Richard Parsons, creative director at JPMH, reviews the Get Up For England with O2 campaign.

Pies and beer for breakfast. What better example of everything great about English sporting spirit? Having spent last Christmas up all night watching Strauss’ lads humiliate the Aussies, I’ve been looking forward to early starts with Jonno’s men down under. And O2 has promised to make Getting Up for England in the World Cup even better.

The ad break kicks off. Suburban chap is roused in the early hours by Lewis Moody, Jonny Wilkinson is ready with the tea, Chris Ashton hands out the pie. Want your own? Text PIE to 2020 to register for a free breakfast pack. Follow online and the team’s waiting for you in their pinnies, with updates from the Pie Kitchen.

There’s a string of behind the scenes England videos. An engaging competition to earn ‘Toast’ to win a trip to the finals. The Get Up for England app includes alarm calls delivered by England team members. You even get Greg Wallace teaching the squad to be pie masterchefs.

It’s a terrific integrated promotional campaign. It looks great, the channels are carefully considered, there’s plenty of content. I could have done with a bit more humour and tubthumping in the copy, but all in all I’m hooked.

So… I want my pies and beer! And that’s where the problems start. Who ate all the pies? According to my text, I can’t order my free breakfast until October 1st! Surely O2 don’t expect me to go without breakfast for two weeks?

But back on the website, after navigating confusing calls to ‘register’ not for the pack but for O2 Priority, the Pie Kitchen confirms my fears. Pies are not currently available. Careful review of the ad reveals ‘customers could get a free breakfast pack’ and ‘limited numbers’. I can buy a breakfast pack at selected Tesco supermarkets, but that’s not the promise.

What a shame. This is a promotional campaign. Having invested across numerous channels to deliver a promotional promise, why skimp on the promotion itself?

Somewhere along the line the pie budget’s been sacrificed. Unexpected demand, I expect. But what’s in it now for me? I’d prefer a few less videos and a few more pies and beers.

Although, given England’s first two performances, I wonder if that might explain where all the pies have gone. And perhaps a new member of the royal family could give us a hint about the whereabouts of the beer?