With entertainment and mass media increasingly dominated by celebrity and reality TV, how can you reignite a nations’ passion for Egyptian artefacts and persuade over one million people to pay up to £20 to visit an exhibition in a building then known as the failed Millennium Dome? The Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibition was approached as “infotainment” taking creative licence with the Tutankhamun brand to create maximum excitement and buzz.Through a well planned and executed media relations campaign which incorporated events, CSR activity and creative stunts, the PR team created a national fever for King Tutankhamun not seen since 1972.The campaign achieved high public awareness via constant news flow from the announcement of the tour to the exhibition opening, right through to its close. Total audience reach achieved through media coverage is approximately 2.4 billion.

High consumer awareness resulted in record advance and final ticket sales, in total 1.1 million tickets were sold, exceeding the client’s target. According to a poll of 2,000 adults by YouGov, two thirds of British adults saw or heard positive media coverage about the King Tutankhamun exhibition and nearly three times more than saw traditional advertising for the event.

The objective was to generate constant news flow from the announcement of the tour to the exhibition opening in November 2007 and beyond. It was to achieve record advance sales of more than 250,000 tickets and final sales of 1,000,000.A media audit and consumer survey was conducted to gauge appetite and opinion, looking at where audiences for London attractions come from so media coverage would have the maximum influence on attendance figures. Adults from London and the South East were the prime target, followed by other UK visitors as well as those from France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, and Germany.

Pre-opening picture stories: A 25ft model of Anubis was floated along the Thames.

Tickets on sale: Actors dressed as ancient Egyptians delivered a package to radio breakfast shows including tickets, The Bangles hit “Walk like an Egyptian” and Tutankhamun headdresses. Local children were given free tickets by the Mayor of London and a photo call was held at The O2.CSR and education: A 45ft pyramid was commissioned and US pop artist Romero Britto collaborated with 1,500 children to paint it before it was unveiled in Hyde Park.Opening week: 322 journalists attended a press conference and preview. Interviews were set up with every main UK broadcaster. Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall were greeted by 100 children for a private tour. A ‘gold tie’ preview event was held in association with The Princes Trust. During the opening week, four London landmarks were turned gold.

• The audience reached through media coverage was 2.4 billion• According to a poll of 2,000 adults by YouGov, two thirds of British adults saw or heard positive media coverage about the King Tutankhamun exhibition.• The Anubis stunt alone generated 70 pieces of coverage Worldwide• With no budget outside the UK. The team also achieved over 200 pieces of international coverage.• In the opening week, more than five hours of UK news coverage was generated.• Over 90% of the coverage was positive and encouraged readers to visit the exhibition.• Five satirical cartoons ran in British newspapers featuring Gordon Brown, Prince Charles and Tutankhamun. King Tut was also featured on Blue Peter, The One Show, Strictly Come Dancing and Have I Got News For You.• In total 1.1 million tickets were sold, exceeding the tour organiser’s ultimate target.

The event was approached as “infotainment” to appeal to the widest possible demographic. High-profile stunts using London landmarks helped drive awareness among people who would not normally attend a cultural or art exhibition. The team took creative licence with the Tutankhamun brand to create maximum excitement and buzz. From the announcement event, with hard hat tours and an Egyptian-themed countdown clock, to the Gold Tie preview event, the team ensured that there was nothing dry about the communications tactics.

The campaign strategy was to position The O2 as the best place to showcase the treasures; engage Visit London and Visit Britain as partners to reach continental Europe; create high-impact publicity stunts; and prioritise London-based and tourist media.

The team struck a deal with the Times and the Sunday Times as media partners - partly because The Times broke the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 - and worked with them to devise content.

How can you persuade a million Brits to get excited about paying up to £20 to visit an exhibition of ancient Egyptian artefacts? This was the task set by the Arts and Exhibitions International, as it planned a new exhibition for London, “Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs”. The main challenges were: • The new exhibition was to be held in the former Millennium Dome, a venue with a poor reputation.• The ticket price was high.• The iconic gold burial mask that was part of the 1972 Egyptian exhibition at the British Museum would not feature.• The client wanted coverage in key European feeder markets but had no resource for on-the-ground support.• One month before opening, The Terracotta Warriors opened at The British Museum.