The Blitz: bringing the past back to life

Agency: the7stars

The 80th anniversary of The Blitz felt like a great opportunity for Ancestry to align with a moment that would rekindle interest in the past. But with less media coverage than other military anniversaries and the pandemic sweeping the nation, public consciousness was dominated by the historic event unfolding in the present.

Yet the spirit of The Blitz felt so current. Our approach tapped into the community renaissance to bring people �closer� to the events of 1940. Using our WWII records, we decided to amplify regional stories across local outdoor and press formats to transport people back to the 1940s.

Launching with a takeover of the iconic Piccadilly lights, we then enlisted the help of 80 artists from across the UK to transform each of our regional Blitz stories into artwork for our campaign. From high profile outdoor sites to regional press, each placement had to be cherry-picked to align with the story location and artwork dimensions.

By unlocking the power of local, The Blitz anniversary drove the best performing September in Ancestry's history. Bringing the past to life carved out a space in public consciousness thereby inspiring people to discover their own stories.