Meat’ East End’s Califano family—they could be next Oxo stars

MEET the Califano-Hurst family from East London. They could be the next in a famous long line of Oxo families seen in TV ads since the 1950s

By Mike Brooke

MEET the Califano-Hurst family from East London. They could be the next in a famous long line of Oxo families seen in TV ads since the 1950s.

The famous stock cube makers are running an 'oXo Factor' competition to replace the Bellinghams, one of television's best known ad-families who had their final Oxo supper 10 years ago.

The contest was launched in August with hopefuls filming themselves and submitting their own ads. The Califano-Hursts from the Isle of Dogs and Wanstead are among five finalist families in Britain in the running who were shortlisted this week to become the new stars of the latest advertising campaign.

Their entry was the brainchild of Anton and Rose Califano from Millwall who directed the film, starring their three-year-old daughter Zahrah alongside Anton's sister and her husband Nadia and Jonny Hurst from Wanstead with their children Yasmina, 5, and Josh, 11.

"We were all talking about the old adverts and thought it would be fun to enter," said Anton. "The kids all love performing which comes across in our entry. We had a lot of fun making the advert."

The public will be able to log on from Saturday week, October 24, to the oXo Factor website and vote for East London's Califano-Hursts. Their advert will also be aired during prime time slots over the coming weeks, including during ITV's 'The X Factor'.

Voting closes December 7 and the winning ad will be announced when shown during the ad break in 'The X Factor' final on December 12.