Diageo’s “Grumpy Gorilla” promotes free travel

Diageo has created a “Grumpy Gorilla” poster campaign to promote its sponsorship of free rides home on New Year’s Eve.

Diageo is promoting its free travel partnerships over New Year’s Eve with a “Grumpy Gorilla” poster

The poster has been designed to remind consumers to monitor how much they drink over the festive period and follows on from the drink’s company’s “Think How You Drink” campaign.

Diageo has undertaken two transport partnerships in London and Edinburgh to support the campaign.

In London, Diageo is partnering with Transport for London (TFL) for a third year running, offering free travel home on all bus, tube, tram, DLR and London Overground services on New Year’s Eve.

In Edinburgh, Diageo will sponsor Lothian buses to provide free bus travel on New Year’s Eve.

Mark Baird, head of industry affairs and alcohol policy at Diageo, said: “We hope that ‘Grumpy Gorilla’ will grab people’s attention this Christmas and remind people that they will have a much better time if they drink sensibly.

“We want everyone to be safe and enjoy New Year.”

To further support the campaign, Diageo will be giving away 10,000 iPhone cases illustrated with the “Grumpy Gorilla” image outside Leicester Square, Covent Garden and Westminster tube stations on Thursday 12 December.

Diageo has embarked on an array of initiatives to promotes responsible drinking in recent years. In July, the company released a marketing video on YouTube that ridiculed those who had been drinking excessively and were subsequently staggering or falling over.