Night Driving
by David Hughes
Volkswagen UK have had consistently brilliant TV adverts for as long as I can remember; but Night Driving is one of their finest.
The ad is beautifully shot and Richard Burton’s narration of Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas works wonderfully with the soundtrack which is by Cliff Martinez from the soundtrack to the film Solaris.
You can view the advert in high resolution at the Night Driving site or here is a crunchier version from YouTube:
I will admit to having watched this advert more than once whilst I was choosing and waiting for my Golf.
The full text of Under Milk Wood is available from Project Gutenberg, but here are the sections used in the ad; although you may not sound quite as good as Richard Burton:
And all the people of the lulled and dumbfound town are sleeping now.
Hush, the babies are sleeping, the farmers, the fishers, the tradesmen and pensioners, cobbler, schoolteacher, postman and publican, the undertaker and the fancy woman, drunkard, dressmaker, preacher, policeman, the webfoot cockle-women and the tidy wives.
Young girls lie bedded soft or glide in their dreams, with rings and trousseaux, bridesmaided by glow-worms down the aisles of the organ playing wood.
You can hear the dew falling, and the hushed town breathing.
Only your eyes are unclosed to see the black and folded town fast, and slow, asleep.
I love night driving: I especially enjoy driving around London at night when the city comes to life but then just as quickly falls asleep.
I remember Clarkson doing a piece on the CLK 55 AMG black where he ‘just went for a drive’ and ended up in Wales – for the thrill of it. It’s a great experience, and one that those of us that aren’t *petrolheads* can understand and enjoy.
Peculiarly the Golf is a ubiquitous sight on British roads yet it still retains a desirability that far outstrips the Ford equivalent in the same way that people aspire to the populist BMW 3 series and eschew the more discerning – and rare – Mondeo. What is it we desire so much in German automotive engineering given that the quality in the Fords is entirely comparable?
The answer may indeed be found in advertising like this.
I remember that episode; what a car – you would just want to keep driving.
I was actually limited by my company car list and as a simple family man would have chosen the new Mondeo if I’m honest. Although in fairness Ford have made some good ads of late, particularly the new Mondeo series with the floating cars, although they don’t have the style, quality and consistency of the VW ads.