Macmillan Cancer Support, the UK’s leading source of cancer support, launched its first brand partnership with Channel 4. Through Macmillan Cancer Support’s services, our integrated campaign shows how cancer impacts people’s lives in ways you might not have initially imagined, and how Macmillan Cancer Support does whatever it takes to support them.  

Launched as a three-part documentary series, Super Surgeons: A Chance at Life, aired on Channel 4 from Monday 18th July 2022. The series was produced by the team behind Grierson and BAFTA-nominated Baby Surgeons and allowed exclusive access to The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, one of the world’s leading cancer hospitals. It follows pioneering surgical oncologists as they employ ground-breaking new technology to try and save or prolong the lives of their patients, working at the forefront of what is medically possible and often on incredibly rare cancers. Each episode features real-life audio from the Macmillan Cancer Support Line, showing how they support people living with cancer across the UK. 

In addition to the branded idents around the docu-series, Macmillan Cancer Support launched four short films that takes their storytelling further and highlights how Macmillan Cancer Support does whatever it takes to support people living with cancer, no matter what the circumstances. The short films are linked from All 4 and hosted on Macmillan Cancer Support’s website, and centre around real-life stories of people who have been supported by Macmillan Cancer Support’s services.

Examples include a deaf person living with cancer receiving the support of a British Sign Language interpreter as they navigate the overwhelming world of diagnoses and tests, and a Macmillan specialist nurse travelling by land and sea to reach people living with cancer in remote areas such as the Outer Hebrides where there are no oncologists. The brand sponsorship idents (5”, 10”, 15”) aired around the series and show how Macmillan Cancer Support offers support in different and surprising ways. 

To drive people to watch the short forms showing Macmillan Cancer Support in action, we also created a suite of online and social assets, including posts and stories across Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, YouTube mastheads and in-stream, and assets for All 4 including a programme skin and Ad pause.