The Teens' Speech
The brief:
Get the public to think about the challenges facing disadvantaged young people across the UK.
Poke’s answer:
We gave the nation a real reason to listen to young people by creating a powerful, alternative Queen’s Speech, delivered by children and aired on Christmas Day.
Nitty gritty
We engaged influential teenagers and online communities to offer them a unique chance to speak to the nation. Passionate viewpoints were discussed on YouTube and MySpace, while Director, Virginia Quinn toured the country to meet teens without Internet access.
A thoughtful campaign blog maintained adult-interest in the campaign, which surfaced astounding truths and climaxed with the final film, The Teens’ Speech. While Her Majesty delivered a dry Christmas message, our future generation shared a more provocative, collective impression of the UK that hundreds of thousands of people paid real attention to.
Highlights
- Creating a resonant cultural artifact, that earned its own media and attention .
- Seeing The Teens’ Speech air on the front page of MySpace on Christmas Day .
- Earning seventeen minutes’ of people’s time with a very difficult subject matter .
- Learning some lessons from a wonderfully optimistic younger generation.
