Ocean Outdoor to Mark Moon Landing Anniversary on Iconic Piccadilly Lights

The Piccadilly Lights in London will mark the moment the Apollo 11 landed on the Moon on Saturday, July 20 in an interactive collaboration presented by Landsec, digital out-of-home operator Ocean Outdoor and The People’s Moon.

The historic mission is showcased with a visual spectacle, which combines user generated visuals provided by the public and a historical film sequence created by The People’s Moon.

The mission, which launched from the Kennedy Space Center on July 16, 1969, carried astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins to the moon, where Armstrong took the historic first steps.

Rosalyn Mackway, Ocean’s business director in brand partnerships, said: “This is digital out-of-home at its best. Using an historic moment in time to create a unique experience, supported by London’s iconic Piccadilly Lights is an amazing opportunity to capture public interest with engaging and inspiring content. The brands that we have on the Lights this week also shows our ability to pair with relevant advertisers for moments that matter.”

From 9pm to 10pm on July 20, public submissions to The People’s Moon project, founded by the London artist Helen Marshall, will form a giant photographic mosaic on the Piccadilly Lights. This will be shown at the exact hour 50 years ago that Apollo 11 landed the first people on the Moon.

The People’s Moon sequence includes historical sequences provided and co-produced by UK based Blue Aurora Media, with additional material from Stephen Slater. Moondog Animation, working with Helen Marshall, will also showcase a collaborative moment of moon animation using breath-taking real-time development gaming effects.

Helen Marshall said: “Everyone on Earth has a dream. The idea behind The People’s Moon is to come together to inspire the world to dream the impossible again. We want to encourage people from around the world to be a part of our grand endeavour to create a giant art installation revealing an iconic image of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, made up of thousands of photos submitted by the public.”

Derek Manns, digital advertising manager at Landsec, said: “Piccadilly Lights is renowned for capturing the eyes and minds of over 300 million people that pass through Piccadilly Circus each year. This interactive experience from The People’s Moon is a great opportunity to unite people all over the world, and we’re excited to be part of the celebrations for this inspiring moment in our history.”

The photo mosaics will have a permanent home here until 2024, the year humans will return to the moon, including the first woman to walk on the lunar surface.

The final piece will be installed at the Apollo/Saturn V Center at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in advance of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. The interactive digital photo mosaic will be installed in the Apollo/Saturn V Center at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, as part of the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11 celebration.

The Piccadilly Lights are marketed and operated by premium digital out-of-home media provider Ocean Outdoor on behalf of Landsec. The digital content concept was designed by Ocean Outdoor and the 4K display solution was designed and manufactured by Daktronics.