Mischievous Gaz & Leccy make national TV debut

Smart Energy GB brings to life the transformation smart meters will create for the nation.

Smart Energy GB, the voice of the smart meter rollout, will this week unleash Gaz & Leccy onto the nation’s small screens for the first time. The campaign will bring to life the reality that, without smart meters, our gas and electricity is out of control.

The 60 second Gaz & Leccy advert will be premiering on television screens on Thursday evening (16th June), with headline slots during Euro 2016, Germany v Poland (ITV) and Kirstie and Phil’s Love It or List It (Channel 4).

In a nod to cartoon rivalries such as Tom and Jerry, the advert sees Gaz & Leccy trying to get one up on each other. The twosome cause mayhem with some familiar household appliances, from whizzing round a whisk to tomfoolery with a TV and toaster. The final frame pulls out to reveal that Gaz & Leccy are out of control, not just in one home, but in thousands across Great Britain. The voiceover lands the campaign messaging; ‘Let’s get Gaz & Leccy under control. Smart meters are here’. It also drives the consumer to smartenergyGB.org or a local Post Office branch for more information. 

Gaz & Leccy were created in partnership with AMV BBDO, Smart Energy GB’s retained advertising agency, and the animation studio Picasso Pictures. The much-loved, Oscar-winning British actor Jim Broadbent voices the advert.

The Gaz & Leccy campaign will also be appearing in a takeover of the Metro newspaper, as well as featuring in other national publications, national radio and owned social channels from Friday 17th June.

The week commencing Monday 20th June will see two new 30 second adverts going live across television, VOD and mobile video channels. This will be backed up by a special 3D 30 second film in cinemas, mixed in Dolby 3D.

Smart Energy GB is running one of the biggest behaviour change campaigns of our generation. Its task is to engage every household in England, Scotland and Wales to upgrade to smart meters and use the new technology in their homes.

Smart meters are the solution that will help Great Britain get Gaz & Leccy under control. By providing near real time information on what we’re spending on gas and electricity, smart meters provide accurate bills and bring an end to estimated bills. Between now and 2020, every household across England, Wales and Scotland will be offered an upgrade by their energy supplier at no additional cost. More than three million smart meters have already been installed across Great Britain. 

The television campaign isn’t the first time Gaz & Leccy have caused mischief. The campaign has already appeared in regional, digital and outdoor advertising, as well as cinemas. The award-winning Gaz & Leccy cinema takeover film shows an unsuspecting cinema audience getting the shock of their lives as the advert comes to “life” in a fully immersive, 4D live experience. The cinema takeover clocked five million views in just four weeks.

The absurdity of estimated energy bills has already been brought to life by Smart Energy GB’s award-winning Estimation Nation campaign. As part of the television campaign one of Smart Energy GB’s films ran during the final of Britain’s Got Talent, supported by a national digital competition. The Estimation Nation films alone have had 32 million online views and more than 848,000 engagements to date.

Gavin Sheppard, Director of Marketing at Smart Energy GB, said: “We’re well aware that energy is an ultra-low interest category for consumers. To capture the imagination of every household in Britain, we asked AMV and Picasso to push the boundaries and create something truly memorable; something that would resonate with the feelings consumers tell us they have of energy being out of control in their homes. I think in Gaz & Leccy they’ve done this brilliantly. We’ve had such an incredible response to Gaz & Leccy online, on radio and in out of home and I am really excited to see them finally come to life and bring their unique flavour of mayhem to our TV screens this summer and beyond.” 

Melissa Venet, Producer at Picasso Pictures, the animation studio that brought Gaz & Leccy to life in 3D, said: “Working on bespoke rigs, models, textures, animation and lighting over five months of production has meant we have created something very special. We wanted to bring a level of quality you would expect to see in a feature film, and we definitely feel the hard work paid off.” 

-ENDS-

Notes to editors

Smart Energy GB has won two silver Creative Circle awards, four British Arrows Awards 2016 and an IDEA award (the APA’s Interactive, Digital and Experiential Advertising Showcase.

About Smart Energy GB

Smart Energy GB is the voice of the smart meter rollout. It’s our task to help everyone in Great Britain understand smart meters, the national rollout and how to use their new meters to get their gas and electricity under control. Our national campaign has already begun and will reach all households and microbusinesses in England, Scotland and Wales.

About smart meters and the rollout

Smart meters will replace the traditional meters we currently have in our homes. They will provide consumers with accurate bills, near real time information on energy usage in pounds and pence, and greater control over their gas and electricity. The smart meter rollout is an essential technology upgrade, unprecedented in its scale, to improve Great Britain’s energy infrastructure. Between now and 2020, everyone across England, Scotland and Wales will be offered a smart meter by their energy supplier at no extra cost. More than three million smart meters have already been installed. To find out how you can get a smart meter from your energy supplier please visit www.smartenergyGB.org/get-a-smart-meter

Smart Energy GB media contacts

For more information including interview requests, please contact the Smart Energy GB media team:
 
Smart Energy GB:
Lucy Maggs: [email protected]; 0203 019 1054 / 07747 690 432
Alicia Painter: [email protected]; 0203 019 1055