D-Day 80th Anniversary ITV Broadcast Film

To produce the hero VT for ITV’s ‘D-Day 80 at the Royal Albert Hall’ broadcast and make it relevant to a Gen Z audience.

National commemorative events traditionally appeal to an older audience; how can these poignant stories also reach a younger demographic?

How can the VT also be used to showcase the British Normandy Memorial, which was the D-Day 80 event’s charity partner?

The creative was based around finding a popular personality who could connect all audiences, from all generations, to the stories of D-Day on the 80th anniversary.

We cast Harry Clark, from the BBC’s ‘The Traitors’ and former Lance Corporal, to make an emotional visit to the British Normandy Memorial, which houses the 22,442 names of those who died during the Normandy Landings.

The film’s emotional twist came as Harry Clark spotted his namesake on the memorial immediately connecting him to the D-Day landings 80 years earlier.

This poignant moment was kept secret from Harry until he discovered the name for himself on one of the columns. This personal connection created emotion and powerful storytelling.

A stunning three minute film for ITV’s ‘D-Day 80 from the Royal Albert Hall’ hosted by Davina McCall, which included drone shots of the spectacular British Normandy Memorial.

Working with presenter and history influencer Natasha Billson we shared the stories of two Harry Clarks – 80 years apart – creating a thought-provoking and emotive film.

The content was shared across Harry and Natasha’s social channels reaching a younger audience with this history-defining story.

Featured on ITV1 reaching a peak viewing audience of 1.3m then on ITVX for 30 days.

This VT was made possible thanks to broadcast sponsor, Ancestry.com.