This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A German woman living in London has deployed a secret weapon to keep Britain in the European Union: hugs.

Katrin Lock has launched the “Hug a Brit” social media campaign, which calls on members of EU states to shower Britons with love in an attempt to convince them to vote “Remain” in the looming Brexit referendum.

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Lock, who created the Twitter account @pleasedontgouk as part of the campaign, said: “We are EU citizens who want the British people to stay in the European Union. This is our love bomb.”

Another message reads: “We love you! You are part of Europe. Please don’t leave. Please don’t go, UK!”

Inspired by the campaign, citizens of other European countries posted pictures of themselves hugging their British friends under the hashtags #hugabrit and #pleasedontgouk in a social media campaign aimed at Britons who have not yet decided how to vote.

One Instagram message showed German fan Christine Ullman hugging her “youth idol” Jarvis Cocker, frontman of the Britpop band Pulp.

In another tweet a woman posted a picture of herself embracing a statue of British author Virginia Woolf.

Many of the messages accompanying the selfies contained emotional pleas and praise for Britain.

“London is the best place in the world because of the great mix of cultures,” wrote Roberta Cucuzza.

The campaign was started in February by Lock, a German who has lived in London for seven years.

It has gathered momentum in recent days, with selfies posted by Britons hugging European migrants living in Britain and embraces elsewhere in Europe.

However, it is not clear how the British, who are notoriously reserved, will react to the outpouring of continental emotion. For many, it seems, the prospect of a cuddle from a stranger was distinctly alarming.

Core Group Negaverse (@SenshiSerena) Infact Hugging strangers is an incredibly unbritish thing to do. Nothing would make me vote leave faster. #HugABrit

Opinion polls indicate that the “Leave” and “Remain” camps are neck-and-neck, while up to 20% of Britons have still not made up their minds ahead of the crucial vote on June 23.

“Our message is not about statistics, jobs or about the merits of EU rules on shower caps or cucumbers. We just don’t want the UK to divorce us,” read a manifesto on the campaign website pleasedontgouk.com.

“Our message comes from our hearts,” it added.

Agence France-Presse contributed to this report