Case Study: The Beano Afternoon Tea Bus Tour – Summer 2023

Did you know that between the 10th of June and the 10th of September 2023, we ran a Beano Afternoon Tea Bus Tour to celebrate the 85th anniversary of Beano? The tour got fantastic coverage in the Evening Standard and some amazing reviews.

Want to find out more about it?

What is Beano?

Beano needs no introductions. You'd have to be living on the moon to not know about this British icon and national treasure! Created in 1938, Beano is the world's longest-running weekly comic and the original British icon of childhood. As something in between a picture and a chapter book, for many children, Beano represents an important reading stepping stone.

Launched in Dundee (Scotland), Beano is hands-down one of the most recognisable British brands. It's been entertaining the nation for decades and making childhood exciting for multiple generations of children. That's why our grandparents and parents love it, we love it, and our little ones do too!

With fantastic characters such as the iconic Dennis and Gnasher, Roger the Dodger, Minnie the Minx, and the Bash Street Kids, the comic encourages fun, silliness, imagination, mischief, and the odd bit of rebellion too! Aimed at 6-12-year-olds, Beano inspires children to go on crazy adventures, explore the world, make stuff, be original, and use creativity. And isn't that what childhood should be all about?

Let's face it - it's a guaranteed good laugh any day of the week! The physical slapstick is perfect for the youngest ones while the satire is what appeals to the young at heart. In a nutshell, Beano is fun! It teaches us that being a child never gets old. Plus, it encourages everyone to celebrate mischief and embrace the odd, strange, and bizarre. And we're all for it!

Beano fun facts!

Did you know?

• In 2022 Beano received recognition for its still expanding diverse and inclusive cast by winning the Diversity and Inclusion Award at the PPA Awards 2022.
• Dennis first appeared in 1951 wearing a shirt and tie! A shirt and tie!!! Can you imagine the sheer horror? Thankfully, his clothes were soon replaced by the iconic red and black striped jumper we all know and love.
• Many parents don’t realise that the Dennis of their youth is now the father of today’s even more mischievous Dennis! If that's even possible, right?
• A Beano is sold every 5 seconds!!! It's the Number One comic in the UK with an average monthly readership of 659,000. Quite impressive, don't you think?

So who's your favourite Beano character?

The Beano Afternoon Tea Bus Tour in numbers

This exclusive, themed tour ran for a limited period of 12 weeks during the summer of 2023. With two tours a day for 5 days a week, we ran a total of 120 tours, entertained over 1,500 guests and covered a staggering 1,320 miles across the streets of London!

The tour was an adventure-filled experience bringing both fun and mischief. We had Beano Entertainers on each tour sharing facts about Beano and London landmarks and delivering fun quizzes and plenty of laughs. The entertainers amused their audience with kaboom Beano jokes and trick questions like… Would you rather eat Olive’s mystery stew with a plate of chips or a burger with a side of Gnasher’s food? Hard choice!

And you know what? In true Beano style, our lovely customers got pranked too! Perhaps chattering teeth and whoopee cushions may have been hidden on the bus. And if you sat down and heard fart noises, we wouldn't happen to know anything about it - honest!

The highlight for many was learning how to draw Dennis, Gnasher, and Minnie like a pro. As well as our exclusive "How to draw Dennis, Minnie, and Gnasher" guide, all our guests got to take home our Beano reusable mug, and a Beano comic.

The Beano Afternoon Tea Menu - a true slap-up feast!

To celebrate Beano's 85th birthday, our chefs created this super fun menu for our tours:

• This Posh Fish is Smokin’ Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese Pretzel Roll.
• The Cheesy Coal as a Cucumber & Cream Cheese Finger on Charcoal Bread.
• The THC Squishy Tomato's Turkey Ham & Cheese Finger on Tomato Bread.

We even have Minnie Morsels!

• The Minnie Margherita Pizza Mischief.
• The Minnie Excuse: Muffin to see here! Feta, Red Pepper & Tomato Savoury Muffin.

And for sweet treats, you can expect:

• The Bangers & Mash-up Chocolate Cupcake.
• Bananamania Custard Tart.
• Dennis’s Red & Black Dunker Macaron.
• The Gnash Tea Biscuit.
• The Berry Naughty Jelly Baby.
• The Billy Whizz (Scone fast!). Freshly baked, chocolate scone with clotted cream & jam.

As with all our tours, drink options included water, coffee, and a fantastic loose tea selection. In true Brigit's Bakery style, we had a range of menus to cater to all requirements and preferences with our Traditional, Vegan, Vegetarian, Halal, and Gluten-free menus.

What some of our customers had to say about the Beano Afternoon Tea Bus Tour

The truth is, our description of the Beano Afternoon Tea Bus tour really didn't do it justice. So let's hear it from those who were lucky enough to experience it.

Zara Merali said:

"What a truly fantastic day out in Central London! I rarely write reviews, but I simply had to express how brilliant this fun-filled family experience is. We all loved every single minute! The entire event was really well organised and we were so impressed with the impeccable attention to detail.

We were all warmly greeted by the fabulous entertainer JP, who was so fun and engaging. We excitedly boarded the bus and we were instantly struck by the incredibly colourful interior and exterior design. The Beano theming was brilliant. All our favourite characters were there and the graphics were wonderful. There were funny jokes on the ceiling, which we all loved, and there was such a party atmosphere on board.

The food was absolutely delicious. There was a fun Beano themed menu, which was really clever. The afternoon tea was beautifully presented and of an extremely high standard. The service was excellent and the staff were so warm and friendly.

The on board entertainment was hilarious. Lots of jokes and quizzes, which appealed to the whole family. Brigit's Bakery gave an outstanding service and we'll definitely book other themed bus experiences with them in the future! All in all, a wonderful and unforgettable family day out. [...] A unique and magical London experience."

We can feel the excitement and buzz from their words, can't you?

Sara wrote:

"We chose the Beano bus tour to celebrate my fathers 80th birthday whose name is Dennis. We were welcomed on board by Brian and Lu and shown to our tables. Wonderful afternoon tea selection and commentary with a few jokes included, which was fun. Brian and his team really made my father feel extra special on his 80th Birthday. Thank you."

That truly warmed our hearts. And we couldn't be more grateful to our customers for choosing Brigit's Bakery tours for all sorts of celebrations.

So, are you as excited as we are to see what fantastic tours might be coming up in the future?