William Franklyn, whose suavity of voice matched his appearance in the series of “Ssschhh . . . you know who” adverts by Ogilvy & Mather, which debuted on British television in 1963, is still remembered as the voice of the brand even though his adverts ended in 1974.
One of the most famous ads saw Franklyn pouring an inferior tonic water into a parrot’s drinking dish at a party. The parrot drinks it, does a somersault and drops off its perch.
Franklyn was following in the footsteps of Benny Hill, who played a West Country publican in early 60s commercials for Schweppes.
Later, we had Richard E Grant and Liz Hurley, each turning up at the Off Licence with their pet pooches. Hurley gets the last of the Schweppes, and Grant gets the inferior brand, but his dog cleverly switches the carrier bags after distracting the other dog’s attention. “Well done. Now get her telephone number.”
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