Usain Bolt Suits Up as a Superhero for Virgin Media’s New 'Switch To Super' Campaign

Virgin Media is today launching a major new campaign that brings to life the benefits of its super broadband speeds and super entertainment offering. 

The multi-million pound campaign, “Switch to Super”, sees Usain Bolt ‘suit up’ and transform into an animated superhero. It will run for eight weeks across TV, VOD, press, radio, online and social and is spearheaded by a TV ad which launches on Friday 1st June at 7:55pm before Britain’s Got Talent on ITV.

Created by BBH London, the campaign dramatises the benefits of switching to Virgin Media and getting super broadband speeds and super entertainment.  It is underpinned by Virgin Media doubling the broadband speed of selected best-selling bundles for new customers for free.

The TV ad features actor, screenwriter and director, Richard E. Grant, as an expert English tailor, and centres around Usain Bolt’s sartorial journey to find the perfect superhero suit. The “suit up” story, created to reflect similar suit up scenes from classic superhero movies, sees the on screen chemistry between the two bring a light-hearted and humorous feel to the film. 

The film was shot by the hugely talented director, Tom Tagholm, in an East London studio, designed to mirror a quintessential British tailors. Shot long and edited in quick cuts to reflect the fast-paced style of many superhero films, the energetic TV ad will be accompanied by VOD, press, online and social activity planned and bought by Manning Gottlieb OMD, as well as supporting material on Virgin Media’s social channels and PR activity. 

Jeff Dodds, Managing Director of Consumer and Mobile at Virgin Media, said: “Speed is the super power at the core of Virgin Media. It’s the kryptonite to our competitors and what makes our services stand out. Our new campaign, with Usain Bolt front and centre, brings to life our super speeds, super entertainment and super value for our customers.”

Ben Fennell, CEO of BBH, said: “The “Switch to Super” campaign sees Usain Bolt transform into a superhero, we think it will make for a hugely entertaining and hardworking campaign. It is big, bold and larger than life – just like Usain.”

The campaign idea is rooted in the rich and varied genre of superheroes and highlights Virgin Media’s unrivalled fibre broadband and entertainment offering. The film demonstrates that switching to Virgin Media will deliver super broadband speeds, super entertainment and super value and is set to a specially composed track. It ends with the line: ‘Switch to super today and we’ll double the speed of our best-selling bundles for free’.