Shippam's Guide to Opera

Charming fish paste cinema ad

What makes a more fitting pairing than meat paste and opera?

Everyone knows that nothing goes better with opera than a smearing of meat paste. But it took the innovative Larkins animation studio to bring the pairing to life: a chorus of chickens dancing in front of the jars they will soon be ground into; a duet between a pilchard and a tomato. The creative duo behind the ad, Vera Linnecar and Nancy Hanna, were an equally fine pairing. After working together at Pearl & Dean they joined Biographic studio with Bob Godfrey in 1957, forming a trio with co-founder Keith Learner after Bob left and working into the 1980s.