Joyful, chaotic…hectic. Just like real family Christmases. EE’s first ever Christmas campaign, Hosting & Guessing, leads with a 105-second film, The Christmas Double, that follows a mum with two children, attempting the impossible – visiting both sides of the family in one day.

The full campaign, created by Publicis Groupe UK’s cross agency team, explores being a host and a guest at Christmas.

Reflecting the reality of families juggling multiple Christmases in one day, new research* from EE reveals how the nation plans to celebrate this year with more than half (54%) of Brits hosting a Christmas celebration, 47% guesting at someone else’s, and nearly one in three (27%) ‘doing the double’. The campaign shows how EE, the UK’s best network, helps it all run a little smoother – keeping customers connected wherever they are this Christmas. 

Staying true to the canon of Publicis Groupe UK’s creative work with EE, the campaign uses a classic soundtrack, the 1989 house hit, Ride on Time, by Black Box, a timestamped opening to the film and celebrates real life scenarios grounded in authenticity. 

The film launched with a 30-second spot on Wednesday November 12, followed by a 60-second edit on Friday November 14 during Coronation Street (ITV) and the Big Brother Final (ITV2). The 60-second film is supported by two 30-second spots as well as cinema, radio, OLV, OOH, DOOH and social.

DOOH and OOH creative reveal two Christmas Days – one hosting, one guesting, in a split screen format with contextual audio tailored to different environments and travel periods, aligning with people’s festive journeys.

The imagery captures the moments two worlds meet at a doorway, while full motion DOOH appearing during key festive moments such as final journeys home or last-minute shopping, follows characters moving between hosting and guesting. Each scene introduces new settings, and faces, keeping the main character centred for smooth connected shifts. Custom festive billboards across London, Birmingham and Manchester bring the campaign to life. All media has been strategically planned by EE’s specialist WPP team, OpenConnect, and OOH specialists, Posterscope.

EE also has partnered with Samsung UK to celebrate its customers this Christmas through a competition hosted by chef and broadcaster, Andi Oliver. Developed by Digitas UK, the activation rewards EE’s loyal customer base with the chance to win Samsung tech for in and around the home.

Social spans Meta, Tiktok, YouTube, Reddit and Pinterest, following the same transition between two worlds and the duties of hosting and guesting and gifting using 30-second spots, capturing the duality of consumers’ lives and connectivity needs at Christmas.

Ben Mooge, chief creative officer, Publicis Groupe UK, stated, “At Christmas, connection matters more than ever, and EE is the network families can rely on. Reflecting the reality of families juggling multiple Christmases in one day, we wanted the brand recognition we’ve built through our work this year to come through clearly in our first Christmas spot – making sure it feels unmistakably EE. It’s a fully integrated campaign built around the idea of hosting and guesting, and a major moment in our journey with the brand.”

Credits
Client: EE
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
Digital Agency: Digitas
Media Agency: WPP Media
Production Company AV: Magna Studios
Director: Phoebe Arnstein
DOOH & Social Production: Magna Studios
Director: Uncanny
AV Editing: MARSHEEN
DOOH & Social Editing: Medusa Video
Editor: Deri Watt
Post Production AV: Time Based Arts
DOOH & Social Post: ELMNTL
Sound AV: Factory
Sound DOOH & Social: Runamok
Stills Production Company: Magna Studios & Academy
Photographer: Peter Funch
Retouching: INK Studio
Print: INK
Design & Artwork: Prodigious