The Six Nations kick offs on ITV tomorrow and fans across the country are gearing up for five weeks of rugby action. We recently had the privilege of working with rugby legends Sir Clive Woodward and Maggie Alphonsi on a brand spot for ITV Sport which aired on New Year’s Day. A collaboration with the spoken word artist Guvna B, and also featuring ex-footballer Ashley Cole, it originally premiered live at ITV’s annual Palooza showcase back in November. We are so proud to have worked on this moving and thought-provoking piece.
A Spoken Word Piece
As part of the live Palooza event at the Royal Festival Hall, ITV wanted to take a moment to celebrate the unifying power of sport, its ability to bring a nation together and its capacity to be a real force for change. They had the idea of creating a spoken word piece inspired by the real words of leading sporting figures. It was TellyJuice’s job to make that idea a reality.
The Shoot
Once the incredibly talented Guvna B came on board, interviews were set up between him and Sir Clive, Maggie and Ashley at The Depositories, an industrial warehouse based in Stoke Newington. The shoot was directed by the amazing Laurie Smith who was able to create a real sense of intimacy on camera. Guvna B then interwove key quotes from these chats into a poignant spoken word piece.
The Live Palooza Event
On the night, the interviews were shown on the big screen followed by Guvna B performing the finished poem live on stage against a montage of powerful sporting moments from the ITV catalogue. We had a huge response from those attending and the sporting stars who featured were keen to share it too. After the event ITV asked us to adapt the edit so that the film could be broadcast on ITV1 on New Year’s Day, kicking off their packed year of sporting action.
We were so thrilled to have the opportunity to showcase this unique collaboration to a wider audience, and to highlight the powerful impact sport can have on society.
Take a look at our work on a previous Palooza event.
