Leo Burnett caps off McDonald’s UK 50th Birthday with Grimace

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LONDON, UK — Following the launch of McDonald’s 50th Birthday last month, McDonald’s UK, working with its agency partners, has unveiled a final surprise to end the party on a high note. Grimace, the iconic McDonald’s character, is gatecrashing the party, appearing at the birthday celebrations with the highly anticipated, limited-edition Grimace Shake.

The new, limited addition to the menu will be available in McDonald’s restaurants nationwide for one week only, starting August 28 until September 03. It is the first time the UK has tried the viral sensation, which features a blueberry-flavoured syrup blended with a creamy milkshake base. The drink set social media alight when it debuted in the US last Summer with the hashtag #grimaceshake, amassing over 251.3M posts on TikTok.

The 50th Birthday campaign will be modified to focus on Grimace, with the creative from Leo Burnett UK given a purple twist. Grimace will also tease his arrival with a takeover of McDonald’s UK social and CRM channels, replying to comments and interacting directly with fans.

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Not one to miss a party, Grimace also attended McDonald’s first-ever merch pop-up shop last August 26 at BOXPARK Shoreditch. Led by Red Consultancy, the 50th birthday event allowed fans to purchase Maccies merch from the exclusive “I Had My Birthday Party at McDonald’s” range. The new collection commemorates McDonald’s of the ’80s and includes everything from collectible varsity jackets, sweatshirts, t-shirts, backpacks, bum bags, and scrunchies. Plus, at the event, some people were the first in the country to taste the Grimace Shake before its official launch two days later.

On launch day, to ensure everyone can join in, Grimace will invite the nation to try the milkshake by hosting a tasting party on McDonaldsUK’s Instagram Live. He’ll be DJ’ing from purple decks, accompanied by a giant countdown stating the time left for people to grab his shake. OOH fly posters by Leo Burnett UK, spotlighting the tasting party, take inspiration from vintage rave posters featuring illustrations of “Superstar DJ Grimace” and the event details.

Following the launch of the Grimace Shake, some of the original retro, confetti-adorned OOH, paid social, and in-restaurant decorations will feature the lilac liquid drip of the Grimace Shake, as well as further reminders for customers to get their hands on it while it’s here.

Matt Reischauer, Marketing Director for UK&I at McDonald’s, said, “Grimace does what Grimace wants, so of course he would gatecrash our 50th birthday celebration; it wouldn’t be a party without him. Seriously though, after so much fan demand, we are very excited to bring the delicious Grimace shake to the UK & Ireland.”

Andrew Long and James Millers, Executive Creative Directors at Leo Burnett UK, added, “Every good party has a final surprise, and McDonald’s 50th Birthday includes a colossal one. The buzz of Grimace and the Grimace Shake is all over social, we couldn’t think of a better special guest to close out our celebrations!”

The campaign was a cross-agency collaboration. Leo Burnett was responsible for creative and social, RED Consultancy led on PR, organic social, and the pop-up, and OMD UK handled all media planning and buying. Linney led the restaurant and below-the-line activations.