British Airways releases star-studded new safety video, and it's hilarious

British Airways just released a new pre-flight safety video and it's hilarious.

Following the example of other airlines such as Emirates and Air New Zealand, who have famously invited stars to appear in their advertisements, the six-minute video features several top celebrities.   

Of these include some of Britain’s best-loved personalities, such as: Gordon Ramsay, Rowan Atkinson (Mr Bean), Rob Brydon, Sir Ian McKellen, and Thandie Newton.

Award-winning actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and X-Files' Gillian Anderson also make appearances in the six-minute clip.

"It's extremely important to us that customers engage with our safety video, and involving some of the nation's most well-known personalities has given us the chance to create something fun that we hope people will watch from start to finish - and remember," said Alex Cruz, British Airways' chairman and CEO.

But more than just an entertaining safety video, it is also part of a fundraising effort for ‘Flying Start’, a global charity partnership between British Airways and UK charity, Comic Relief.

Cruz said: "We've worked with Comic Relief since 2010 and our customers have already helped us generate £16.5 million (S$29.5 million) for great causes. We hope the new video will enable us to exceed our goal of raising £20 million by 2020.”

The humorous video shows 10 celebrities auditioning in front of comedian Asim Chaudhry for a role in the safety video itself.

It ends with a quintessentially Mr Bean clip at the end of the video, with Rowan Atkinson comically fumbling around his seat for loose change.

All so that he could place his donation into a Flying Start envelope, which are available to customers on flights to enable them to make donations to Comic Relief.

So far, viewers have been liking what they see:

I need to book a flight to see this!! ??✈️

— Mr T (@HisNameIsMrT) July 18, 2017

Many have remarked about how much more fun it is to absorb important safety messages when presented in this way:

Superb, a really good way to get across a serious message in a fun and entertaining way.....

— Chris Pope (@Chris_Pope_NOW) July 18, 2017

And for some people, it's a reminder of Air New Zealand's videos that have paved the way:

The actual video won't air on flights until September 1, but for now, here's a behind the scenes clip that's just as funny.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnsVY_rOfN8[/embed]

thanhb@sph.com.sg