Sparking Important Conversations with McDonald’s Iconic Packaging

In November 2025, McDonald’s UK temporarily replaced its red Happy Meal boxes – but for a good reason: mental health awareness.

For the first time ever, McDonald’s UK & Ireland replaced red boxes with a completely blank alternative. A feature of its partnership with BBC Children in Need, the market introduced a limited-edition blank Happy Meal box designed to encourage children to express their emotions and unleash their creativity.

Draw How You Feel

The blank boxes were an invitation for kids to “draw how you feel,” offering them a simple creative prompt designed to help families explore their feelings in a fun and imaginative way.

Research commissioned for the campaign found that 4 in 10 children aged 5 to 10 struggled to tell adults how they feel. The study also found that creativity could be the key to unlocking those conversations – with 73% of children finding it easier to talk about their feelings when they’re drawing. 88% of parents felt the same, with creative activities helping them feel more at ease discussing feelings with their children.

73% of children and 88% of parents feel more comfortable talking about feelings when doing something creative

How To’s of Harnessing Art for Expression

To help parents kick-start these conversations, McDonald’s UK and BBC Children in Need created a suite of free resources on the Family Hub, offering families practical ways to use art to connect, understand and celebrate the full range of emotions children may experience every day.