YouTube filmmakers' advert for Luton a hit

Yes Theory praised the people of Luton who helped make their video about the town

International filmmakers have expressed their love for Luton after going viral with an unofficial advertisement for the town.

Yes Theory, a YouTube channel based in Canada, have clocked up nearly a million views for their video titled We Made a Fake Ad for the Worst City in England.

During the 26 minute film they visit Stockwood Discovery Centre, watch a Hatters game at Kenilworth Road and meet with the town mayor.

French-American filmmaker Thomas Dajer said: "I've been to London, I've been to Edinburgh and I'd say Luton is one of my favourite places in the UK because the hospitality we got was incredible."

Thomas Dajer (right) said his experience at Kenilworth Road was "wild"

He added: "London is a beautiful place but it doesn't make me feel welcome in the same way Luton does. Luton has the small town charm a lot of these cities don't have."

In the video, Mr Dajer attends his first Premier League football game at Kenilworth Road, watching the Hatters draw 1-1 with Nottingham Forest.

The baseball fan praised the Lutonians he met that day: "Everybody is super riled up, that was a lot of fun.

"The people that we met hustled and called the ticket office about 40 times to get us tickets.

"It's really sweet they put so much effort into making the video great and making Luton look good."

The video was made in collaboration with British YouTubers Zac Alsop and Max Fosh

The duo visited the town in March and stayed in the centre of the town for five days as they gathered footage.

During the video they meet up with British YouTubers Zac Alsop and Max Fosh.

Fosh, who scored 14 million views for his Luton YouTube prank in 2022, said it was "very easy to take a binary opinion on a town".

He added: "It was clear to see that lots of work needs to be done for it to live up to its full potential, however, with the citizens from Luton that I met, I think the future looks very bright."

Within a week of release, the Yes Theory video on Luton had been viewed more than 860,000 times and appeared on the video sharing website's trending section.

The Yes Theory filmmakers said fans of theirs had told them they planned to visit Luton too

Yes Theory's Staffan Taylor, who is originally from Stockholm in Sweden, was equally impressed with the people in the Bedfordshire town.

He insisted the plan for the video was to always show Luton in a positive light.

"We want to dispel the statement that it's the worst town in the UK," he said.

"We wanted to double down on the love and empathy we could find in Luton, and we found a lot."

The filmaker, who has visited 50 countries and all seven continents, wanted to encourage others to visit the town.

One fan, from India, messaged the group to say he added Luton to his bucket-list.

He said: "People are heading towards Luton at this very moment."

Mr Taylor said the filmmakers had already made plans to return to the town.

"We're coming back for a reunion and this time enjoying it without even filming," he said.

"We love Luton."