Americans React to Top 10 Most Effective British Adverts 

Do any of y'all remember that advert about speeding with the little girl leaning against the tree, saying "if you hit me at 40 there's an 80% chance I'll die"

Pro tip for the future. IF you ever plan on watching more UK adverts like this, make sure you have some John Lewis Xmas Ads on standby.

I was dumped at Dr Barnardos at 10 days old in Stepney - im now 58 years old & im eternally grateful for the organisation that got me a loving family within 2 years & got me a second chance at life, even though i was too young to remember any of it - not everyone had a happy ending like mine - Thank you Barnardo's ❤

Years ago I saw an advert set in a classroom with a little boy next to an empty desk talking about how his friend had been killed by a drunk driver. His final words "he was my best friend" went through me like a knife and I swear to God I have never drunk even a drop if I'm driving ever since.

Grew up in the 70s/80 - things I learned from public info films. 1. Don’t play near open water 2. Don’t play on an icy lake 3. Don’t play on rail tracks. 4. Stop,look listen crossing roads. 5. Don’t go with strangers 6. ‘Clunk Click Every Trip’ - this is closely related to no’5. 7. Oh and don’t be a litter bug.

Don't worry about being so upset. You'd normally only see one of these adverts at a time. You're watching 10 back-to-back!

The worst thing is they’ve stopped these ads due to them being too emotional… this is the point!! Our society has become numb and blinkered to common life issues. We need these ads back

There's one advert where there's a class of young kids sat in a field on a trip, and at the same time there's a fella on his way to work using his phone. He goes through a brick wall and flattens every single kid in less than a second. Screen goes black and it says something along the lines of "Every year approximately 30 children are killed by careless drivers" Its short, brutal and VERY effective

Re the Motor Neurone Disease ad..I worked with a guy for many years who always seemed healthy, then one day he didn't turn up for work like he was supposed to. A few hours later we were told he'd been rushed into hospital and had been diagnosed with MND. A month later he reurned to work but had lost complete use of his left arm. Some time later he stopped turning up for work...we knew something had happened. He died shortly after and to be honest myself and most of our colleagues never really understood exactly how terrible MND is until he died, we were devastated. This was three years ago and we still miss him like crazy, he had the most amazing persoanlity. Seeing this ad again after all this time brought it all back to me and I am not ashamed to say I teared up too. RIP Pecky, we miss you mate. From everyone at Stannah in Andover.

The "THINK!" adverts are always impactful as well. The UK and EU don't play when it comes to getting an important message through

I'm from the UK, and I can confirm the ads you're watching, most anyway, we're played after 9pm!

Im suprised the NSPCC ad with the little baby boy Milo, in his cot holding his empty bottle "Milo doesn't cry any more, because he knows that when he does, no one comes" 😭

These aren’t even the worst, seeing kids being hit by a train at a level crossing or burned to death playing in a sub station are even more horrific, UK hits hard to get the message across this is life people it happens EVERYDAY

I was surprised not to see the “if you hit me at 40 advert” that was horrific when I was young. These are traumatic but necessary. We learned so much growing up about house fires, road crossings and a lot more.

The best advert for me has always been ‘Like most victims, Julie knew her killer…’ It was on tv when I was around about 10 and 23 years later I still remember it and the message.

As someone from the UK, who did have someone to look up to (my foster carers) thanks to social services (cps for the americans

There is an advert where a mother hasn’t strapped her child in the back seat, she has an accident and the child is propelled forwards and the child’s head caves in his mothers head and kills them both that is the most unforgettable advert I remember as a kid the blood is everywhere

In the uk certain adverts are on after 9.00pm ( after the watershed) The fire advert is often played at schools for older children

Barnardos helped me after being taken into social services care due to child abuse and neglect and I’ll forever be thankful to them for helping me feel safe again ❤

I remember the advert about the iron, mum leaves the iron unattended,baby crawling on the floor pulls the cord 😢 That advert has stuck with me since a child

It’s the one thing I truly appreciate about being British, we don’t do sugar coating! Long may it continue, because adverts like these grab the attention and stay with you!

As a Brit, I think I must be desensitised to these videos now, we're so used to them! From what I remember, fire and road safety adverts are shown during the day, even the grim ones. At the end of the day, kids need to learn fire and road safety, and if they've been scared, then the advert has worked.

What I love about the “Break the cycle” ad is it is reminiscent of how it feels to grow up in an abusive household.

as far as I can recall. One of the most effective traffic adverts was aimed at truck drivers in the UK, I think it was to combat sleeping at the wheel, and it featured a little girl as the main topic. I think when they ran metrics after the campaign, there was a dramatic reduction in accidents.

The woman in the human trafficking ad advert is the actress Emma Thompson.

The CPR advert is genius, have everyone think it’s a happy ending as this guy recovers from cancer only to die by choking. Brilliant way to remind everyone to be prepared

The one with the fireman who goes home and hugs his kids whilst explaining how he found two kids who hid in a wardrobe and died of smoke inhalation gets me everytime

The cancer recovery to choking one is so effective cos it really does catch you off guard and comes out of nowhere, much like choking in real life.

If you texted the number at the end of the tree advert, it directed you to information on how to do first aid and how to support St John's ambulance. By doing that, you were able to see a video where the little boy was saved. It was very effective.

The smoke alarm ad hit so hard, the sale of smoke alarms rose significantly.

Steve: Be careful Lindsay, these are quite emotional. Also Steve: 😭😭😭😭 You guys are great.

As an American, I have to give the Brits a lot of credit. They do television and commercial ads a LOT better than we do!

After watching this, you get to experience exactly when you need a nice cuppa tea!

One of the Barnardo's charity's most famous sons is Bruce Oldfield. A couture fashion designer. He spent his entire childhood being cared for in Brenardo's foster homes having been abandoned by his parents. He has never pursued a high street line so is not a high street name but those who know, know. He has dressed the rich and famous for decades, including Princess Diana, Diana Ross and more recently he made Queen Camilla's dress for the recent crowning of King Charles. For part of his childhood he was homed in my city and retains connections here, having being awarded various honours and positions at the two Universities. It absolutely does not have to end how it began. An abandoned child loved and cared for by a charity, who went on to clothe a Queen. Barnardo's do amazing work.

I’m 28 years old and i remember every single one of these ads from childhood and most were dated when I was around 10 and early teens.. they all played on prime time tv and opened up conversations ‘around the dinner table’ so to speak… I think it’s a good thing, it’s reality and it should be shown to make you think and opens up the conversations we need 🙌🏼

That “Tree” advert is what made me join the St John’s Ambulance charity, where, a few years later, I saved a girls life after she was flung from a faulty fairground ride.

All of these adverts were on normal/regular TV, but we have a "watershed" time of 9pm for more mature content and the more graphic adverts were shown then. The "Most Effective" British advertising campaign of all time is actually the British Heart Foundation's "Staying Alive" with Vinnie Jones. It taught people how to do hands only CPR on someone having a heart attack and saved several hundred people

As a kid in the 70s we saw warning ads of teens being electrocuted, kids standing on broken bottles on the beach, pulling ironing boards and irons onto babies, tipping pans of boiling water on themselves. You get numbed to the shock value after that at an early age. Those ads were shown pre-watershed, often at lunchtimes. Still, i never did go near the train lines or played with matches, so they worked.

English person here! I love that you chose to do content on this, its awesome to see a more serious video on the mix thats still educational as it'll prep travellers for something hard hitting on the telly😅 Most of these ads are pretty old. I remember in my childhood the most hard hitting ones were done by the NSPCC, a children's charity for abuse and neglect. Those always made me tear up. But these types of ads are pretty rare now, you'd be lucky to see one of these a week these days. These days the few hard hitting ads are typically from charities, often about children walking miles for cholera infested water in africa and such. And there are two or 3 circulating about driving safety, they're part of the "THINK" campaign, which aim to get drivers to remember to be aware of cyclists/motorcyclists, not to drive when tired or drunk etc. One of these ads was banned actually, as it showed a class full of young children on a school trip all be killed as a result of unsafe driving 😬 I've never seen the St John ambulance ads on tv, but I've seen them all from being part of the charity myself. The one where the man survives cancer but dies from choking is one that i recognised. But overall these types of ads are falling out of favour and are being done less and less, and are mainly shown after watershed, which i dunno if you have in the US, but between the hours of 21:00-0:600 is when more unsavoury content can be found on telly, swearing, scary movies, porn channels etc. So don't avoid our telly if you come for a visit thinking you're gonna be brought to tears by the ads, you'd miss out on a tonne of great stuff. Hope this helped 😊

As a UK resident I feel a responsibility to apologise to you guys. The shock on your faces,😮 bless you both.

when I went to boarding school in the 60's, one of the lads in my dormitory was from a Barnado's home and HE was the only one who got homesick after holidays. THAT speaks volumes for the care given at their homes. I'm 75 and still remember that whenever a collection tin from Barnados is in front of me, ergo I give to them.

I broke the cycle of child abuse, as a result of protecting my children’s innocence I’ve lived my life solely alone with them. I’ve become a little hard as a result especially about the world around us but I can PROUDLY say not one of my children has ever been abused. They lived their childhood laughing and knowing they’re loved cause I told them a thousand times every single day of their childhood and they are still laughing as adults.

I remember an advert about dogs trust (i believe), in the ad a child holding a teddy bear gets adopted and brought home, you see her have accidents, getting told off, (i think) getting locked iut back, and then you see her in the back of a car and they leave her at a field, and in the rear view mirror the child appears as a dog holding a teddy bear, and rhe ad said "You wouldn't do this to a child, so why would you do it to a pet?", its such a simple advert but so meaning and i live it ❤

i remember seeing all of these adverts as a child, many of them would play throughout the day

The Motor Neurone Disease one (ALS) always gets me right in the feels. My old man passed away from it in 2005. He went from the strongest person I've ever known, former soldier and boxer, to a bag of bones that couldn't move, in about 14 months. It's a really rough disease and there's no way of knowing how it chooses you, and no cure.

It wasn't in this compilation but I remember an advert like this back in the early 2000s It depicted a man who had hit a child after drink driving. He kept seeing the boys crumpled body in his everyday life like under his desk and outside on the grass in the distance etc. Absolutely stayed with me and message hit home. They don't make for pretty viewing but help to keep important issues in the public consciousness.

The Northern Irish Car Crash ads are on another level. The only slight bit of reprieve is the occasional time you know the actor who plays the driver but they’re darkkkkkk

I dont warch television anymore so I've not seen half of these ads, but both those Bernardos have just reduced a grown man to tears.

In the UK, we have something called a '9pm Watershed'. The watershed is a dividing line between general (all age) and adult TV. If the program/advert is not suitable for 'general' consumption, it can only be shown after the 'watershed'

UK adverts can be incredibly moving and important. I’ve never seen anything like them on US TV.

I'm 55 and I remember the ads I saw as a kid about playing near train lines, and others - they STILL resonate with me even today.

The one from northern that gets me is when a classroom of kids are out on a walk and picnic in the forest when a car crashes through the retaining wall and flips over right into all the 4 year olds .

You hit the nail on the head, these commercials are meant to pass on a message without the sugar coating .

The watershed is 9pm, these went on tv after that 😊

I’m 44 now. I remember every single one of these. They hit home and stayed with us.

The British way. No nonsense. No pussyfooting around. Clear, consise, to the point. No subliminals here. These ads reflect British attitudes to a tee. That's why they are shown. Note. Did you notice Emma Thompson in the trafficking ad?

I’m 62 and have been watching these Government “shock an awe” adverts all my life and would like to think it has saved many life’s and also changed lives for the better. I’d have to say the Electricity sub stations, climbing electric pylons and Railway ads might just have saved my life as these places are where me and my friends would play……the ads of kids being electrocuted stopped me playing there.

In Scotland every senior school teaches emergency first aid . And an advert to the soundtrack staying alive has helped lots of people know how to do CPR .

Brit here, most of these were played in the midde of the afternoon. I remember being a kid and watching the motorbike accident one and I think the smoke alarm one

I'm form the UK and ever since I saw the advert with the checking fire alarms, I check my mums and my grandmas every single clock change day which is twice a year.

My mum was a Dr. Barnado’s child during the war. A marvellous organisation

Steve go and make Linsay a cup of tea and biscuits . You know it makes sense .

These adverts were played after the UK watershed which is 9pm. But just on normal break between programs that could be anything. I remember them, they were always shocking but they did their jobs. The anti-smoking ones with kids that looked dead as they lived with a smoker and had passive smoking all their lives were something else as well as car crashes, house fires etc.. Shock tactics were quite effective

I'm a Brit and these are some powerful ads. They should definitely bring them back I haven't seen them as much nowadays. I remember seeing an ad many years back of a group of school kids and the teachers walking through a field and a speeding car driving down the nearby road. The car was too fast so it had struggled to turn properly causing it to go through the field and as the car was to hit the children the screen went black with the words "Think before you drive. Speeding kills. Drive carefully."

The fact you were so emotional shows how loving you are as a person

In the late 90s when I was in primary school we had the local fire brigade come in. They taught us loads about fire safety. From putting the back of your hand against the door handle to see if the fire was outside your room (the metal would he hot and burn you, but better on the back of your hand than palm). Crawling towards the exit (smoke rises), throwing your mattress out the window before jumping out etc They made us do floorplans of our homes and worked with us to plan an appropriate fire exit and told us to go home and teach our parents about it. The next week suddenly we had 2 extra fire alarms in our house lol. So this sort of stuff does work and I think using children, whilst feels manipulative is effective in sending a message. So I guess it's worth doing to some degree

As an English person, these adverts are so normal on TV! They make you cry and shock you so much! I really love the UK adverts, so thought-provoking

Bless your hearts guys - when there’s a message that needs to be heard - we project it loud and clear - I still check my smoke alarm every clock change day

The sex traffic one. The actor was multi Oscar and BAFTA winner Dame Emma Thompson. Many of the biggest and influential British directors started doing ads. Ridley Scott for example.

For the majority of us these issues are part of the background noise of life. These adverts are someone stepping out of those shadows and shouting a reminder. That is why they work so well. Powerful stuff.

Bless you both for sitting there on camera in tears. We've always had harsh adverts for as long as I remember. They've always been hard hitting, saying a great deal, but with little to no words. Our brains make us realise the impact and lesson to be learnt for ourselves, which has to be done so it resonates within each individual‼️ The PSA adverts in the 70's and 80's aimed at children to highlight the dangers of railway lines, climbing up the electricity pylons, kite flying near overhead power lines, crossing a busy road etc. The pylon climber in the ad went up to retrieve his Frisbee, got electrocuted and fell 30ft to his death‼️ The kids on the railway line had 2 types of ending. One kids undone shoe lace got jammed when the rails moved tracks, leaving the kid stuck with an oncoming high speed train coming for him. The other train PSA WAS a group of kids trudging through the tunnel when a rescheduled train was fast approaching the kids who had nowhere to run or stand clear of it‼️ The PSA's involving children's safety would be on every Sat, Sun mornings and then everyday at various times throughout the 6 week summer holiday but the summer brought out PSA's warning of taking blow up dinghies to the sea if the red flag is up on the beach and also about everybody's swimming capabilities (it's usually adult males that drown?) and YES, someones body gets pulled out of the sea by the coastguard‼️❤

Motor Neurone Disease is hard to see a family member go through. My brother took 2 years to die, his muscles gradually ceasing to function. The worst time was when he lost the ability to speak. The advert makes you aware of the severity of the disease and prompts you to support research into the disease.

I will always remember the kid getting crushed to death in car crash because the adult in the back seat wasn't wearing the seat belt yet the kid was

This is the first video I've seen featuring you guys but I already feel such an affinity for you. Your tears and compassion feel so genuine. These adverts hit us Brits as hard. It is just reassuring to know the same level of humanity is felt across the pond.

I'm now in my 50's & I can still remember the old 70's & 80's UK Government PSA adverts. They were hard hitting, but the more up-to-date ones are truly on another level. They are made with the full intention of shocking you & making the advert stick in your mind for a long time. Very powerful, very hard hitting & straight to point.

I’m 60 yrs old and was raised in the time these adverts began, so I’ve seen them all! Hard hitting and for good reason. British people are hardy people and not easily shocked, just part of our history and upbringing (stiff upper lip) So it takes something powerful to penetrate compared to Americans which seems to me have their world sugarcoated. Not being rude. Our humour is blunt and to the point and usually seen as rude or politically incorrect, but that’s just how we role. Thanks for having the guts to watch this and I’m glad it caused you to reflect. Great video guys! Oh and Lyndsey, love the bow Suzie in London 🇬🇧

Remember the amazing Warburtons ad that took you through 100 years oh British history? I loved that Ad!

Watershed in the UK …meaning when more adult content can be shown is 9pm. Not all of those ads would have been kept till after the watershed though.

As a parent, YOU owe it to your child (regardless of age) to learn first aid, even the most basic level. YOU owe it to yourself. Don't become the parent who one day says, "I wish I could have done something ". Take care ❤

I always remember as a small child giving my younger brother a sugar coated boiled sweet. When the sugar wore off it slipped down his throat blocking his airway. I will never forget the image of my dad and the man next door holding him upside down, or of him going black as they were desperately banging on his back to dislodge the sweet. Thankfully they did. My daughter is a nurse and apparently more children die from chocking on sausages because unlike boiled sweets they don’t easily dislodge. Learn first aid. It saves lives.

As a kid I was traumatised by the “smoke alarm/fire safety” adverts. The one with the mum watching the recording of her young daughter over and over and the other one with the forgetful dad crying outside his burnt down house!!

I'd be interested in their reaction to the "Charlie says" ads that were specifically aimed at kids in the UK

Interesting fact the road safety ads in the 70s and 80s were the Green Cross Code Man, who was played by David Prowse the actor who played the body of Darth Vader.

Blimey we've only just started and she's already welling up! Bless you sweetheart! ;)

As a brit I can tell you most of these were prime time after big events or campaigns The NSPCC ads and RSPCA were an experience as a 5yr old

These were totally shown on tv that I grew up with! Kids need this, you are pretty much saying it!!! Love you're videos!!

Your reaction shows the sort of people you really are, as if we didn't know already. I have watched other people (mainly Americans) react to these adverts and most of them were angry that they existed, because it made them upset. You were upset, as any normal people would be, but it didn't make you think they shouldn't exist, but made you think about the subjects involved, exactly what they were designed for. American media and part of your society is aimed so much at the almighty dollar (health care, gun control), while here in the UK and much of Europe a different slant exists, not by any meaning are we perfect....just I believe better off. You are great people and amazing parents, the proof is a six letter word beginning with S. You deserve and will get a 100,000 subscribers and more. What you should do now, is get to see a compilation of funny commercials......you've earned it!!!

I'm 55 and still remember the public information ads we were shown as kids in the 70's - impactful was the word. They are still well worth a watch and pulled no punches even though they were meant for kids.

They do their job. I check my smoke alarms, I'm trained in first aid, I am so careful as a driver and a cyclist. Because I saw most of these adds as a child, now as an adult i cant forget them.

There’s one from a few years ago about online cyber abuse and it’s a man with a child’s voice. The message is basically: careful who you speak to, you don’t know who is on the other side. Literally shivers. But effective.

The marmite compilation ads are so good and really funny and you guys have all the marmite context you need to watch and enjoy them.

Growing up in Northern Ireland, We had incredibly effective ads. Theres a ton of the road saftey/ drink driving ads that i can still picture vividly.

I really really REALLY want you to react to British Christmas adverts, they are so sad yet heartwarming and brilliant

I’ve watched you for years. I just want to say one thing at this moment…… you are both such lovely people.

I have seen these public announcement ads being reacted to many times on RU-vid. Like you guys, I still cry every time. Hit hard and very effective.

Barnardo's is an amazing charity, well worth checking the history and the work they do

In the UK we have a 9 pm watershed for some adverts that may have graphic content. Your reactions were so genuine & positive. UK adverts are pretty awesome b

Barnardo's helps orphans, rehomes them, puts them into foster care or in extreme situations, cares for them on a longer term basis.

The Barnardo's ads always get me! They are all thought-provoking and really upsetting.

i think that you are the first americans reacting to these ads that have not paused in the middle of an ad just to flap there gums (talk) and not getting the meaning of them so thanks steve lindsey for not pausing untill after the ads im glad you both got the meaning of the ads unlike others no names said