McDonald’s Shamrock Shake returns — and so does Grimace’s uncle

McDonald’s is leaning on customers’ nostalgia for its McDonaldland characters to spur sales of its Shamrock Shake.

The company said Tuesday that Grimace will reunite with his Irish uncle, Uncle O’Grimacey, bringing the mascot out of retirement after decades out of the spotlight. McDonald’s originally created Uncle O’Grimacey in 1975 to promote the Shamrock Shake, but he hasn’t been seen since the mid-1980s.

The Shamrock Shake, a seasonal staple for more than 50 years, returns to U.S. restaurants annually before St. Patrick’s Day. The milkshake comes back on Feb. 10. This year, 25 cents of every Shamrock Shake sale will go toward the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

That same day the shake relaunches, the fast-food giant is expected to report its fourth-quarter results. McDonald’s sales have struggled to bounce back since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention linked its Quarter Pounder burgers to a fatal E. coli outbreak in October, even after the health agency declared the crisis over. A viral moment, like the return of Uncle O’Grimacey, could boost traffic to its restaurants and lift sales out of their slump.

Uncle O’Grimacey’s reappearance marks the third time since the viral Grimace Birthday Meal that the chain has used its retro mascots in marketing. The company named its beverage-focused spinoff brand CosMc’s, after the McDonald’s-loving alien that appeared in ads decades ago. And when McDonald’s launched its “Best Burger” initiative to spread the word about changes to its cheeseburgers and Big Macs, the company sent the Hamburglar on a cross-country tour.

But Grimace remains the star. His birthday meal, complete with a purple milkshake, helped McDonald’s quarterly U.S. same-store sales climb more than 10% in the spring of 2023.

And Grimace has held onto the public’s adoration. Last year, he became a good luck charm for the New York Mets during the professional baseball team’s most recent season. After Grimace threw out the first pitch before a June game, the Mets went on a winning streak, which led the mascot to appear at games through the team’s playoff push.

Uncle O’Grimacey disappeared after the company dialed back its use of the McDonaldland mascots. However, a rumor circulated the internet in recent years, saying that Uncle O’Grimacey wasn’t used publicly after an actor playing the mascot in Philadelphia made comments in support of the Irish Republican Army; there’s no evidence to suggest that the incident actually happened.