Roman Kemp asks the public if they ever give honest answers when asked how they are
Walkers and Comic Relief teamed up Roman Kemp to inspire people to open up and talk more, after it was found that two thirds of adults will tell friends and family they’re ‘fine’ over the Christmas period, even when they’re not. To start the campaign, Kemp asks the public if they ever give honest answers when asked how they are.
Video transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING]
ROMAN KEMP: As a nation, we tell people that we're fine 213 million times every day. But research shows us that we're not always being truthful. And that is why I want to find out if we really mean it when we say the "F" word.
We do this even more so at Christmas, with over half of people saying they feel additional pressure to be happy at Christmas. But really, how are we feeling? So I've come to the streets of London to find out.
How are you?
- I'm fine, thank you.
- Fine.
- I'm fine.
- I'm fine.
- I'm feeling pretty good today, yeah.
- I'm fine.
ROMAN KEMP: Are you really fine? Or do you feel like you've got to say that?
- I think I've got to say that.
ROMAN KEMP: A lot of people, obviously, in the UK, we say that we're fine all the time. It's the "F" word, right? But unfortunately, a lot of people aren't telling the truth when they say that. Why do you think that is?
- Probably, they're going through a lot of things in their life.
- Possibly not able to talk about it, don't know what words to use.
- Probably just, you don't want to bring other people down with you, really.
- I think it's the potential judgment and not understanding of how people are going to deal with your emotions, I guess.
- I think people are afraid of feeling uncomfortable or making the other person feel uncomfortable.
ROMAN KEMP: I mean, have you done this before?
- Yeah, sometimes, I really hard for me to open up for people.
- Yes, I've done it because I have to be strong for my family.
- The people you least expect to go through trouble are the ones most likely to go through it. That's from my experience, anyway.
ROMAN KEMP: It's the ones that always say that they're fine.
- Yeah, exactly.
- It's something that doesn't come naturally, necessarily. And it takes a while to develop a relationship where you're happy to have that conversation with somebody.
ROMAN KEMP: At Christmas time, why do you think us as Brits don't say anything?
- It's just easier not to, quite a lot of the time, isn't it?
- There's a pressure for everyone to be happy because it's the festive season. You know, everything's rosy.
- It's kind of a pressure that you have to be jolly. You have to be happy. And you have to have, like, love and light around you. And you don't always have that.
- Maybe, a little bit of pressure around finance, particularly, at the moment.
ROMAN KEMP: So there you have it. When people say that they're fine, they're not always telling the truth. So that is why I have teamed up with Walkers and Comic Relief to try and encourage you, this Christmas, to give up the "F" word once and for all. Crisp?
- Yeah [INAUDIBLE].
ROMAN KEMP: Yeah.
