M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

September 22 2026, 11:56 am | BY Ricki Green | No Comments
M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Following the news that MC Saatchi’s Australia and New Zealand advertising business will close after almost three decades, Campaign Brief looks back on some of the best work the created over the last 31 years.

 

31 years ago, after a messy divorce from the agency they’d founded, Maurice and Charles Saatchi, along with a few loyal Saatchi & Saatchi crew started another, using a name the lawyers couldn’t block: M&C Saatchi. There were mixed views on how the business would go, particularly here in Australia, where some said it was just a shop for running British Airways ads.

But under the direction of the two Toms (CEO Tom Dery and CCO Tom McFarlane) it got off to a pretty good start, winning their first of many Agency of the Year awards in 1996 and opening an office in Melbourne off the back of the ANZ account the following year. After coming close several times the Melbourne office eventually won the CB Agency of the Year title in 2001.

Over the years M+C Saatchi grew to become the biggest agency in Australia, and until the last few years, almost always on the top level of Campaign Brief’s annual Hot Chart, sometimes in the top right corner.

One of the agency’s secrets was their sideline in publishing, well, publishing their own work. Back in 2016 when the agency turned 21, they created a book on ‘the first 21 years of M&C Saatchi, featuring the best work from Australia. We reached for our copy to choose a selection but couldn’t find the book, so we asked four of their past creative leaders for their selections.

Between them, Tom McFarlane (M+C Saatchi’s founding Creative Partner and an AWARD Hall of Fame inductee), Paul Taylor (former Executive Creative Director, Melbourne), Ben Welsh (former Executive Creative Director, Sydney) and Cam Blackley (former Chief Creative Officer) span the vast majority of M+C Saatchi’s history in Australia and some its most awarded and celebrated work.

It’s a chance to look back at the ideas, campaigns and moments that defined a generation of Australian advertising, as told by the people who made them. Did the agency have a ‘house style’? That’s for you to judge, they certainly had some powerful principles; ‘Brutal Simplicity of Thought’ being at the heart of everything along with ‘Work that works’ – M+C Saatchi was proud to be in the business of advertising rather than just a creative agency.

Says McFarlane: “At the back of the 21 year book, the names of every person who contributed to the success of M&C Saatchi were proudly listed. Over 1,800 of them. On the very last page are the words ‘to be continued’.

“But it seems the story won’t be. Instead, it’s a wrap.

“Thank you each and every one of you.”


Note: Some of the campaigns below feature in the reel above — where that’s the case, a timestamp is included.

 

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

DirecDial  ‘Don’t Laugh’ (0:00)

Tom McFarlane: “A sentimental favourite as it was the very first commercial I wrote after starting at M+C Saatchi in 1996. (Having an insurance client with, unusually, a differentiating proposition helped).”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Vodafone ‘Egg’ (0:45)

Tom McFarlane: “How did we get the biggest star in the world’s most popular TV show worldwide at the time? I still don’t know, but it worked!”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

ANZ ‘Swing’ (1:45)

Tom McFarlane: “One of many quiet, but intelligent ANZ commercials I could have chosen. A guiding principle at M+C was ‘Brutal Simplicity’ and Paul Taylor, with partner Tony Banks, were brilliant exponents of it.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Berri ‘The Goodness is in the Glass’ (2.15)

Paul Taylor: “Vintage Andrew ‘Northy’ North and managed to survive the Ad Standards Bureau. Doubt it would today.”

Tom McFarlane: “How to disrupt a category dominated by big brands spruiking the same formulaic messages. Cheeky and funny. Bit like the writer – Andrew North.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

British Airways ‘Imagine how easily she could spot your empty wine glass’

Paul Taylor: “The very first ad to win an award for M&C Saatchi Australia.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Public Transport Corporation ‘Fare Evasion is stealing’

Paul Taylor: “Another great example of Brutally Simple Thinking”.

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Woolworths ‘Obsession’ (6:45)

Tom McFarlane: “The commercial that relaunched the Fresh Food People after we were appointed by Woolworths in 2004. Again brutally simple, with the dry wit of creative team, Paul Hankinson and Michael Andrews.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Optus ‘Give Me the Simple Life’ (3:45)

Tom McFarlane: “Big commercials for big brands, built on enduring platforms, were our stock in trade. Always with upliftingly appropriate music tracks. I could just as easily have chosen the anthemic ‘By My Side’, actually sung by Michael Hutchence, or MBF health insurance featuring ‘Accentuate the Positive’, and many others.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

ANZ ‘Stalking ATM’ (7:45)

Tom McFarlane: “Here’s what you do when your major competitor starts boasting that they have 10 times as many ATM machines than you do. A great creative response built off a great strategy.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Woolworths ‘Stavros’ (9:30)

Tom McFarlane: “My all-time favourite commercial for Woolworths. So simple, so endearing and the perfect embodiment of the Fresh Food People positioning.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Herringbone ‘Henri’s Hands’ (13:01)

Tom McFarlane: “More like an arthouse film than an ad. This eloquent and aesthetically perfect film was made for cinema by Oliver Devaris and Graham Johnson. Deservedly, it was awarded at shows worldwide.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Tourism NZ ‘100% Pure New Zealand’ (17:01)

Paul Taylor: “The place was the product.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Tourism Australia ‘Where the Bloody Hell Are You?’ (16:01)

Tom McFarlane: “Tourism NZ’s 100% Pure New Zealand is the most famous and enduring tourism platform in the world, continuing to run after 27 years. While the infamous ‘Where the bloody hell are you?’ campaign continues to polarise, remaining indelibly etched in the zeitgeist 20 years since its launch. I’m equally proud of both.”

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Amnesty International ‘Free Me’

Paul Taylor: “The medium became the message”


M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Commonwealth Bank ‘Ode to Can’ (12:02)

Tom McFarlane: “A totally unexpected idea to launch a big bank. Most people thought the poem was an undiscovered classic. But it was actually written by our very own bard, the amazing Andy Flemming”.

Cam Blackley: “Undeniable. The simplicity of the Toni Collette. CAN launch really embodied Brutal Simplicity Of Thought. It was a master class in optimism and the data shows it actually galvanised the country in the face of recessions globally to keep Australia with its head above water. That’s magic. I had nothing to do with the campaign but remain in awe.”


Moccona ‘Quest’

Tom McFarlane: “Somehow we found romance in a jar of instant coffee.”


Tourism Australia ‘MateSong’

Cam Blackley: “This is a love song, direct to one target market in their darkest hour (brexit). For me it has many dimensions because it’s how we won the TA business against all odds against Droga5 New York. It was epically difficult to creative. Brought tears to everyone’s eyes in the edit. And ultimately was buried by bushfires and covid before realising its potential.”


Optus ‘Clever Buoy’

Paul Taylor: “An early tech-led idea that spawned a new category of work.”

Cam Blackley: “Innovation clout. It made the industry question the shape of advertising to come. M&C suddenly showed it was as much a tech company as it was a place that distilled a brand’s promise to a single powerful word. The genie was out of the box.”


Minderoo Foundation ‘Thrive by Five’

Cam Blackley: “The global No.1 TED Talk of 2021 was a proud moment because M&C was regarded for how it weaved its way into culture.”

 

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

TAB ‘Long May We Play’

Cam Blackley: “Whether you love or hate advertising this was a celebration of the sport that binds this nation. The purpose to support locals and not talk to the bet, just live in fandom.”

***

 

Ben Welsh: “Answering this request from CB proved surprisingly difficult. M&C Saatchi was 19 years of my life and going through the 21 year book brought back many memories.

“I had a short list. It then grew and grew. Lots of great work to choose from. But I ended up thinking of five pieces which, to me, illustrated the way we worked.

SIMPLICITY
ANZ work 2000 – 2007
Brutal Simplicity at its finest. While other banks were promising the world, ANZ kept things simple. And while the positioning lines changed over time the tone never did, so you knew the brand instantly.

LONGEVITY
100% PURE NEW ZEALAND
Big ideas should endure. The pitch work included the line on a leg of lamb and a kiwi fruit. 27 years on it has become the benchmark for tourism advertising. Of course, it helps to have a great product.

AUDACITY
Optus Clever Buoy
It took a great brief, a great idea, a united team and a whole lot of trust to pull this off. Agencies are problem solvers. It’s a shame more clients don’t see them that way. Probably the most awarded thing we did.

COMMERCIALITY
CommBank Can
This was more than an advertising idea. Great brand platforms act as compass points, directing the business. CAN mobilised Australia’s biggest bank to become an even bigger one. Everything about the original work was so fresh, clean and confident it shook a complacent market.

AMBITION
M&C Export: San Diego Zoo
There wasn’t an official Export business but one of the best things about M&C Saatchi Australia was that our domain stretched way beyond Australia. We did work for clients in London, LA, Holland, Thailand, India, Abu Dhabi, Fiji and beyond.

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

NOTEWORTHY MENTIONS:

 

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

ANZ

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

NGV ‘Mazda presents Imperial Austria: Treasures of Art, Arms & Armour from the State of Styria’

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

National Gallery of Australia ‘Monet & Japan’


Optus ‘Whale Song’


Vodafone ‘Connected’


MBF ‘Be Positive’


NRMA Insurance ‘By my side’

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

ABB


ANZ ‘The Chase’

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Steggles


M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

Google Chrome ‘Build with Chrome’


The Blue Ball Foundation ‘Play with yourself”


AIME ‘Cogs’


Optus ‘This is Football’


Minderoo Foundation ‘The Plastic Forecast’

 

M&C Saatchi Australia’s All-Time greatest hits: Tom McFarlane, Paul Taylor, Ben Welsh and Cam Blackley pick the campaigns to remember

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