To want to strangle Martin Freeman...

[FleagleBingoDrooperSnork]

(Or at least the character he plays) for mansplaining to the woman at the train station how she really shouldn’t watch movies on her phone, as it will use up all her data allowance. Git!

The ad shows that Freeman isn't above whoring himself out to make cash. (A Daniel Craig quote for doing similar - not implying he is actually having sex for money)

A days work for doubtless a lot of money. Wouldn't you?

I've never felt the same about him since the bit in Caitlin Moran's book when she describes finding him on location for their interview, explaining to a runner how he is "Johnny Big Bollocks" and she is "krill". Even if he was "joking", he still thought it and said it out loud.... moriarteaparty.tumblr.com/post/35890643227/cw-rape-culture-semi-graphic-description-of

YANBU, OP. I find those adverts really irritating because of how aggressive everyone is. I don't want to listen to people arguing in an ad break!

Tom Ellis doesn't pay child support????

@data he does. The Daily Mirror had to pay him compensation for lying about that.

batshit FFS. Really? It can't be mentioned that his wife is as much of a dick? So is that a new rule then, where you can make no reference to another party unless they are in the OP? Or do you just not cope with criticism of women generally?

The adverts are irritating but nowhere near as bad as the TUI adverts with that smug model and the awful cover song, or the endlessly annoying Hungry House adverts. #advertrage

I think there's something unpleasant about Martin Freeman. I don't know what, nor do I have any evidence to back it up. The word 'parsimonious' comes to mind when I look him. No evidence for that either.

SilverySurfer I know exactly what you mean.
He always play an everyday man of the people but somehow you think that in real life he would be a smug dick

Fairy he hates the "everyman" label, I think I read somewhere cos he thinks he's special

Kitty

You and I watch the same channels! hTe only reason I havent booted in the TV on the back of the TUI ads is because a new one would have the same fucking ads on it!

I don't understand the people who don't understand why ArcheryAnnie thinks he's playing himself.

Martin Freeman is an instantly recognisable face. When you see him in the adverts you immediately think 'that's Martin Freeman that is'. He hasn't been given a new name or a backstory (Like when Kris Marshall was Adam in the BT ads, or Ben Miller and Ruth Jones appeared in the Tesco ads) so you are left thinking 'that's Martin Freeman that is.'

In the absence of a character, we can only accept a face as famous as that as the person he really is. If Vodafone don't want us to just think we're watching Martin Freeman bumbling through life advising women on data usage they have to give him a name.

The actress, however, is not famous. So she is just an actress playing Martin Freeman's love interest. I don't think she has a name in the advert she is literally just 'love interest'.

So the advert follows Martin Freeman and his (fictional) love interest through their adventures with data usage.

How is that difficult to understand?

ThunderboltsLightning
I am not sure why Martin Freeman is such an acclaimed actor. I really liked him in The Office but he just plays the same person in everything I watch

I totally agree - whatever he's in, he is Martin Freeman. I feel the same way about Emma Thompson.

If I am watchingsomething with either of them in it, I always recognise them as themselves. If I look, for at the sainted Alan Rickman in, say, Harry Potter - I automatically think 'Snape' or 'Hans Gruber' in Die Hard.

It's the difference between average and a truly great actor.

Oh, god, those awful Tui/Thompson ads. Why'd they change their name, did they think people would forget how shite they are if they changed their name to something entirely absurd.

Agree about the TUI ads. They are shit. It’s about a year too late to do a La La Land parody. The choice of song makes zero sense. And why do holiday ads really oversell what you get? You’re just going to end up with a lot of disappointed customers.

The way it’s pronounced Too-EE also gets on my tits and I’m not sure why.

I read an interview where he was snappy with the interviewer for not recognising the name of the designer of his shirt, and said something about how he always wore designer because other classy people could recognise it and they could acknowledge each other's status by this elite language.

Freeman specialises in playing dorks. Which is kind of cool, really.

Not that I have a Xmas card list. But if I did, I'd knock anyone off it who used the phrase "mansplaining". Still shocked that phrase is so popular on MN which claims to be so feminist & bothered about gender bias -- but only if the gender being treated badly is female, I guess. Bunch of hypocrites, the lot of ya'.

I totally agree - whatever he's in, he is Martin Freeman. I feel the same way about Emma Thompson

And Ricky Gervais. His characters in the different films etc always have the David Brent persona.

I genuinely don't know if David Brent is how Ricky Gervais is in real life or he can only act as one character which happens to be David Brent.

Everyone who works in the business who knows MF says he's an arrogant man who lives firmly up his own backside. Which is a shame because I love Sherlock and I thought he was excellent as John Watson.

I've always disliked him. I'm so pleased it appears he really is a twat.

I remember when he was on Graham Norton's show a year or so ago. He was behaving in the most peculiar manner. As though he was the world's premier A++++ star.

Thank you, Icantreachthepretzels - exactly.