It is safe to say that Cravendale – or rather its ad agency Wieden + Kennedy London – has a real pedigree for producing truly ingenious adverts.

The London arm of one of the world’s largest independently-owned advertising agencies, Wieden + Kennedy (W+K) London has been working with Cravendale for some time and is responsible for one of the milk manufacturer’s most memorable campaigns in the form of 2007’s overwhelmingly popular ‘Pirate, Cyclist and Cow’.

With the only dialogue throughout the adverts being variations on ‘milk’ (“MILK!”, “miiiiiiiiiiiilk”), this incredibly popular campaign featured the eponymous trio overcoming a bizarre selection of hurdles in order to ensure that their fridge was well stocked with Cravendale.

The campaign also engaged consumers through social media and online opportunities, allowing them to create their own films using the characters and settings.

But could it be that W + K London’s latest effort for Cravendale may well have outdone even the beloved Pirate, Cyclist and Cow to top the chart as this year’s best advert so far?

The campaign provides a glimpse into a world where cats develop opposable thumbs. With their newfound ability to grip, the cats are shown leafing through a book, completing a cross-stitch pattern and clicking their feline fingers menacingly, West Side Story-style.

The voiceover for the 56-second advert is provided by The Rocky Horror Picture Show’s Tim Curry, whose narration gathers pace and urgency as the ad builds to a feverish crescendo: a paw – complete with thumb – reaches up and pulls down a door handle, revealing the now-terrified home-owner faced with a gang of cats in the doorway, standing on their hind legs. 

The idea of featuring cats in advertising campaigns certainly isn’t a new one; the last few years have seen a surge in the number of cat-based commercials, mostly generated from memes found on cult websites such as lolcats and icanhascheezburger. 

In more mainstream advertising, cat-based strategies have transcended everything from the ridiculous Crusha advert that featured crudely animated and overly-stylised kittens working out in a gym to last year’s “aaaaawwww, look at that!” ad from Ikea, that featured cute, fluffy kittens gambolling about in a closed showroom.  Surprisingly they didn’t show a single cat clawing at the carpets, or sharpening their claws on a pristine piece of upholstery.

It is entirely possible that in a time of products taking themselves far too seriously (Alfa Romeo’s advert for the Giulietta, anyone?), it’s refreshing to see that Cravendale is continuing to find interesting ways of marketing an essential product.

Do you agree: is this the year’s best advert so far?  Why not leave a comment and let us know what you think.