The Guardian Advertising Awards are back for a second year, with the 2025 winners announced at a ceremony in London last night (Thursday 22 May). Imogen Fox, the Guardian’s global chief advertising officer, introduced the evening’s celebrations alongside James Fleetham, the Guardian’s director of advertising.
The awards celebrate advertising campaigns that have run across Guardian channels over the past year, highlighting unforgettable examples of scale, influence and integrity - the unique formula offered to advertisers by the Guardian.
Some of the best examples of advertising that have featured on the Guardian were entered by brands and agencies to compete in five categories. The winners in each category are:
Everyday brands: EuroMillions and Hearts & Science: There Will Be Signs
Brands connecting with big moments: Audible and Wavemaker: 1984 - Glitching Into Culture
Premium brands: R.M. Williams and Electric Glue: The Daycationer
Brands doing the right thing: Macmillan Cancer Support and Zenith: Macmillan Coffee Morning
Challenger brands: QVC and EssenceMediacom: Menopause Your Way
In addition, there was also a Grand Prix award selected by the judges for the campaign deemed to have gone above and beyond the entry criteria. The judges selected QVC and EssenceMediacom: Menopause Your Way for the prestigious prize. The campaign was praised for its bravery, strong sense of purpose, and inclusive portrayal of women in a space where diversity is often overlooked. They also commended its smart and effective use of Guardian Labs content, which struck a relatable and sensible tone around menopause, without sensationalism. The campaign was also noted for delivering impressive results, with some of the articles ranking among the Guardian’s most-read branded content for several weeks.
This year’s award winners were chosen by a specially selected panel of judges made up of some of the most influential leaders and experts from across the media and advertising industry. The judging panel included: Andy Nairn, co-founder, Lucky Generals; Pippa Glucklich, CEO, Electric Glue; Ben Malbon, vice-president, brand and creative marketing, EMEA, Google; Clarice Metzger, strategy director, Revolt London; Nik Wheatley, co-founder, Notorious Communications; Monica Majumdar, head of strategy, Wavemaker UK; Ruben Schreurs, group CEO, Ebiquity Plc; Zoe Kalar, CEO and founder, WeAre8; Laura Chase, managing director, WeAre8; Nick Manning, founder, Encyclomedia International; Emma Withington, chief planning and strategy officer, Havas Media Network.
Lily Bryant, senior brand development specialist, QVC UK, said:
“Partnering with the Guardian allowed us to combine their vast reach and trusted editorial voice with QVC’s expertise and product offering, creating a campaign which normalised the conversation around Menopause. The campaign proudly challenged taboos and shifted perceptions of QVC, asserting the authority we have in this space as a retailer. Winning both the Challenger Brands award and the Grand Prix award is an honour to the whole team”.
Ruben Schreurs, group CEO, Ebiquity Plc, said:
“Congratulations to all the winners; the submissions were genuinely inspiring and impressive. A common theme was the overwhelming evidence that trusted news is highly effective and brand-safe, along with the creative usage of the uniquely varied ad formats and platforms provided by the Guardian to advertisers. If there was an award for industry awards - the Guardian would get my vote this year.”
James Fleetham, director of advertising, Guardian Media Group, said:
“Huge congratulations to all the brands and agencies awarded a prize in this year’s awards. It’s been another brilliant year for celebrating the scale, influence and integrity of the Guardian’s multimedia partnerships. We’ve especially enjoyed highlighting the breadth of campaigns the Guardian has delivered – a true reflection of the innovation and value that we continue to offer our advertisers.”
The award-winning brands will feature across the Guardian both in print and online, to celebrate their outstanding campaigns and achievements.
You can find more information on the awards and a full list of entries shortlisted here.
If you are an advertiser interested in working with the Guardian, please contact advertising.enquiries@theguardian.com.
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For more information please contact media.enquiries@theguardian.com.
Notes to editors
About the Guardian Media Group
Guardian Media Group is among the world’s leading media organisations. Its core business is Guardian News & Media (GNM), publisher of theguardian.com, one of the largest English-speaking quality news websites in the world.
In the UK, Guardian Media Group publishes the Guardian newspaper six days a week. It was first published in 1821. Since launching its US and Australian digital editions in 2011 and 2013, respectively, traffic from outside of the UK now represents about two-thirds of the Guardian’s total digital audience. The Guardian also has an international digital edition and a new European edition that launched in 2023.
