Irish Quit Smoking advert around the world

An Irish video advert that encourages people to give up smoking has been so successful that it has been taken to New York to spread the message.

The minute-long film features various people lip-syncing the all-time classic Gloria Gaynor song ‘I Will Survive’.

Of course the message is that once you have given up the cigarettes, you can move forward with the rest of your life, in a similar way to Gloria Gaynor moving on from her heartbreak in the song.

The advert was released by HSE as part of their QUIT campaign. Ireland now proudly has more former smokers who have quit, than current smokers.

The video was created by BBDO Dublin and produced by London-based 2AM films. It won several awards at the Kinsale Sharks festival and the Epica Awards.

Fidelma Browne, head of programs and campaigns at the HSE, said: “We’re excited and incredibly proud that the campaign has travelled in this way and hope that it can help do some good.

“We are really proud of all our campaigns, but the QUIT campaign is one of our strongest, and has given us such a sense of achievement, seeing smoking prevalence drop year after year.”

The New York State Department of Health’s Bureau of Tobacco Control is just one of the health organisations around the world that have shown an interest in the campaign.

Browne added: “We’ve had lots of interest from international colleagues, in Australia, in other EU countries.”

The smoking population in Ireland is currently at 22%, down from 29% in 2007. More than a million Irish people have successfully given up smoking.

Take a look at the video for yourself, and maybe share it with a smoker you know.