Channel 4's Derry Girls

THE CHALLENGE

The long-awaited final series of Derry Girls, the hilarious show about a Catholic girl’s high school in 90s Northern Ireland, returned to screens. After its long hiatus Channel 4 needed audiences to remember what they loved about the show. To send the show out with a bang, Bauer Media, Channel 4 and OMD
teamed up, to create a campaign that would get people talking…and tuning in to season 3.

This campaign had great bottom of the funnel impact, meeting the following objectives:

Create an appointment to view Derry Girls on Channel 4
Increase consideration
Remind audiences about the series’ themes and beloved characters

THE IDEA

Bauer’s ambition was simple: target the heat audience in an imaginative way. Like the four Derry Girls…and boy, the heat reader had grown up in the 90s, reading the quintessential teen magazine, Smash Hits. To tap into the shows’ nostalgia, C4Creative challenged Bauer to revive their iconic magazine brand, turning it 100% Derry Girls to promote the show.

With its trailblazing interviews and famously memorable front covers, Smash Hits paved the way for the teen and lifestyle sector. It’s cheeky tone and nostalgic feel aligned perfectly with the series. Bauer would create a one-off standalone edition of the magazine, dedicated to Derry Girls, which would run in conjunction with extensive digital amplification.

The show’s demographic were women 18-35. Bauer’s team uncovered…

✓ The Heat audience were in that
exact bracket.

✓ Nostalgia was at the very heart of
the series and a key reason why
audiences tuned in.

THE EXECUTION

Every inch of the 28-page magazine was carefully curated, offering readers original content that seamlessly weaved the shows’ themes into classic Smash Hits features. To ensure that content was exactly as audiences remembered from their childhoods, Bauer even managed to bring on board the magazine’s original Editor, Jordan Paramor.In no mean feet, over 150,000 copies of the magazine were distributed for free across key city locations – London, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Glasgow, Belfast and, of course, Derry. For audiences who couldn’t grab a copy on the day, it was also bagged up with that week’s heat and Closer.

The excitement around the limited edition issue was an absolute Smash Hit! Fans shared their adoration for the magazine, with international fans even asking for copies to be sent to them. The campaign achieved significant PR coverage from The Daily Star to the Belfast Telegraph, and the mag was even featured on TV’s Lorraine, when cast member Dylan Llewellyn appeared on the show. The revival created a huge talking point and cultural moment, helping Derry Girls see its biggest season ever, making it C4’s fourth best performing comedy series of all time.

Bauer helped Derry Girls’ Season 3 achieve…

No.1 TV series of 2022 in Northern Ireland*

An audience of 2.9million
+55% vs the slot average

Won bronze for Media Idea: Under £250K at the Media Week Awards, and was shortlisted for their Media Creativity category.

Won Best Use of Print at the Magnetic Spotlight Awards and was shortlisted for their Pratenrship of the Year category.

Shortlisted for a Media and Entertainment Award at the Campaign Media Awards.