With the English summer in its full (yet still mild) swing, most of the nation indulges in a refreshing alcoholic beverage. These are highly sought after especially near to various water reservoirs and the sea as well. With UK’s history with binge drinking, a problem might arise very abruptly and most people tend to underestimate the temperatures of the British waters which may cause a Cold Water Shock.
Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and creative agency AMV BBDO released a horrifying short film that wants to warn people to not combine drinking and swimming. Although a couple of drinks might give you the courage to go for swim, they won’t protect you from the slightly lower temperatures of UK’s sea, canals, and rivers. The video shows what might happen to a drunken male after falling into 11-degree-cold water and ends in truly ironic way…
The campaign, produced with a male and female (see below) voice-over, uses an appropriate hashtag #coldwaterkills and runs nationally, and on YouTube, Facebook and also on LADbible. And as the LADbible mentions “last year 168 people lost their lives in UK waters, 84 percent of them being male.”
At the same time, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) released a similar video also warning us against cold water shock using the “Breathe Test” as a part of their successful Respect the Water campaign. Take the test and see if you could survive the cold British waters. You can read more about the Respect the Water campaign here.
Credits:
Creative Agency: AMV BBDO
Creative Director: Steve Jones and Martin Lorraine
Copywriter: Diccon Driver
Art Director: Alan Wilson
Producer: Lizzie Mabbott