[1] The campaign returned in cinemas in 1996, continuing there until 1999,[2] with the final commemorative advert and the modified tagline, "Happiness will always be a cigar called Hamlet.
The premise is that a character finds themselves in an awkward or embarrassing situation before lighting and smoking a Hamlet cigar to console themselves, accompanied by an excerpt from a jazz rendition of Johann Sebastian Bach's Air on the G String, played by Jacques Loussier and his trio, which is still frequently associated with the brand.
[5] An advert from the series, produced in 1986 by Collett Dickenson Pearce,[6] recreated a skit from the debut episode of BBC Scotland sketch show Naked Video which first aired just months earlier.
[7] The show's unkempt Baldy Man character (as played by Gregor Fisher) struggles to pose calmly in a photo booth, and after his height-adjustable seat drops him almost out of the frame, is heard to strike a match.
On realising this, the said robot opens his chest to reveal a Hamlet pack and begins smoking, and the "Happiness" line is delivered in a metallic-sounding voice.
The final cinema adverts were initially shown from 1999 with the special slogan "Happiness will always be a cigar called Hamlet,"[13] although they reverted to the original tagline for a period after the UK tobacco industry refused to cease advertising voluntarily.