6. Top Gear Nick Mason's Book
This one's a bit odd, because it's not exactly the worst display of advertising ever put on camera. But still, this one's all about context this shameless act of Floyd-pluggery happened on the BBC, which should tell you all you need to know. Ok, so maybe you don't know. Putting it simply, the BBC is a publically-funded broadcasting corporation paid for out of the British taxpayer's pocket. As such, product placement isn't allowed, because it's not strictly ethical to promote a private business using public funds. Yet even though the BBC does get good funding, there came a point when Top Gear couldn't afford/find a Ferrari Enzo to review, so they had to ask Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason the most amenable and nearby bloke if they could borrow his. As Jeremy Clarkson made clear to the viewer, Mason said they could, but only if they gave his new book a plug. Now when faced with such a situation, you would've thought discretion was the name of the game. Obviously an Enzo is all well and good, but when faced with the wrath of a fiercely anti-commercial broadcaster you don't really want to be too blatant. Yet instead, Clarkson broadcast clips of him aholding the book and dropping Floyd puns. This culminated in The Stig cranking up some Pink Floyd on the Enzo's radio while flinging it round the test track. Subtlety wasn't exactly a strong point, but hell, it was pretty damn funny, and they got away with it.