On Wednesday, students at Strand Campus were shocked to find a production company assembling the set for an advertisement for a dog food brand, James Wellbeloved, metres away from the site of Tuesday’s fatal collision.
At 11:41 on 18 March 2025, a van collision killed a King’s student and injured two others beside Bush House on Strand Campus.
A police investigation into the incident is ongoing, but the Met Police has ruled out that the accident was terrorism-related.
On Wednesday morning, a production team from Adam & Eve DDB cordoned off an area in front of St Mary le Strand Church, near a memorial honouring the King’s student who was tragically killed by the collision.
As part of preparation for the filming of the advertisement, a giant model of a dog was built. This model remains in place as of publication.
A spokesperson for King’s College London (KCL) confirmed that the space is publicly owned and therefore King’s does not control the activity which takes place in the space. They stated that they have asked that the Council be respectful of the area immediately around the site of the incident and the flowers that have been laid.
A third-year Music student, Francesca Bern, reached out to Roar to voice her dismay at the production company’s decision to proceed with filming in light of Tuesday’s tragic events.
She explained, “I came in on Wednesday morning and saw this, I thought at first it was an art installation for Somerset house.
“I went to ask what looked like lead security man in high-vis and he pointed me to the laminated card. I was so shocked by the insensitivity of it and said to him ‘they should’ve moved it’.”
She continued, “I found the whole thing surprisingly distressing and spent most of the morning in tears – despite not knowing anyone involved in the accident.
“As I was walking past I saw other people also sort of looking a bit in shock and disgusted at this and looking back towards the church, where they were still removing things from the incident on Wednesday, including what looked like flattened bins.”
Francesca acknowledged that the filming was likely scheduled months in advance, but argued, “I think some sort of measures could have been taken out of sensitivity for a university where a lot of people are feeling the effects of Wednesday.”
James Wellbeloved and Adam & Eve DDB did not respond to Roar‘s requests for statements.
