29. Spaghetti Pomodoro (rare and unreleased)

A fun special treat because we’re 29

For a special 29th episode treat (and because I’m bored of real ads) I thought we’d do something different.

I was going through my old Dropbox files and came across this TVC script I wrote in 2013 on a pitch for a globally sold Italian pasta sauce brand.

It was shortly after I moved to London and I was freelancing and feeling generally out of my depth creatively and in life.

I don’t recall much from that era but I remember that an Amber Leaf 3-in-1 cost £3.45 and I remember writing this.

The script was broadly appreciated but never sold or produced. It felt sad to leave it in my Dropbox so I’m sharing it here. Also, I’m not sure I’ll ever get the chance to write anything as adorable and unusable again.

The fisherman known as “Spaghetti Pomodoro.”

The story starts at a wharf lined with fisherman, busy attending their lines.

At the end of the line, we see our protagonist. He doesn’t seem too concerned with fishing—rather, he’s walking up and down the line, chatting and bantering with the other fisherman.

They all greet him: “Bongiorno, Spaghetti Pomodoro!”

A little later, we see him out at sea in a small dinghy. A larger fishing boat pulls up alongside him. “Aaah, Spaghetti Pomodoro!”

Once more, he neglects his fishing line, and pulls up alongside the boat for an animated chat... We see his line reeling out, another fish goes uncaught.

Later that night, as he walks back through the village, more people nod and wave to their friend, Spaghetti Pomodoro. He greets them individually, regales them with tall tales.

Our fisherman walks home and is met by his small children. They run up to him and he begins delighting them with stories of his day’s fishing. He tells them of the one that was bigger than a submarine—that he had to wrestle to submission, that nearly capsized the boat.

The children cackle and squeak with delight at each escalating detail.

His wife walks in and looks at him quizzically. “Spaghetti Pomodoro?” She says.

Predictably, he holds up his empty fish basket, smiling. “Ci. Spaghetti Pomodoro.”

Finally, we see the family sitting down to a beautiful—albeit fishless—bowl of pasta with [brand name redacted] sauce. They laugh, swirl delicious red loops of pasta around their forks—and measure fictitious fish the size of their armspans.

The ones in front of you,

The one that got away,

& Spaghetti Pomodoro.

[Brand redacted]. [Endline redacted]

🍝 🍅