McVitie's Spotlights Biscuits Bringing Brits Together

pladis-owned McVitie’s is bringing some of its most iconic brands together for the first time with a multi-million pound campaign packed full of feeling that spotlights the role McVitie's plays in everyday moments of connection across Britain.

The work, developed in partnership with adam&eve\TBWA, builds on the success of ‘There’s Only One’, the 2023 Masterbrand campaign featuring the iconic Trevor McDonald that championed McVitie's as Britain's original and irreplaceable biscuit, and accelerated growth for the brand, with purchase intent increasing by 27% and retail sales value growing by 15.8% in 2023.

The new campaign marks a step change, evolving the brand towards an emotional platform centred on the line "There's only one that brings us all together”. The work, which extends across TV, social, out-of-home and in-store, reinforces McVitie's role as a facilitator of meaningful connections, showing how the brand helps bring people together through the shared moments and everyday rituals that define British life.

The campaign is led by a new fast-paced hero film featuring scenarios and moments sourced from social insights about how, where and when McVitie’s iconic products are enjoyed. Soundtracked by a punk version of Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder’s seminal hit ‘Together In Electric Dreams’ and directed by Greg Hackett through Park Pictures, the 60-second spot shows the brand’s biscuits as the social glue helping to bind us together.

It opens with a parent tossing a packet of biscuits to their child who is about to go on a trip, before swiftly moving on to a pregnant woman picking up some Ginger Nuts during a yoga class, a couple enjoying Rich Tea biscuits over a natter, and a grandmother offering her teenage granddaughter a Club bar while she’s donating blood.

From students watching telly together to a man running a marathon and a little girl competing in a soapbox race, McVitie’s biscuits are what they all have in common. The film ends on the tagline: “There’s only one that brings us together.”

Launching on 14 September, the film will run across TV, Online Video, Social and Cinema, with media strategy, planning and buying led by Omnicom Media UK agency MG OMD. Designed to bring McVitie’s to life in environments and moments where people naturally connect, it will launch in key TV programming spots such as Trigger Point, Gogglebox and the Carabao Cup.

The brand film is supported by a nationwide out of home campaign across high-impact sites including Waterloo Motion, Cromination and Outernet. The campaign also features contextual creative that adapts to different consumption occasions throughout the day across selected digital placements. The creative also extends into the brand’s packaging, with limited-edition Digestives, Chocolate Digestives and Hobnobs packs rebranded as 'Together’, ‘Giggling’ and ‘Buzzing’, reinforcing the role its products play in bringing people together.

The campaign, which runs until 1 November, will be further amplified through social activity designed to spark conversation around the everyday moments featured in the campaign. Drawing on cultural behaviours and social-first storytelling, the content will extend the campaign's celebration of connection across digital channels.

Benazir Barlet-Batada, Marketing Director for McVitie’s, says: "When you stop and look, McVitie's shows up in so many of the moments that bring people together. It's the packet opened during a family catch-up, the biscuit shared over a cup of tea, or the familiar favourite that's always there during life's big and small occasions. At its heart, McVitie's is a modern British icon that helps facilitate meaningful connections, bringing people together through everyday rituals and shared experiences.

"That's what inspired this campaign. We wanted to capture a modern snapshot of Britain and celebrate the everyday connections, traditions and shared experiences that unite us. We're proud of the role McVitie's has played in British life for generations, and this campaign reflects our ambition to keep the brand relevant by celebrating the people, communities and moments that continue to bring us together.”

Paul Jordan, Creative Partner at adam&eve\TBWA, said: “McVitie’s isn’t one of those brands trying to insert itself into culture - it’s already there. Their biscuits are subtly woven throughout everyday British life. Our job was simply to remind people of that role.

“Working with director Greg Hackett, we painted a modern portrait of British life with McVitie’s at its centre as a kind of social glue. We applied the same thinking to the music: taking something Britain already loves, represented in a new light. A punk version of ‘Together in Electric Dreams’ became the perfect soundtrack - unexpected, but unmistakably British.”

Credits:

Client: Pladis

Brand: McVitie’s

Project/Campaign Name: McVitie’s Masterbrand “There’s Only One That Brings Us Together”

First Air Date: 14th September

Client names and Job Titles:

Asli Ozen Turhan - CMO, UK&I

Benazir Barlet-Batada - Marketing Director

Carly Hunt - Head of Marketing

Pippa Whybourne - Marketing Manager

Imaan Riaz - Senior Brand Manager

Maite Maciel Diez - Assistant Brand Manager

Michele Dainty - Shopper Marketing Director (UK&Ireland)

Kate Skeggs - Shopper Marketing Manager

Philippa Ansell - Senior Digital & Media Manager

Kate Williams - Senior PR & Social Manager

Agency: adam&eve\TBWA

Creative:

Ant Nelson – Chief Creative Officer

Mike Sutherland - Chief Creative Officer

Paul Jordan – Creative Partner

Lauren Coates - Creative Director

Production:

Megan Sutton – Senior Producer

Planning:

Matt Springate – Global Head of Strategy

James Fraser – Planning Partner

Alex Scott-Malden – Global Strategy Director

Donna Yan – Strategy Director

Joe Percy – Senior Planner

Chief Executive Officer:

Miranda Hipwell

Account Management:

Tom Ghiden – Managing Director

Jo Lorimer - Managing Partner

Max Philips – Business Lead

Gareth Hughes – Business Director

Stephanie Taylor - Business Director

Sophie Kelting – Business Director

Kelly Mahon – Account Director

Sophie Perry – Account Director

Alice Trotter – Account Manager

Nancy Barrett – Account Manager

Project Management:

Andrea Kenyon – Senior Project Director

Jake Paterson – Junior Project Manager

Agency: Manning Gottlieb OMD

Strategy:

Matthew Philip

Helen Brain

Account Management:

Tom Cocker

Ryan Cummins

Hannah Marsden

Clare Feechan

Mikaela Saade

Business affairs: Danni Rouse

Design:

Aaron Moss – Design Director

Luke McClure – Senior Designer

Aaron Jangal – Senior Designer

Production Company: Park Pictures

Director : Greg Hackett

Producer: Jacob Swan Hyam

Production Manager: Rachael Donson

Executive Producer: VyVy Ly

1st AD: Julian Richards

DOP: Steve Annis

Service company: Sugar Free TV

Editing company: TRIM

Editor: Thomas Grove Carter

VFX production: Framestore

VFX Artists: Andrew Saltner

Colour Grading Company: Company 3

Colourist: Simon Bourne

Soundtrack name:

Together In Electric Dreams – remake by Pengshui

Music Company: Wake The Town

Sound Engineer: Martin Leitner