Strongbow signs deal to sponsor TalkSport show

Scottish & Newcastle flagship cider brand Strongbow has signed a six-month sponsorship deal with TalkSport radio as the key sponsor for its drivetime programme.

Strongbow will be sponsoring the UTV-owned national speech station’s 4pm-7pm programme from March 19.

As part of the deal, negotiated by Strongbow’s media agency, Starcom, the show will be renamed Bowtime and will include on-air features and competitions, sponsorship credits, branded trailers, a presence on the TalkSport homepage, and live outside broadcasts from Strongbow sales outlets.

Caroline Jones, director at Starcom MediaVest Plus, says: “As a five-day-a-week show, with multiplatform extensions it offers us a number of ways to communicate the ‘Bowtime, First Pint Refreshment’ message.”

Steve Mosey, marketing manager for ciders at S&N adds the sponsorship will provide “an excellent conduit for Strongbow to engage with its core target market by tapping into their consuming passion for sport and entertainment”.

The TalkSport drivetime show is hosted by ex-England and Arsenal footballer Ian Wright and Adrian Durham Monday to Thursday; and by ex-Republic of Ireland player Andy Townsend and Mike Parry on Fridays.

In other activity, earlier this year, TalkSport launched a TV campaign aimed at promoting its Saturday afternoon coverage of the Barclays Premier League.

Last month S&N revealed plans to launch a low-calorie variant of Bulmers Original and a Strongbow variant, Jacques Orchard Fruits.