LONDON, UK – Leo UK & McDonald’s have launched the McDonald’s “Secret Menu” officially making mythical fan-created menu items a reality for the first time ever. The menu features items like the Surf N’ Turf, the Chicken Cheeseburger, and the Espresso Milkshake.
The campaign is inspired by the universal fan truth that for decades customers have speculated about whether a McDonald’s Secret Menu actually exists, but it has remained an urban legend and never been officially confirmed by McDonald’s.
Leo UK and McDonald’s secretly fueled speculation from early December, leaving cryptic clues across social. Messages confirming its existence were hidden in other McDonald’s posters, and insider information was leaked by creators. In restaurant, kiosks and screens glitched briefly to reveal a secret glimpse of the menu to customers as well as in CRM and on hidden locations like the top of bus shelters, sparking online conversation.
At launch today, (5th January), an official corporate announcement confirming the Secret Menu’s existence will be released on TV, radio and social.
The paid media approach plays with the paradox of a secret – media placements that are somewhat hidden creating a powerful desire to share the Secret Menu.
OMD UK collaborated with the Metro to deliver the first ever cover wrap that does not feature the Metro masthead. Without the masthead, the paper appears to be a tantalising classified document featuring secret documentation about the menu items.
In outdoor, a self-destructing billboard will appear at Westfield Pump station, London, showing McDonald’s “Secret Menu” poster being shredded. Lenticulars and discretely placed ads on bus shelter roofs will reveal the Secret Menu. Maintaining the classified nature of the campaign, direct message takeovers on Snapchat will launch the campaign straight into users’ chat feed and Reddit users will be asked not to share or repost content.
“How to” tutorials featuring instructions about how to create their own “non-official” Secret Menu items, will be released on CRM and social. On 16th January, an underground tasting event will see a clandestine gathering of creators and customers for a sampling of custom secret menu items, spiking further intrigue mid-campaign.
Running from 5th January to 2nd February, the campaign was a cross-agency collaboration: Creative was handled by Leo UK. Media planning and buying was managed by OMD. PR, event and influencer management was handled by Red Consultancy. CRM was handled by TMW, POP Communications were handled by Linney.
Andrew Long, Executive Creative Director, Leo UK, said “The Secret Menu has been part of McDonald’s fandom for decades. Whispered about, speculated on, stitched on TikTok, but never officially confirmed… until now. For the first time ever we’re transforming this niche cultural conversation into a full-scale food event that every fan can join in with. What a way to start the year.”
Ben Fox, Senior Vice President, CMO, McDonald’s UK & Ireland, added “We’ve kicked off 2026 with a campaign that playfully celebrates the urban legend of The Secret Menu. By tapping into a discussion that’s been brewing for years, we’ve got social media buzzing with campaign elements that have been shrouded in secrecy, officially bringing The Secret Menu to life, with weirdly good products built by the fans for the fans.”
CREDITS
CAMPAIGN TITLE: The Secret Menu
Creative Agency: Leo UK
CCO: Mark Elwood
Executive Creative Director: Andrew Long
Senior Creative: Joe Miller
Executive Design Director: Dave Allen
Design Lead: Rupert Knowlden
Senior Designer: Danny Flint
Studio Director: Ricky Pettiford
Motion Design Director: Carmen Perez Jimenez
Head of Strategy: Joe Beverage
Planning Director: Joe Crust
Senior Comms Planner: Imo Gowen
Project Director: Josh Burley
Managing Partner: Layla Potter
Head of Account Management: Steph Bates
Senior Account Director: Charlotte Crawley
Account Manager: Brittony Kelly
Account Executive: Elizabeth Makinde
Head of McDonald’s Production: Anna Cartwright
Senior Producer: Hector Murray
Broadcast Affairs Coordinator: Michelle Ward
Radio Producer: Adam Furman
Media Agency: OMD
PR & Talent Agency: Red Consultancy
POP: Linney
CRM: TMW
Client: McDonald’s
Chief Marketing Officer: Ben Fox
Marketing Director: Matthew Reischauer
Head of Marketing: Hannah Pain
Marketing Manager: Jo Conlon
Senior Brand Manager: Amber Myers
Campaign Assistant: Dina Shalaby
Social Media Marketing Manager: Ana Saffer
McDonald’s ROI:
Senior Brand Manager: Joanna Maycock
PRODUCTION
AV Production Company & Director (original asset): Darling Films, Scott Grummett
Social & Digital Promo Production Company: Prodigious
Social Editor: Jack Hyslop
Food Director: Scott Grummett
Food Offline Edit: Whitehouse Post
Sound Design: Tom Keats
Social shoot Prodigious producer: Thu Minh Nguyen
Post Producer: Dan Love
Colourist: Karol Cybulski
VFX: Clive De Souza
PHOTOGRAPHY
Photographer: Rob Billington (TwentyTwenty)
Production Company: Prodigious
Home Economist: Livia Abraham
Retouching: Prodigious
