Responsible storytelling
We welcome thoughtful coverage that understands these Searches are not cute quirks or novelty stories. They often sit within disability, autism, family life, grief, exhaustion, routine, communication and care.
Press and Media
LittleBlueCup began with one family’s Search for one little blue cup.
In November 2016, Millie asked for help finding a replacement cup for her son, Ben. The Search became #CupForBen, went viral, reached people around the world and showed how much an apparently ordinary object can matter when it is tied to comfort, communication, routine, safety and calm.
Nearly ten years later, LittleBlueCup is being rebuilt to help more families search safely, tell their stories clearly and connect with people who may have the exact item tucked away somewhere.
What LittleBlueCup does now
LittleBlueCup helps families look for difficult-to-replace items that may seem ordinary to everyone else but mean everything to one person.
That might be a cup, teddy, blanket, toy, jumper, pair of pyjamas, comfort object, or discontinued item that cannot simply be replaced with “something similar”.
For many disabled, autistic and neurodivergent people, these items can be connected to routine, regulation, communication, memory, safety, and identity. When they are lost, broken, discontinued, or worn beyond repair, the impact can be enormous.
LittleBlueCup exists to help families search more effectively, share safely and connect with people who might have the exact item tucked away somewhere.
The story behind #CupForBen
In November 2016, Millie posted online asking for help finding a replacement cup for her son Ben.
The cup was a small blue Tommee Tippee cup. To most people, it looked ordinary. To Ben, it mattered enormously.
It was a viral story, but it was never just a viral story.
The Search became #CupForBen and was shared across social media, newspapers, radio, television and websites around the world. It was a disability story, a family story and a reminder that the things people dismiss as small can be life-changing to the person who needs them.
A hashtag that travelled further than expected
In 2017, BBC Newsbeat selected #CupForBen as one of ten hashtag moments featured in its retrospective marking ten years of Twitter hashtags.
The feature placed #CupForBen alongside widely recognised hashtag moments including #BlackLivesMatter, #TheDress, #HeForShe, #PutYourBatsOut, #IceBucketChallenge, #JoinIn and #FollowFriday.
For LittleBlueCup, that still matters. #CupForBen showed that a very specific need, clearly explained and widely shared, can reach the right people.
Most people who see a Search will not have the item. But someone in their wider network might.
Read the BBC Newsbeat articleWhy media coverage matters
Media coverage can help LittleBlueCup reach the one person who has the right item in a cupboard, loft, garage, drawer, charity bag or memory box.
That reach matters.
Most people who see a Search will not have the item themselves. But someone in their wider network might.
A careful story can travel further than a single post. It can help a family find something that brings comfort, routine, safety or calm back into their life.
Working with the media
Family privacy
Please do not contact families from active Searches directly unless permission has been given. LittleBlueCup tries to protect families from pressure, scams and unwanted attention.
Permissions
Please ask before using family photos, screenshots, Search images, personal posts or quotes. Some historic #CupForBen material is public, but current family and Search content should be handled carefully.
Clear context
The strongest stories explain why the item matters, what has already been tried, what exact item is needed, and how people can help safely.
For current interviews, quotes, biographies, captions and introductions, please use Millie, she/her pronouns and LittleBlueCup.
Previous coverage
The original #CupForBen Search was covered widely across the UK and internationally.
- BBC News Online
- BBC Newsbeat: #CupForBen included in a 2017 feature marking ten years of Twitter hashtags.
- ITV This Morning
- ITV National News
- ITV West Country
- BBC Spotlight
- Good Morning America
- Sky News
- ABC
- CNN
- CBC
- BBC Breakfast
- Virgin Radio
- Heart
- Good Housekeeping
- The i Paper
- The Telegraph
- The Metro
- The Mirror
- People Magazine
- Huffington Post
- Mumsnet
- Tommee Tippee
- Family Fund
- Change.org
The story was also shared across many countries, including the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, South Africa, Japan, China, Taiwan, India, Pakistan, South Korea, Brazil, Mexico, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, Belgium, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt, Turkey, Ukraine, and others.
A note on historic coverage
Some historic #CupForBen coverage uses Millie’s former name and pre-transition photographs. Millie is a trans woman and now uses the name Millie. Current coverage should use Millie, she/her pronouns, and LittleBlueCup.
More places the story was shared or discussed
- BBC Radio Sussex and Surrey
- BBC Radio Scotland
- ABC.net.au
- Global Times
- Stuff.co.nz
- BBC Radio Newcastle
- BBC Radio Gloucester
- babycenter.com
- The Sun
- Fox News
- 20 Minutes France
- The Daily Mail
- ABC News
- BBC Radio Leicester
- Plastics News
- WHDN Boston
- Mail Online
- TV2 Germany
- LCI.fr
- Daily Edge Ireland
- BBC Radio 5 Live
- People Magazine USA
- TVBS Taiwan
- Scottish Sun
- Yorkshire Post
- SETN.com
- Shanghaiist
- YouTube
- George Takei Facebook page
- EuropaPress Spain
- The Straits Times
- 9 News
- Babble.com
- Exeter Express and Echo
- RTL
- Chronicle Live
- CBC Online
- BBC Radio Shropshire
- BBC Radio Oxford
- Radio Durban
Media enquiries
For interviews, background, comment, permissions or responsible coverage of LittleBlueCup, #CupForBen or current Search stories, please contact us.
Starter media pack
A starter media pack with background context, safer wording guidance, useful links and current media guidance is now available.
Open Media Pack