A love letter to Luton: YouTubers create fake advert putting town on the map

  • Stuart Leithes went to Luton to see what people there think of the town

A pair of YouTubers who challenged themselves to create a "Fake Ad for the Worst City in England" have expressed their love for Luton.

The YouTube channel Yes Theory saw an online poll which rated Luton as the worst place to live in the UK - and created an unofficial promotional film for the town which now has almost 1 million views.

Film-makers Thomas Dajer and Staffan Taylor, who are based in Canada, travelled to the town with the intention of showing Luton in a positive light.

During their visit, they watched Luton Town FC take on Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, met with the mayor of the town and visited the Stockwood Discovery Centre, which showcases local history.

YouTubers Thomas Dajer, left, and Staffan Taylor said they wanted to discover the town for themselves as well as make the advert. Credit: Yes Theory

They also enlisted the help of British YouTubers Zac Alsop and Max Fosh during their visit.

Yes Theory are a group of YouTubers based in Canada who "believe life's greatest moments and deepest connections exist outside your comfort zone".

They make videos testing themselves to take on challenges across the world, racking up millions of views.

Recent videos include "World's most valuable skydive over the pyramids" and "I paid a taxi $10,000 to see how far it takes me!"

In the 26-minute video, the filmmakers spoke to people from the town about their thoughts on Luton.

One person they spoke to said the best thing about Luton is the people.

She said: "We're so multicultural now, even from when I grew up. The Asian communities, the Polish communities. We have a really lovely Asian neighbour and the food is lovely."

Another person said: "The best thing about Luton is the football club. You can't get tickets: it's nearly sold out every game!"

Luton Town's major, Yaqub Hanif, met with the YouTubers to show them what Luton has to offer. Credit: Yes Theory

Yaqub Hanif, Luton's mayor, met the group to show them all that the town has to offer.

Speaking to ITV News after the video was released, he said: "It was amazing. It reaches out to a whole new audience, a whole new generation.

"Millions of young people are now seeing Luton for what it really is - a great place to live and work. Some of the comments show that too - one person said Luton is now on his bucket list.

"It was fantastic that they started their journey off in the airport which connects us to 42 countries.

"This is a town that is over 1,000 years old, over 150 languages are spoken here. A lot of work on the town is going on behind the scenes."

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