Farmer Pines for His Old Neighbour in Christmas Love Story from Vodafone Ireland

A love story that represents the possibility of a new rural Ireland and a journey of transformation for local communities and the people that live there.

Vodafone Ireland's new Christmas advertising campaign, created by Grey London – in which a young farmer pines for his old neighbour, a young woman who has moved abroad and only comes back at Christmas – depicts an emotionally resonant reality of modern Ireland.

Played out across several Christmases, the film highlights the pair’s growing closeness, the sadness of their New Year goodbyes, and the trials of being apart over the intervening months. A happy ending twist comes when the young woman decides to return full-time, in-part thanks to Vodafone and it’s growing mobile and fixed networks, to open a business.

The idea, inspired by some powerful truths, two long standing, one more recent. The first is the migration from rural to urban areas in search of advancement and opportunity. The second is the traditional pilgrimage home for Christmas to see family and friends – where the population swells in local communities the length and breadth of the country. The third and most important is that Vodafone customers can now live and work wherever they choose, confident in the knowledge that will always stay connected.

From the idea’s initial conception to final execution, authenticity was central to showcasing a true Irish experience: a local farmer was on set to advise on key scenes, the custom dog whistle was made by a local jeweller and the Wren Boys – where people dress in straw masks and suits on December 26th – was overseen by the local wren society.

Niall Reynolds, Vodafone Ireland marketing Manager, says: “This year’s Vodafone Ireland Christmas ad captures the growing feeling and reality that rural Ireland has begun a period of regeneration. With remote working a reality off the back of the necessities of the pandemic period and the quickening pace of Vodafone Ireland’s mobile and fibre broadband infrastructure expansion, more and more people are moving closer to loved ones and closer to where they want to call home.”

Pedro Rosa and Roberto Kilciauskas, Group Creative Directors from Grey London, said: “As expats, we’re sure that this story has universal appeal and will speak to the hearts of anyone that lives abroad or who has the opportunity to only visit their hometowns once a year, for just a few days before having to say goodbye again. That bittersweet feeling is always the beginning of a thought that every now and then can pop in one’s mind: 'what if I stayed this time? What if I didn't go back after Christmas?’”

Speaking to Vodafone’s core audience, families with kids, the commercial and accompanying campaign – which also spans VOD, online content, social and OOH – breaks ground on a new way of living, for a new, modern Ireland. 

The TV commercial breaks on 22nd November 2021.