The Guinness Archive partnered with the Irish Film Institute's (IFI's) Irish Film Archive to catalog, digitize, and preserve a collection of more than 500 16mm and 35mm advertisements, making it the largest publicly available collection of brand advertising in Ireland and the UK.
The entirety of the Guinness brand’s advertising legacy - 548 ads spanning 40 years from 1955 to 1995 - has been cataloged, digitally preserved, and made available to the public.
Of the 548 ads that will be available on the Guinness Storehouse website, a curated selection reflecting key influential historical and cultural themes spanning the 40 years will be free to view worldwide on the IFI Archive Player.
Inspired by the success of the Irish Adverts Project in 2016, the project is supported by a grant from Coimisiún na Meán’s Archiving Funding Scheme.
Created to advertise Guinness to Irish and UK television audiences, the collection of adverts features a wealth of talent both behind and in front of the camera, with directors including Alan Parker, Tony and Ridley Scott; music from artists Elkie Brooks, Clannad and the Chieftains; and a host of well-known faces such as Pete Postlethwaite, Bill Nighy, Robert Lindsay, and Jon Pertwee.
In addition to their ability to evoke nostalgia, the collection of Guinness commercials captures moments in cultural and social history spanning a 50-year period that offers a fascinating insight into changing representations of Irishness both at home and overseas, evolving gender roles, and the ever–changing role of the pub in Irish society.
Guinness adverts have changed over the years and are continually evolving to reflect changing society and advertising rules.
Both Guinness and the IFI note that these adverts may contain historical product claims that are not now endorsed by Diageo, the parent company of Guinness. In making these adverts available, it is not the intention to promote the benefits of drinking but to show historical Guinness advertising in its original context.
In celebration of the Guinness Adverts Project's launch in 2024, the Irish Film Institute has kindly shared the following two Guinness Adverts, both from the 1970s, with IrishCentral:
Forgery (1970s, 41 seconds):
Island (1970s, 1 min 2 sec):
* Originally published in 2024, updated in January 2026.
Comments