Throw Skippy on the barbie and haul Flipper, gasping and wheezing, ashore in the tuna nets. A new animal star is born.

While Birds Eye wrestles with the dilemma of whether to pull its polar bear ads, Wall’s has blown the competition off its metaphorical ice floe with Alan, the talking dog.

Deployed engagement-ring style in a velvet box, the canine Casanova is a miniature Mike Skinner, emulating The Streets’ mercurial frontman with lo-fi folk-garage stylings about man’s gratitude for processed meat.

Riffing on gender stereotypes is often a lazy get-out and the idea that blokes can’t talk about ‘feelings’ is as familiar as it gets. The slogan, What We Want, covers similar territory to Yorkie’s It’s Not For Girls.

But the execution is flawless, Alan oozing star quality like Lassie oozed rabies. There won’t be a better ad this year.

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