Intro
Working with Co-op Funeralcare, we tackled one of society's most challenging conversations - discussing funeral wishes with loved ones. Through innovative content strategy and celebrity partnerships, we transformed this taboo subject into meaningful engagement that helped families across the UK have these important conversations.
The Challenge
Despite 91% of UK adults having thought about their mortality, over half the nation never discuss funeral wishes with loved ones. This silence creates additional stress during bereavement, when families must make difficult decisions without guidance. The media landscape reflected this hesitancy, with minimal helpful content available to support these conversations.
Insight
We recognised that the discomfort around death conversations creates a significant gap between thinking about end-of-life wishes and actually sharing them. By bringing this taboo topic into the mainstream through relatable celebrity experiences, we could help normalise these discussions and demonstrate Co-op Funeralcare's expertise in guiding people through this process.
Strategy
Our approach focused on three key objectives:
- Encourage the nation to discuss funeral wishes openly
- Educate people about funeral planning elements
- Showcase how funerals can be personalised to reflect individuality
We identified Channel 4 as the ideal partner, with the OnePulse Survey showing 48% of UK adults consider them the commercial broadcaster best suited to handling taboo topics with sensitivity.
Execution, Solution and Innovation
We developed "Celebrity Send Off," a groundbreaking content series where celebrities blind-planned each other's funerals, with expert guidance from Co-op Funeralcare employees. This innovative format featured:
- Three 10-minute hero episodes on YouTube
- Content across Meta and TikTok (a first for Channel 4)
- Episodes on All4 video-on-demand platform
- 30-second TV commercials on Channel 4 promoting the series
- Amplification across Co-op's owned channels
We paired three diverse celebrity duos with existing relationships:
- Bez and Shaun Ryder from Happy Mondays (best friends)
- Gogglebox favourites Marcus and Mica (married couple)
- Olympian Kriss Akabusi and daughter Shakira (parent-child)
The content balanced sensitivity with appropriate humour, showcasing diverse funeral preferences from traditional to modern. Crucially, we featured real Co-op funeral directors guiding the celebrities through the arrangement process, adding authenticity and expertise to the conversations.
Result and Business Effect
The campaign delivered exceptional results across all metrics:
- Generated over 10 million video views across platforms, exceeding targets by 80%
- Delivered 20 million additional impressions through linear TV and streaming
- Increased Co-op's social media engagement by 1069% compared to benchmarks
- Boosted brand communication awareness to a record 58%
- Secured mainstream media coverage in publications like The Guardian, which listed the series among the "Seven Best Shows to Stream This Week"
- Created genuine behavioural change, with 63% of viewers reporting feeling more comfortable discussing funeral wishes
- Improved brand perception, with over 70% reporting an enhanced opinion of Co-op Funeralcare
The success led Channel 4 to permanently host the programme on its VOD platform, extending the campaign's impact well beyond its initial run.
By transforming a difficult subject into engaging content, we demonstrated how innovative strategies can drive meaningful conversations and business results even with the most challenging topics.
Award Wins
Campaign Media Award, Media Partnership: Budget over £250K: Winner
2025
Drum Marketing EMEA Awards, Content: Gold
2025
Drum Marketing EMEA Awards, Partnerships & Collaboration: Bronze
2025
