The National Lottery and adam&eveDDB hero the long-lasting love of Lotto

'Pockets', created by adam&eveDDB, aims to put a spotlight on Lotto, the game long synonymous with The National Lottery, by putting it front and centre of the campaign. Players, who’ve grown up with the National Lottery, are reminded of the excitement of playing and that a life-changing win is within everyone’s reach.

Included in our campaign is a 90” film, directed by Oscar-winner Tom Hooper, that follows a couple’s enduring love and sense of hope over three decades. It begins in 1994, on the night of the first-ever National Lottery draw. As the numbers are drawn, a dropped Lotto ticket sparks an attraction between our two protagonists, Edward and Isaac.

Through Millennium celebrations, a lover’s tiff and a wedding, their love endures – along with their hope that Edward’s Lotto numbers will come up. The film reaches its crescendo when Edward sees his winning numbers and, after a brief scare that the ticket is lost, they celebrate the win they’d always hoped for.

The film is an evolution of The National Lottery’s award-winning Christmas campaign ‘A Christmas Love Story’, which was also directed by Hooper, and successfully highlighted the joy of winning.

adam&eveDDB partnered with numerous production companies throughout the process, including SMUGGLER, which handled the film production; ON ROAD, a cultural research agency which ensured the accurate portrayal of gay men from the 1990s to the current day; and Framestore and Whitehouse Post, both of which handled post-production.

The TV ad is supported by a fully integrated multi-media channel campaign, all connected by The National Lottery’s most distinctive asset – the pink ticket – the symbol of each player’s belief in a win. From the central brand film through to weekly 10” TV draw reminders, and striking OOH & press, the ticket is the hero.

The mix of pockets celebrates National Lottery players: those tenacious believers who, despite the incredible diversity of their lives, are united by the powerful hope that – one day – it could be them.

Ivor Burns, Marketing Director at National Lottery operator, Camelot, said: “We wanted to create a campaign that celebrates the relationship our regular players have with their Lotto ticket – the excitement they feel about the possibility of a life-changing win, and their never-ending belief that, one day, their numbers will come up.”

Ben Tollet, Group Executive Creative Director, adam&eveDDB said: “The National Lottery is an iconic and loved part of British history and culture. Starting our film in 1994, at the first-ever draw, brought back all that excitement and gave us the inspiration to tell a poignant story of a player through the ages who never stopped believing.”

iProspect have created a fully integrated media campaign across TV, BVOD, press, cinema OOH, digital and social, launching during ITV’s hugely popular Britain's Got Talent followed by smash hit Love Island.

It breaks on 4 June on TV and online video, supported by OOH, print, radio, cinema and social activity. The campaign will run throughout the second half of 2023 and into early 2024.

Credits

Client: Camelot

Brand: The National Lottery / Lotto

Project/Campaign name: Pockets

Client:

Marketing Director - Ivor Burns;

Head of Marketing Communication and Creative - Anna McInally;

Marketing Manager - Sophie Morgan;

Brand Manager - Jayna Bacchus;

Assistant Brand Manager - Lucie Pelaez;

Head of Marketing Strategy and Media - Rachel Moss

Marketing Strategy Manager - Natalie Littlechild

Group Executive Creative Director: Ben Tollett

Chief Creative Officer: Richard Brim

Creative Directors: Matt Fitch, Mark Lewis

Agency producer / Production lead: Panos Louca

Assistant agency producer: Gabby Vicente

CEO: Tammy Einav

Managing Partner: Sam LeCoeur

Business Director: Fay Taylor

Account Director: Tejen Shah

Account Manager: Zahra Ahmed

Global planning partner: Heather Alderson

Planning directors: Stuart Williams, Róisín Mulroney

Senior planner: Kit Owens

Planner: Rosa Aaronovitch

Senior project manager: Amy Waldman

Designer: Roberto Celentano / KING HENRY

Agency legal counsel: Tom Campbell

Media agency: iProspect

Media planners: Niall McEvoy; Dominic Sadler; Sarah Francis

Cultural research agency: ON ROAD

Production Company: SMUGGLER

UK Managing Director: Fergus Brown

Executive Producer: Lucy Kelly

Director: Tom Hooper

Producer: Nick Sutherland-Dodd

Production Manager: Michelle Kirkman

Production Assistant: Nancy Eite Cooper, Kamran Marzban

Talent Coordinator: Charlie Henderson

Location Manager: Humphrey Milles

1st AD: Ben Gill

2nd AD: Chris Mears

Runner: Kleo Andreou, Tiger Brewer, Zariffe Sevin, Bailey Betteridge, Thomas Pritchett

Cinematographer: Steve Annis

1st AC: Thomas Nicholson

2nd AC: Elisa Spigariol

Camera Trainee: Ant Belle

Grip: Alex Kelleher

Gaffer: Colin Thwaites

Production Designer: John Stevenson

Set Decorator: Emma Field Rayner

Prop Master: Ezra Piers-Mantell

Costume Designer: Sarah Blenkinsop

Hair & Make-up Designer: Julie Dartnell

Casting: Lesley Beastall

Editing Company: Whitehouse Post

Producer: Ella Sedgwick

Editor: Russell Icke

Editor Asst: Steven Waltham

Post Production: Framestore

Post Producer Alexia Paterson

Post Coordinator: Poppy Chadwick

VFX Supervisor: Pedro Sabrosa

2D Leads: Matthew Thomas and Luigi Russo

Company 3 Colourist: Simon Bourne

Company 3 Producer: Ellora Soret

Track name: Always Together With you

Music Written / Composed by: Jason Andrew Pierce

Artist: Spiritualized

Music Supervision: SIREN

Music Supervisor: Siân Rogers

Label: PIAS

Publisher: BMG

Audio Post Production: 750mph

Audio Engineer: Sam Ashwell and Jake Ashwell

Audio Producer: Olivia Ray & Aishah Amodu