Press release: Our Flag Means Death fans to bring campaign to save show to the U.K. with London billboard

Our Flag Means Death devotees to gather at fan-funded billboard in Leicester Square, London to garner support for a third season of the highly rated, inclusive TV series that has struck a chord with both LGBTQ+ and mainstream audiences alike.

Photo call: Fans of Our Flag Means Death will gather under the billboard in front of the Vue Cinema, Leicester Square on Monday 11 March at 6pm.

Addition: Please see our statement about the campaign to save Our Flag Means Death following David Jenkins’ post.

LONDON, March 7 — On March 11, 2024, an Our Flag Means Death fan contingent, self-dubbed the Save OFMD Crew, will rally under a fan-funded billboard in Leicester Square in the heart of London’s entertainment district. The billboard is intended to garner support for a campaign to get a third series of the highly rated, inclusive TV programme that has struck a chord with both LGBTQ+ and mainstream audiences alike. 

Four months after it aired in the U.S. on American streaming service Max, the second series of Our Flag Means Death is currently airing on BBC Two and streaming on iPlayer in the U.K. Starring Taika Waititi and Rhys Darby as swashbuckling love interests Edward Teach (Blackbeard) and Stede Bonnet (The Gentleman Pirate), the show depicts the pirates' complex relationship with one another and their diverse crew made up of LGBTQ+, BIPOC and neurodivergent and disabled people. It is this portrayal of often underrepresented groups that fans are advocating for in the campaign to save the show. 

Supporters, cast and crew were shocked when the award-winning show was cancelled by HBO/Max in January 2024, making it one in a recent rash of content axed by studios to free up funding for shows with significantly higher production costs.

In response to the cancellation, nearly 75,000 fans petitioned HBO/Max to reconsider. Fans  raised £17,000 ($21,000) in 90 minutes for a billboard in New York City’s Times Square, truck displays, an areoplane flyover of Max’s offices in Los Angeles, and other prominent street-level ads in an attempt to save the show. The remaining funds were donated to LGBTQIA+ charities.

Following confirmation that Max would not renewing Our Flag, but would support the show moving elsewhere, the show’s many fans quickly pivoted to enticing Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Netflix to pick up the series using the hashtag #AdoptOurCrew. 

Since the fandom for the show is international (despite Max’s international reach being limited), fans are now taking the campaign to the U.K. The the Save OFMD campaign will capitalise on the show’s U.K. release to promote the campaign to save the show via a billboard in busy Leicester Square, an area chosen for its prominence at the heart of London’s entertainment district. To date, fans have donated over £13,500 for London billboards, trucks, and Underground ads. Any excess funds will be donated to charity.

Save OFMD crewmate Erin Ekins said: “In just two months, this fanbase has funded billboards in Times Square and Leicester Square, in two major cities in two different continents, demonstrating how beloved Our Flag Means Death is. The representation in this show – for LGBTQ+ people, people of colour, disabled and neurodivergent people – is second to none, and it’s a powerful thing, when people feel seen. Our Flag Means Death is a brilliant, successful, lucrative show with a huge, passionate fanbase, and we want other streamers to see just how much of an asset it could be for them.”

The ad will state “Our Flag Means Death deserves a series 3” and will ask passersby to add their names to the 87,000 signatures on the petition (at saveofmd.com) calling for the story to be continued. It will also alert those who haven’t yet watched to the fact that the show can be streamed. The ad will be displayed for 10 seconds each minute on March 11, 12, 18 and 19. 

For more on Save OFMD Crew and its initiatives, and to speak to fans about why Our Flag Means Death is so important to them, contact the Save OFMD crew at contact@saveofmd.com or visit help.saveofmd.com for full details of the campaign to Save Our Flag Means Death.