This dreamy spot turns train travel into a kind of poetry

Train travel has been under the spotlight in the U.K. recently, and not for good reasons. In the past year, train delays, disastrous timetable changes and overcrowding have dominated the news -- and last year the number of cancelled or significantly late trains was at the highest level in 17 years, according to statistics from the Office of Rail and Road.

Nevertheless, a new spot from LNER, the train operator that links London with Leeds, York, Newcastle and Edinburgh, makes train travel look not only appealing, but absolutely poetic. 

Created by Anomaly, and directed by Biscuit's Andreas Nilsson, the ad weaves together a number of different stories about journeys home--from the guys dressed as Romans who have been re-enacting battles to the teenagers returning rom a festival and the little girl on her way home from a judo competition. Throw in some quirky animation, glimpses of the East Coast landscape and rousing music, and it all makes for an enticing film. (Whether it will be enough to persuade jaded commuters that train travel is fun is another matter.) 

It's part of an integrated campaign by LNER that includes OOH and press ads using artwork from local artists from cities and towns along the network. There's also a supporting influencer-led social media and digital campaign, in which agency TMW Unlimited used a range of influencers to create authentic and relatable content on their journeys.  The campaign runs on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and online display until end April.