How WWF created a national moment of reflection for Sir David Attenborough
WWF wanted to mark Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday by creating a national moment of celebration and reflection.
The team looked to achieve this by bringing Sir Attenborough’s century of activism to a culminating moment, passing the baton to us all being custodians of the natural world.
WWF also wanted to step away from traditional charity advertising, removing the standard “donate now” call-to-action, to deliver a purely thought-provoking, inclusive message about appreciating and protecting the natural world.
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Melanie Fenwick, Head of Brand, WWF said:
“Our goal for Sir David’s centenary was to create a moment of national reflection. Global understood this vision immediately. By collaborating directly on the creative, we used the immense emotional power of audio and an incredible cast of voices to reach almost 10 million people, inspiring audiences across the UK to become the next custodians of the natural world.”
the big idea
Global and WWF crafted a bespoke, end-to-end creative campaign centred around a specially commissioned piano arrangement of What a Wonderful World.
The campaign needed the creative agility to record an incredible roster of high-profile ambassadors. Audio lent the campaign emotive vigour, scaling perfectly across multiple platforms to inspire and unite audiences in a moment of gratitude for Sir David Attenborough’s work and life.
The audio then sat as the inspiration for a series of captive placements on the TFL network.
making it happen
The campaign ran on-air over eight days in May 2026 across Heart UK, Capital UK, Classic FM, Gold, LBC, Radio X, and Smooth, with targeted DAX delivery across London and the Southeast.
We recorded an uninterrupted 80-second audio piece featuring a star-studded cast: Morgan Freeman, Dame Judi Dench, Geri Halliwell‑Horner, Asa Butterfield, Sam Heughan, Liz Bonnin, Iwan Rheon, Miranda Richardson, Nadeem Perera, and Cel Spellman.
Once on-air, the campaign was amplified by live presenter reads on Heart UK and Heart Scotland on Sir David’s birthday.
London commuters could further enjoy the messaging through a series of placements echoing the “what a wonderful world” messaging across the TFL network.
results
The campaign delivered massive scale, deep emotional resonance, and high-profile industry recognition.
On-air and digital listening results:
- Reach: 9,784,000
- Impacts: 33,877,000
- Total commercials: 411 over 8 days
WWF successfully brought the nation together for a moment of celebration, proving the immense power of direct client-publisher collaboration.
Direct partnerships with Global like this one bring something special to your brand journey. Together, we’re able to build highly bespoke creative, and generate profound emotional connection at a national scale, all at once.
Melanie Fenwick, Head of Brand, WWF said:
“Partnering directly with Global allowed us to deliver an incredibly ambitious, multi-platform campaign with complete confidence. From managing the audio production to coordinating the outdoor placements across the TFL network, their team brought exceptional creative agility and seamless execution. It was a truly collaborative process that proved the value of working directly with a publisher who understands your goals.”
