Giant Tea Monkey Invades London!

It’s not quite like a scene from Godzilla or Cloverfield – this monstrous beasty was on an altogether more benign mission. PG Tips wanted to send a message to Londoners and what better deliverer than their familiar monkey mascot in, albeit immediately recognisable, disguise. Instead of knitted socks, this incarnation of Monkey is made from over 100,000 tea leaves. Take a look at the video above for the reaction of some unsuspecting Londoners!

The Thames is no stranger to weird and peculiar objects. However, this time the message was one of overwhelming positivity. The folks at PG Tips Green Tea had the idea to put Monkey floating down the Thames to energise Londoners and to coincide with the publication of their latest ‘green paper’.

That may sound quite governmental but what this particular research has revealed is that British workers don’t take as many breaks as they should. While this might raise a wry eye-brow (or even two) the fact is that out of the 2,000 people surveyed for the ‘green paper’ less than half felt that they took a proper break over their working day.

I must say I echo that emotion, as it were – my lunchtime used to be a meal at the pub and a long chat with colleagues. Nowadays it’s a limp sandwich, a few desultory lettuce leaves if I’m lucky and a look through the sea of emails that have arrived over the last few hours.

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As well as encouraging people to take better (that is, proper!) breaks the ‘green paper’ also reveals PG Tips’ review of the power of green as a colour – the positive impact it can have on our well-being: a kind of ‘eco-therapy’ as it were. We all know the benefit of a brisk walk through a park or woodland but one thing the study has also revealed is that simply being around green helps. If an office is painted green then it creates feelings of energy and invigoration simply by association.

So, a monkey floating down the river Thames does, in fact, have a number of messages for the general population. Most important, of course, is this – take care of yourself! Have a break and have a cuppa to go with it. I would add some advice of my own. Find a secret place where you can enjoy your cup of tea (green, of course!) so that no-one can bother you. If it has to be a broom cupboard, so be it… You can always imagine you’re floating down the Thames watching the world go by as you sip the refreshing brew.

Check out PG Tips Green Tea here.