43% of people in England live with a health condition. Firstly, that’s shocking. Secondly, there is obviously a need for this FCB Inferno campaign. The new work is an extension of the agency’s We Are Undefeatable campaign for Sport England, with the support of 15 health and social care charities and the National Lottery, which launched in August last year.

The new TVC and content series follows its predecessor’s pattern, a montage set to a re-recording of the classic song, That’s Life. It features both the original cast and several new faces, all of whom are people living with health conditions across England. The ad shows people navigating the ups and downs of managing their condition and finding ways to get moving while at home.

The campaign returns in response to the collective’s newly commissioned research revealing the true scale that lockdown lifting is having on people with long term health conditions, including those with cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s, arthritis or mental illness.^[1] 55% of people report feeling anxious about lockdown lifting, with a quarter saying that they are still afraid to leave the house, and 1 in 5 admitted to not having left their home since mid-March – except for emergencies.^[2]

A quarter of people living with a health condition say that they will not return to communal sport and leisure centres until there is a vaccine, or Covid-19 is no longer a threat in the UK.

The new advert was produced by FCB Inferno’s in-house production company Fuel and was shot entirely within the constraints of lockdown. Given that many of the cast are shielding due to their health conditions, the crew took extraordinary precautions to protect their safety while ensuring their stories were thoughtfully and lovingly told. This meant working with new and existing cast to shoot new moments on mobile phones, as well as filming through closed windows and open doorways and setting a 2+ metre distance in gardens and on the beach.

The campaign is also launching various new digital tools, including a new library of customisable mini workouts that are perfect for starting out with a new activity and a virtual assistant tool on social media to help with activity planning and motivation. A virtual walking football team has also been introduced, coached by England’s walking football manager, Stuart Langworthy, and a virtual dance group, both of which will be made up of people living with long-term health conditions.

Sharon Jiggins, executive vice president at FCB Inferno, commented, “With the excitement of lockdown easing, it’s easy to forget that for those who are shielding their freedom is still going to be severely restricted. This film shines a spotlight on how people with long term conditions are having to improvise and be creative in their ways to stay active not only for their physical well-being but their mental health too.”

Notes:

[1] Research conducted by OnePoll from 19 to 23 June 2020 surveyed 2,000 UK nationally representative adults and 1,000 adults with long term health conditions in the UK. Health conditions included: Mental illness, such as anxiety, depression or bipolar disorder, early-onset dementia (or mild cognitive impairment), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, heart disease, stroke, hypertension (or other heart-related condition), cancer, multiple sclerosis (MS), arthritis and back pain, Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes, a long-term limiting mobility / MSK condition, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and lung conditions (including bronchiectasis and pulmonary fibrosis

[2] Of people living with health conditions

Credits:

Agency: FCB Inferno
Chief Creative Officer & Creative Partner: Al Young
Executive Vice President: Sharon Jiggins
Creative Directors: Nicole Chen & Sarah Lefkowith
Account Director: Lucy Turner
Senior Account Manager: Lara Ashman
Strategy Director: Tom Lindo
Strategist: Imogen Armstrong
Designer: Max Fox
Broadcast Producer: Hanna Davis
Broadcast & Content Business Affairs: Caio Silva
Head of Creative Production: Mike Jenkins
Director: Alvaro Ramirez
Editors: Nick Ward, Jude Moore & Mori Thomson