Hails & Fails – September 24th 2021
While there was much ado about the new series of The Great British Bake Off, PR campaigns cooked up some serious headlines away from the kitchen this week. Travel giant Airbnb gave Winnie the Pooh fans a real treat, CBeebies hired its first presenter with Down’s Syndrome, and fashion house Balenciaga released a new collection inside a video game. It was a difficult week for the paradise holiday island of Bali though, after confusion over a ban on backpackers.
HAILS
Airbnb create a Winnie the Pooh House for tourists
You can now stay in a Winnie the Pooh inspired house in the Hundred Acre Wood thanks to Airbnb.
It is all part of Disney’s 95th Anniversary celebrations of the loveable children’s character, and fans can now spend a night living in Pooh’s world.
The Bearbnb is situated in Ashdown Forest and is inspired by A.A. Milne’s original tales. There are two separate stays available on September 24 and 25, and the house sleeps up to four guests at a time.
Tonnes of coverage for this story this week.
CBeebies hires Down’s Syndrome presenter
20-year-old actor George Webster, who has Down’s Syndrome, is joining BBC children’s channel CBeebies, having previously made a video on the misconceptions around the genetic condition.
The 20-year-old from Leeds will join the channel as a guest presenter from the CBeebies House, hosting segments and links between programmes from Salford’s MediaCityUK.
The ambassador for the disability charity Mencap said: “I feel so proud and I’m feeling so excited to start”, adding that he was looking forward to cooking and dancing in his new role.
Balenciaga launches new clothing range inside video game Fortnite
Fashion house Balenciaga has collaborated with globally popular video game Fortnite to release a collection of in-game clothes and limited edition physical garments.
The digital clothes, which were informed by Balenciaga’s previous collections, were created for four in-game characters.
The collaboration followed the release of Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow, in December 2020, a video game developed by Epic Games to showcase Balenciaga’s Autumn Winter 2021 collection.
The high-definition imagery has also been used to create 3D billboard experiences in London, New York, Tokyo and Seoul – the boards accurately model lighting conditions in real-time to match the prevailing atmospheric conditions of the billboard site, further fusing the real and virtual worlds.
It’s a fantastic creative collab that’s rightly received plaudits and coverage galore this week.
FAILS
Bali in backpackers ban confusion
There’s been confusion, rows and raised eyebrows after the paradise island of Bali appeared to ban backpackers then backtrack on the ban within the space of a couple of days, this week.
The Indonesian government is now reassuring backpackers that they will be permitted to travel to Bali when it reopens to tourists, following concerns that Bali would limit the type of traveler who could visit the popular tourist resort. At the start of the week, Bali’s Maritime and Investment coordinator minister, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan reportedly said backpackers would not be allowed in.
It’s caused an almighty fuss in paradise and headlines that the resort, desperately recovering from lockdown, could well have done without.
Want more information? Contact us here