Britain had just recovered from the shock of Brexit, so we knew we wanted to broadcast a message of Unity as our product, Ancestry DNA displayed that very message itself.

The idea to do a message from Europe felt right, but dialogue was difficult as it was a complex message being heard by a divided Britain.

In the end, we thought a song would help convey this message and help people digest it better.

1980’s pop music sensation, Rick Astley, had numerous number one hits in the UK and in Europe. He was a beloved nostalgia figure and it just so happened that his hit track ‘Together Forever’ perfectly encapsulated our story of unity between the UK and Europe. The fact that people knew and liked the song, helped provide a lighthearted tone when people with clearly European accents sung it loudly and proudly.

The film opens on a classic French man. He’s addressing the British audience currently watching and bidding them farewell from the EU. But just before he finishes, he launches into 80’s pop sensation, Rick Astley’s song ‘Together Forever’.

We then cut to a series of vignettes of people from across several European countries, also singing along to the song. They are all singing to the British public.

The song ends on the chorus ‘Together Forever’ and a title appears, which reads: ‘The average British person’s DNA is 60% European. We may be leaving Europe, but Europe will never leave us.’

Ancestry UK, the genealogy company, had a problem. They were known for just half of their business, Family History. But they wanted their newer product DNA, a service where you can trace your ethnic makeup from the last 1000 years, to become more famous.

Brexit gave us the perfect cultural context within which to situate our idea. The ever-growing cacophony of news commentary and pub conversation was reaching fever pitch. Brexit had also opened up another debate about our identity. A disconnect was becoming clear between those who believe us to be a purist nation of Angles and Saxons and those who embrace our inherent diversity born of centuries of inward migration.

We aimed right into that ever widening chasm with the one unique insight that only Ancestry DNA could bring to the conversation - a hard fact about our ethnic makeup. The average British person’s DNA is 60% European.