era a multitude of TV channels, across terrestrial and cable, gave companies the chance to advertise globally to a new generation hooked on MTV, big hair, neon and PCs, who were driving consumerist culture.
“As a child of the ‘80s who idolised Michael J Fox, this ad succeeds where so many fail,” says Alex Moulton, chief creative officer of branding and design studio Trollbäck+Company. “Its comedic action and amazing Harold Faltermeyer synth soundtrack make it feel like a mini-movie. This is my favourite of the memorable multi-year campaign.”
The 1987 ‘Apartment 10G’ ad for Diet Pepsi, conceived by BBDO and directed by Rick Levine, was one of several popular, award-winning ads from Pepsi in the ‘80s – another being a 60-second ad from 1985 for Pepsi Cola, where a team of archeologists from the future uncovering a bottle of rival Coca-Cola and don't know what it is.
