Greene King pubs has launched its ‘When it Rains, We Pour’ campaign, which will see the pub company and brewer give away up to 100,000 free pints across the UK for 48 hours between 3 and 10 April 2025. This is the second consecutive year that Greene King pubs has run its When it Rains campaign, with the aim of driving footfall and promoting its pub gardens this Spring, rain or shine.
‘The Sipping Forecast’ – fronted by beloved TV star, Larry Lamb from Gavin & Stacey and Eastenders fame – is a pub garden-based weather forecast, which will help guests navigate the unpredictable British weather this Spring. As part of the campaign, Greene King has installed rain detector devices in six trigger locations in its pubs across the UK. If a single drop of rain is detected at any one of the locations between 3rd – 8th April, Greene King will activate a 48hr free pint giveaway.
To launch the campaign, Lamb stars in a film that previews The Sipping Forecast, bringing to life the iconic moments of British pub garden behaviours. In the film the national treasure is seen battling wind and rain whilst being broadcast at The Boat House pub in Wallingford.
He will go on to deliver a live Sipping Forecast at 12:48pm via Instagram on 3 April to offer an in-the-moment weather report live from a Greene King pub garden, paying close attention to the first drop of rainfall. The campaign is supported by customer research, which found nearly a third (31%) of respondents say they’d dash inside from the pub garden at the first sign of bad weather. One in five (18%) admit to wearing sunglasses and their winter coats at the same time to ensure they’re prepared for all weather conditions during the spring.
Zoe Bowley, managing director at Greene King pubs said:
“We are really happy to bring back our When It Rains campaign for the second year running, as well as collaborate with Larry Lamb to deliver The Sipping Forecast.
“We wanted to celebrate our pub gardens as warm, welcoming and inclusive spaces where communities can gather with a good time almost guaranteed, whatever the weather. Even in the rain, we hope guests will be cheered to receive one of our free pints from 3 April.”
Rain detectors have been installed in Greene King pubs across the UK in London, Glasgow, Birmingham, Leeds, Bristol and Wallingford. Pub-goers are urged to keep an eye on Greene King Pub’s official Instagram which will announce the first detection of rain, they will then have 48 hours to head to their nearest participating Greene King pub and say ‘it’s raining, please pour me a free pint’ to claim their free pint this April.