Women's Aid – The Monster Who Came to Tea
2025
Campaign
Design Lead
A campaign for Women's Aid, made to push the government to re-evaluate funding for domestic abuse support services ahead of the Spring Spending Review. It borrows the shape of a much-loved children's story and puts a monster where the tiger should be.
It opens light and whimsical, then turns. Everything is seen through the eyes of a young girl called Lily, and the truth arrives late: the monster is not imaginary, and he is her father.
Design does the work of keeping that misdirection intact. The book had to read as a real children's book, in its typography, trim, illustration and the pace of its page turns, so that the reader stays inside the story long enough for the ending to land. The campaign also carries lesson plans for schools, helping children recognise the signs of unhealthy relationships early.
Creative: Dave Newbold & Paul Hancock
Film: directed by Guy Manwaring, produced by Merman Branded, animation by Passion Pictures and Tulips & Chimneys, score by Stuart Hancock, narrated by Anne-Marie Duff