LOCALIZING A LEGEND
Guinness wanted an activation to relaunch this iconic Irish Christmas ad in the UK — in a way that celebrates local pubs. Independent pubs often make their own Christmas ads and rarely get the spotlight, especially when competing with big-brand productions. So instead of asking pubs to compete with the ad, we invited them to be a part of it.
We used AI to replace the original J. O’Connell’s pub in the old spot with real UK pubs — giving each their own place in the ad. 35 pubs pouring exceptional Guinness were identified using the "Harp Guide". We then delivered their own bespoke Christmas film to share. No broadcast budget. Just an iconic ad, re-poured locally.
Role: Art Director
Writer: Stella Heathfeild
Original Pub (J.O'Connell, County Meath)
Adapted Pub (The Boot, St. Albans)
Participating pubs shared their film organically...
Skehans Pub (London)
The Audley (London)
The Fox & Pheasant (London)
Shillelagh (Newington)
The Bricklayers (Putney)
The Boot (St. Albans)
Several pubs used stills of their film in local press.
some of them even changed their profile photos ...
