Stunt Watch: McLoughlin’s Bar needs you, Dan Burn’s Asda days and being a misery at 42

Succession but make it Irish pubs

Did a dream job stunt really make it into a Stunt Watch? Well you better believe it, as Heineken has launched the next iteration of this tried and tested method, but it did it so beautifully, it was hard not to include.

To set the scene, McLoughlin’s Bar has been run by the same family for the last 155 years, but current owner Joseph ‘Josie’ McLoughlin, the fourth-generation who took it over 43 years ago, is now looking for a new landperson to take the reins. But, there’s a catch; you need to be a McLoughlin to be in with a chance.

Isn’t it just a PR stunt I hear you ask? No. In order to help the lucky new landperson get their feet under the table, which I'm sure is no mean feat, it will include investment guidance, business support and mentorship.

A really nice solution to helping stop the decline of pubs across the UK and Ireland. They’re important places that we’re losing too quickly.

Asda retires an iconic shirt number

In case you didn’t notice, or even hear it, Newcastle United won its first major trophy in 70 years. Fans old and young got to live out childhood dreams and witness the magical moment of watching their team lift silverware, in the form of the EFL Cup, for the very first time. The majority of the news was dominated by Ant and Dec, the ‘Toon Army’ taking over London and the man of the moment, Newcastle defender, Dan Burn.

It might have been a long time since Newcastle won a trophy, but it’s not as long since Dan Burn pushed trolleys in the Blyth Asda store. That’s right, Premier League footballer and Newcastle legend-in-the-making Dan Burn once upon a time worked in Asda — donning a hi-vis vest and pushing trolleys once a week — when he was just 16 years old.

It only felt right for the Blyth store to retire his number and follow the strong tradition that clubs undertake of retiring the number of legends, such as Jude Bellingham at Birmingham and the famous Bobby Moore at West Ham. So Asda’s fitting tribute to Dan Burns' number, in the form of a hi-vis , felt like a good way to react to the news.

But that’s not all. The store itself encouraged shoppers to wear the famous Newcastle black and white colours, alongside providing them all with a special matchday pie and pea lunch.

Image credit: Asda

Stunt Watch: McLoughlin’s Bar needs you, Dan Burn’s Asda days and being a misery at 42

Does the fun really stop at 42?

Red Nose day is all about fun, laughter and enjoyment. But, according to research, that all stops when you hit 42 and forget how to have fun. I’ve just hit 30 and it feels like it’s already stopped… but nonetheless, I did quite like this from Babybel x Comic Relief. It made national news and I saw it organically.

Regarding the stunt itself, which is the important part of Stunt Watch, not so much, sorry. It was a bit predictable and the talent didn’t really sing to 42-year-olds. There wasn’t much Babybel (I love cheese) in the ball pit.

But, the story was a belter. It tapped into the zeitgeist, bolstered massively by the research, that Britain is a nation of misery. Quick, quirky stories that allow a bit of self-loathing and sit well within the British psyche are always bound to fly. It’s something I think we’ll see more of and something that doesn’t always need a ‘stunt’ element to go alongside (please keep doing them though, for Stunt Watch's sake).

KFC gets into gaming

I always enjoy my ‘and finally’ section of Stunt Watch. It’s where I like to include something from outside the traditional world of PR. This time we’re flying over to Indonesia where KFC got into mobile gaming.

We've all seen them. We've all fallen for them. We've downloaded some cool-looking games from some random Instagram ads, only to learn they're boring city-building games, with loads of in-app purchases.

Well, KFC gave its audience a solution to it; those exact games, but for real! There are four KFC Original Fake Games in total, all available in the same app.

Go search for KFC Original Fake Games on the App Store or Google Play and have fun—they’re actually pretty decent! KFC clearly understands that gamers are a big part of the success of the brand so giving back and showing understanding of the audience who helped make your brand is a huge win.

Image credit: KFC