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Mr. Tayto is the mascot of the Irish crisp brand Tayto Crisps, who invented the world's first flavoured crisps. He has been the mascot of the brand since its introduction in 1954, being used in advertisements, crisp packets, Tayto's logo, as a costume character and other media. He has also been used in marketing campaigns by Tayto.
Mr Tayto's spoof autobiography, ''The Man Inside the Jacket'', was written by Maia Dunphy, Ciaran Morrison and Mick O'Hara, and published in 2009.
A Tayto theme park, Tayto Park, opened in 2010 in Kilbrew, County Meath. Mr. Tayto serves as the mascot the park and walks around as a costume character there. Sadly, Tayto Park was renamed to "Emerald Park" due to Tayto Snacks ending Their Partnership deal.
Appearance[]
Mr. Tayto is an anthropomorphic yellow potato who is often seen smiling. He has two black dot eyes, curved eyebrows, a triangular nose and a black line mouth. He wears a flat black top hat, a white shirt and blue tie, a red coat over the shirt and tie, yellow-and-black-striped trousers and black shoes. In Tayto Park marketing, he wears safari gear, as the park is home to rare wild animal species.
From his debut in 1954 until about 2011, Mr Tayto was a traditionally animated mascot. After 2011, he appears on packets, marketing the Tayto logo and Tayto Park marketing in CGI.
Marketing[]
Tayto has used Mr. Tayto in its marketing since the beginning of the brand in 1954.
2007 Irish General Election[]
During the 2007 Irish General Election, Tayto posted fake election posters urging the public to vote for Mr. Tayto. Tayto has claimed that the number of spoiled votes in the Carlow-Kilkenny constituency indicate that some actually voted for Mr. Tayto, but this is purely theoretical. However, Tayto were fined for littering, due to their posters being put up in public places.
Mrs. Tayto[]
From January to March 2008, in an attempt to reach younger customers, Tayto ran a campaign in which Mr. Tayto was looking for a wife. During the campaign, an ad was placed in the Limerick Leader newspaper expressing Mr. Tayto's wish for a wife. Irish women were asked to upload their picture to the now-defunct mrtayto.ie website and explain why they would make a perfect Mrs. Tayto. Visitors to the site were asked to rate these women's compatibility. Young men were later invited as Mr. Tayto's wingmen and provided him with pick-up lines. Mr. Tayto used Bebo and Facebook to connect with fans during the campaign.
Classified ads were placed in Irish newspapers describing the type of woman Mr. Tayto was looking for. Then a series of outdoor ads with slogans like "He's Bringing Sexy Back" followed. A launch photocall campaign involving five women in wedding dresses chasing Mr. Tayto down Grafton Street announced "The Bachelor" star Simon Delaney was made his official wingman. The Love Bus tour took place in 20 cities across Ireland and saw Mr. Tayto and Delaney stopping off at radio stations and newspaper offices for media interviews. The campaign concluded on March 19, 2008. Mr. Tayto revealed that he had met so many different women during the campaign that he wasn't quite ready to settle down.
The Man Inside the Jacket[]
In 2009, Mr. Tayto's fictional autobiography, The Man Inside the Jacket, was published. It was written by Maia Dunphy, Ciaran Morrison and Mick O'Hara. A percentage of the book's cover price went to Irish depression charity Aware.
Tayto Park[]
In November 2010, a Tayto theme park called Tayto Park opened in Kilbrew, near Ashbourne, County Meath. The park has several attractions and rides and is home to many rare animal species. It is also home to the Tayto Factory Tour, as the Tayto factory is nearby. On June 6, 2015, Tayto Park became home to Europe's largest roller coaster, the Cú Chulainn Coaster. Mr. Tayto is the official mascot of the park and walks around as a costume character there. In marketing for Tayto Park, he wears safari gear, to fit into the theme of the park and to reference its reputation as the home of many rare animals. However, in 2022 it closed down and was replaced with Emerald Park.