Elizabeth’s local grocer
Caption : “A weekly order was sent to Rome while Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton were filming Cleopatra in 1961. It is also reported that they ordered pork sausages from Piccadilly while staying at the Ritz Paris.”
Product Campaign / Advertising for food brand.
Elizabeth’s local grocer and Raising the bar with Virginia are a duo of adverts which aim to educate and entertain the customer ~ and advertise products ~ by featuring the stories and favourite foods of two historical famous fans of Fortnum & Mason ~ Elizabeth Taylor and Virginia Woolf.
Art Director / Concept : Lauri King
Set / Prop Design & Styling: Lauri King
Food Stylist, Photographer & Retouching : Mark Wildsmith
Graphic Design & Copywriting : Lauri King
Assistant : Amy
© 2024 Lauri King. All rights reserved.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton are recorded as being famous fans of Fortnum & Mason. Our scene imagines their suite at the Ritz Paris, where they reportedly had pork sausages flown in from Fortnum & Mason in London [Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor And Richard Burton And The Marriage Of The Century, Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger]. It is also reported that “…a weekly order (quite probably crammed with aphrodisiacs) was sent to Rome while Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were filming Cleopatra in 1961.” [fortnumandmason.com/stories/fortnums-at-Christmas]
The setting represents a room service order on the bed in their hotel room at the Ritz. We see the Fortnum’s pork sausages and tomato ketchup humorously paired with an elegant violet-adorned cocktail and the ultimate aphrodisiac – the oyster. Wedding rings, jewellery and a pair of YSL wedges are discarded on the floor, to represent salient parts of Taylor’s life. A 1961 copy of British Vogue (the eyes representing Elizabeth Taylor’s most famously captivating feature), sits next to a box of Ritz Paris matches and a collection of photographs, depicting the couple as being the world’s first celebrity couple, who inspired the word paparazzi (the constant buzz of photographers in Rome chasing Taylor and Burton inspired Federico Fellini, who was filming La Dolce Vita in the city at the time, to name the intrusive reporters paparazzo, which means 'buzzing insect').
As they embraced a glamourous, sensual and devil-may-care lifestyle, so does our advertising piece, highlighting the opulence of high-quality food, drink and culture.
Long Love #Fortnums
Hero Products are Fortnum & Mason Farmhouse Free Range Pork Sausages, 12 Sausages and Fortnum & Mason Tomato Sauce 250ml. Supporting Set Design / Props are Vintage YSL gold leather wedge-heeled sandals, British Vogue June 1961 (Lauri King British Vogue Archive Collection) and custom-created 1960s era Ritz Paris matchbox and vintage photographs.
Part of a set, also including “Raising the bar with Virgina”, both of which have been shot in a consciously atmospheric style and mood to represent underlying issues in both sets of relationships and contexts. There is a violet thread running through the scenes; Virginia’s ink and Elizabeth’s eyes. Where the Woolf piece resembles a still life painting, the Taylor piece resembles a film set.
