It’s safe to say that it’s been an eventful year so far for the global PR sector. Little-known companies have become household names overnight (some thanks to *that* Coldplay gig), and the digital space is evolving at such a pace that PRs are having to find new, innovative ways to connect with audiences.

Our Account Manager Erin Softley asked our team what they thought the standout campaigns of the year so far were, and this is what they said…

Lewis Capaldi Drops Another Bop

Lewis Capaldi makes his return to the Pyramid Stage after 2 years away. Credit: @erinsoftley

All it took was a secret set at Glastonbury on the day he dropped his latest single and returned from a two-year hiatus away from the public eye. That was enough for the self-proclaimed ‘Scottish Beyonce’ to secure headlines across the world, generate millions of views on TikTok and sell out his next tour, all before even releasing his third album.

Lewis Capaldi’s PR team struck gold with Glastonbury’s worst kept secret. They manufactured anonymous billboards across Glasgow and Castle Cary, dropped editorial to heavily influence the rumour mill, and published ‘Welcome back, Lewis’ tweets on the @SecretGlasto X profile the day before the set. This ingenious marketing campaign pulled more than 100,000 festival goers to the Pyramid Stage and millions at home to their TV screens.

While the PRs behind the Scot’s music are certainly pros – having won PR Campaign of the Year at the 2024 Music Week Awards for Capaldi’s second album – we believe his relationship with the public is fuelled predominantly by his honest, hilarious self.

The Banksy of Metalcore?

PRESIDENT take to Download stage. Credit @Dave Cook

Continuing the musical theme, the campaign behind launching the metalcore band, PRESIDENT, was an absolute marvel.

Having been ominously announced as a performer for Download Festival in February 2025, the band had no music, no imagery and no brand to draw the public’s attention. Then, PRESIDENT’s Instagram account launched, posting cryptic pictures/videos with captions like, ‘JOIN – THE – CAMPAIGN’. Gripping, right?

The Metalcore band dropped its first music promos in April, and released its first song in May, just a few months before the iconic rock festival.

Our Senior Account Executive Emma said: “PRESIDENT performed on the DogTooth Stage at Download 2025, and it was RAMMED. Not just inside the tent but a 50m circumference around the tent was chocked full of people. The band’s set was just 5 songs, and people must have been sitting waiting for them in that tent all day, they went on at 4:25pm.

“This is a cool example of how using socials to drip feed info can seriously build anticipation, and it really paid off. All subsequent gigs announced for the band since Download have sold out fast. In the months they’ve been active, they amassed 122K followers on Instagram and 776.6K monthly listeners on Spotify.” Emma thinks the front man is noughties icon, Charlie Simpson, from Busted. Having listened to them on Eden’s office Alexa, Erin concurs.

Use of the Unconventional to Generates Viral Attention

One stand-out campaign for the Eden team recently has been the anti-Elon Musk ‘guerrilla’ campaign, “Everyone Hates Elon (EHE)”, who used some rather unconventional tactics to grip the public.

The campaign gained initial attention at an East London bus stop, which had a poster depicting the billionaire riding in a Tesla doing a fascist salute. “The Swasticar” soon went viral on all social media outlets, garnering hundreds of media reports (both for and against the campaign), but also generating more than £100K in crowd funding. One PR stunt, which used an art installation of activists smashing up a Tesla, was a key part of these donations which went to local food banks.

Whether you’re for or against Elon Musk, you can’t deny the power behind these comms.

A Campaign Close to Home

Matthew Lymn Rose, fifth generation Lymn and Managing Director at A.W. Lymn The Family Funeral Service and Ben Jackson, Head at Bluecoat Primary Academy, part of Archway Learning Trust.

Finally, one of our favourites as an agency has been the national campaign to see grief and bereavement as part of the national school curriculum, teaching children how to cope with loss. This campaign started with a petition launched by former National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) President, and Shropshire-based funeral director, John Adams.

Having garnered more than 11K signatures, John was invited to Parliament to discuss his campaign’s value, and, in July 2025, it was finally incorporated as part of statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSE) guidance for schools.

The campaign was supported by many in the funeral industry, including Eden’s clients, Neville Funerals (a 150-year-old Luton-based family business) and A.W. Lymn, The Family Funeral Service. Alongside another client, Archway Learning Trust, our teams suggested the organisations unite to bring ‘grief lessons’ to the children of Nottingham – something that was heavily publicised across local, regional and national media, as well as corresponding socials.

The pilot lessons generated exclusive content for Nottingham Post, BBC Radio Nottingham, ITV 1 Central East and Capital FM, and our Director and Head of New Content Emily Winsor-Russell, said: “What has started as a pilot could well set the scene for the rest of the UK. Alongside the news that death and bereavement will now form a part of compulsory education, it’s an honour to have played a small part of it.”

While we’re a little bit bias about this one, the movement created by people within the funeral sector has been nothing short of extraordinary and we’re pleased the campaign initiated by John Adams gain such momentum.