Past winners of the prestigious D&AD Pencils freaked the hell out this week when they suddenly discovered their precious ornaments of self-worth had gone missing.
Some 75 Pencils from nearly 30 agencies—from Rio to Melbourne, from San Francisco to Cape Town—suffered disappeared on Monday. Among the victims: Jeff Goodby of Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Paul Brazier of AMV BBDO.
Many of them voiced their confusion and grief on Twitter.
How is it that 5,000 desk tchotchkes made the move to our new office but not our @dandad pencils. WTF #hadonejobpic.twitter.com/tQBwQuA6Xh
— R/GA (@RGA) January 12, 2016
Umm. Someone's nicked my D&AD president's pencil. It's quite distinctive. Anyone seen it?#dandad#missingpencilpic.twitter.com/6IW3vtDhY2
— Paul Brazier (@therealbraze) January 12, 2016
Who has stolen Feargal Ballance's @dandad pencil. WTF. @fergiebeepic.twitter.com/xCxRqeFlPR
— adam&eveDDB (@aandeddb) January 13, 2016
Mystery at Partizan, ABJ looks confused over the disappearance of his @dandad pencil. pic.twitter.com/1MdwIwoECo
— Partizan (@wearepartizan) January 13, 2016
Mysteriously empty shelf where ours used to sit too #dandadpic.twitter.com/5Bi5zx6FiC
— RKCR/Y&R (@RKCR_YR) January 13, 2016#BreakingNews: Thief at large! @saatchilondon missing @dandad pencils. #pencilpoliceonthecase#dandadpencil
— Saatchi London (@saatchilondon) January 14, 2016
Has anyone seen our @dandad pencils? #mysterypic.twitter.com/Xi7y9Tx8f4
— Wave Studios (@WaveStudios) January 12, 2016Well, relax. It was all just a coordinated heist by London agency Lucky Generals. The Pencils were returned on Thursday, with a note explaining that the stunt was meant to dramatize the precious nature of the awards.
"This experiment was based on the simple truth that, sometimes, we only realize the true value of things when they've been taken from us," said Lucky Generals creative founder Danny Brooke-Taylor.
Added Tim Lindsay, CEO of D&AD: "We loved the chutzpah of the Lucky Generals idea. It was a cheeky and good-humored way of reminding people that, when it comes to awards, nothing matters more than a D&AD Pencil. Thanks to everyone who took part, wittingly or unwittingly." 