Powergen Bob

 

See here for essential background: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2025/03/scary-tv-ad.html.
Some TV adverts are memorable for reasons other than the macabre and sinister. In the early 2000's Powergen ran a series of ads that I have never forgotten and have been searching for online. "Mystic Bob" was loveable middle-aged hippie was played by Simon Day who is best known for his comedy programmes, especially The Fast Show. He also played a hospital porter in Holby City and I'll be saying more about that soon on the HPWA, see links column. Bob is a spiritual New Age preacher who both amuses and bemuses his colleagues as they travel around working in their white van. He has a dog called Gandalf who only appears in one of the ads. His tagline is "positive energy from Powergen". The initial film in the campaign is forty-one seconds long and can be seen here: https://adsspot.me/media/tv-commercials/powergen-bob-energy-saving-plan-c1ba18dbebb6; sorry, but this is the best quality copy I know of. When Powergen earned the sponsorship on ITV's weather reports a series of shorter ones were made. They are on YouTube, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XP4kQ819gWQ and: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQlhq0FUSNY and: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vgn67I-svzU. The Powergen Bob adverts were so funny and sweet that I used to look forward to the ad breaks in case one of them appeared. They used to cheer me up... Those were in the days when I actually watched television. I identified with that character quite distinctly. I saw myself in him and I still do. Powergen changed its name to E.ON UK when it was acquired by the German energy multinational and then the Bob adverts were dropped in favour of some new far more conventional and boring ones. Apparently I was not the only one to write in and complain about the loss of "Mystic Bob", see: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/adwatch-powergen-mystic-bob/461896. I think they should have given Bob a series or even a movie. TV ads have been adapted into films before, such as Rowan Atkinson's Johnny English trilogy; they were a James Bond spoof based on a long ad campaign by Barclaycard, for example see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4Yn6vPZrGU. Things on TV that make me happy are sometimes found in places as unexpected as those which make me feel scared. The amount of skill and artwork needed to make an impression does exist in the commercial milieu. Is there an equivalent of the Oscars for adverts? If so then I have a nomination for the best horror and the best feel-good comedy.