Free London exhibition celebrates 50 years of British TV advertising

A free London exhibition celebrating the best of British TV advertising is coming to the country’s most visited cultural attraction. The Ads of the Years exhibition will run at Outernet London from 9th February and features the top adverts from 1976 to the present day, selected from the archives of the British Arrows as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations.

Image credit: British Arrows

Ads of the Years will see 68 commercials displayed in a 360-degree immersive experience. Some of the adverts on display include ‘Finishing School’ (1976) for Parker Pens, directed by Sir Alan Parker and starring Penelope Keith, ‘Kipper’ (1981) for LEGO, narrated by Tommy Cooper, and ‘Swimmer’ (1992) for Levi’s. Visitors will be able to vote for their favourite advert of the last 50 years, with the winner announced at the first People’s Arrow award in March. 

Ads of the Years is hosted by the British Arrows, a well-respected advertising awards body. The exhibition arrives off the back of the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy, which identified the advertising industry as a key sector for growth owing to it supporting 1.7 million jobs - 5% of UK employment. The industry has been a noted launchpad for several of the country’s most successful filmmakers like Alan Parker, Ridley Scott, Jonathan Glazer, Ben Wheatley, and rising female directors like Kim Gehring and Lucy Forbes. 

British Arrows’ chairman, Simon Cooper, commented: “This remarkable collection of iconic Arrow-winning adverts from the past 50 years provides a vivid snapshot of British society… we hope this retrospective, exhibited on Outernet’s extraordinary screens, not only celebrates its legacy, but inspires a new generation of creatives, craftspeople and innovators.” 

Ads of the Years will run at Outnernet from Monday 9th - Thursday 26th February 2026. 

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