The Ad That Tells You Christmas is Around the Corner!

What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future.

Agnes M. Pahro

If you’ve followed my blog for a few years, and God love you I know some of you have(!!), you’ll know I totally love Christmas! Until yesterday Christmas felt a long way off however, with just 31 days to go we saw an annual event that always brings a tear to my eye, a little pathetic really but I really don’t care.

Over the years, the department store John Lewis have produced a Christmas advert that has become iconic and has now been almost emulated by many other chains and brands. Who can forget the Bear and the Hare from 2013 or Monty the Penguin the year after, Moz the farting Monster from 2017, The Boy and the Piano which was essentially Elton John’s life story or last years super cute but socially awkward Excitable Edgar.

But it’s not just the visuals, it’s the music that comes with them, usually a twist on a well known classic like Slow Moving Millie’s version of the Smiths Please, Please, Please let me get what I want, Ellie Goulding’s version of Your Song, Gabrielle Aplin version of The Power of Love and Elbow’s version of the iconic Golden Slumbers by the Beatles. Music that for me has become synonymous with Christmas and pretty much always find their way onto my Annual Spotify Christmas play list!

So, it was with some sense of trepidation I waited for this year’s offering, (I know, it’s an advert for goodness sake!!), and I wasn’t to be disappointed! Set in a Covid-free world, the campaign hopes to raise a smile with light-hearted scenes of magical flying snowmen, supersized Christmas crackers and a hedgehog who dreams of being a pigeon. LOVE IT! And of course, there’s the music. In a first for the retailer, this year's soundtrack is an original song, A Little Love, by Brit Award-winning soul singer Celeste. Part of the proceeds will go towards two charities being spotlighted by the campaign, FareShare and Home-Start.

The advert focuses on acts of kindness for its 2020 Christmas advert - inspired by the public spirit shown during the coronavirus pandemic.

The advert opens with a boy whose football is stuck in a tree. He is approached by a little girl in a yellow raincoat, who releases her red heart-shaped umbrella and in a moment the two are transformed into animated versions of themselves.

The young boy goes on to present a heart-shaped balloon made of snow to a melting snowman, who uses the balloon to lift himself from the puddle and fly into the air.

He lands in the middle of a busy town centre, where he sees a couple of snowmen struggling with their car and promptly produces a heart-shaped wheel to help get them on their way.

The car trundles down the road and drops a bundle of Waitrose goodies at the door of an elderly man, who promptly unpacks them in his vibrant kitchen with the help of his wife.

Noticing his next-door neighbour is feeling lonely, the man extends a super long Christmas cracker for him to pull. He does, and in an explosion of confetti comes across a joke that keeps him laughing for hours - right up until he turns up at work the next day at a barber shop.

Full of festive cheer, he gives a red-headed boy a heart-shaped haircut. The character transforms into a real-life boy, who opens up a John Lewis Christmas decoration and tops the tree.

Outside a pigeon dressed in a denim jacket and jeans watches the festive family scene. He joins his friends, a group of similarly dressed pigeons, and takes kindly to a hedgehog who is so desperate to join the group he has stuck feathers to his quills.

After giving the hedgehog the hat off his head, the pigeon and his friends make their way to an airplane marked 'X Mas' and jet off into the sky. They release smoke and draw a heart in the sky.

Back on the ground, a bus drives past the heart. On board is an elderly woman who helps a little girl fix her broken glasses using the sticker from her apple.

As she steps off the bus, the little animated girl turns back into the girl seen at the beginning of the commercial.

Okay, again, a little pathetic but someone pass me a handkerchief! You can watch it yourself here!

John Lewis hopes the advert will raise a smile whilst raising money for Home-Start, which provides volunteers and expert support to families with young children, and FareShare, which redistributes surplus food to charities that turn it into meals. A second commercial focuses on this partnership.

The retailer will match donations of up to £2million made by shoppers and has an additional £1million set aside to put towards local causes. In addition, part of the proceeds from Celeste's singles will go towards the charities.

John Lewis is also releasing a range of limited-edition merchandise, including the heart-shaped umbrella featured in the film, to help raise funds.

It is part of a long-term fundraising plan that will extend beyond the festive season.

A spokesperson for John Lewis said, “The ambition for us was to inspire a generation with the simple thought that if you give a little love the world will be a much better place.”

I know the purpose of an avert is ultimately to get you to buy stuff but, this advert, this year, of all years why would you not consider buying something from John Lewis? Here, unashamedly is a link to their Christmas Shop – go on, lets keep the acts of random kindness going!!

What’s on this week - Well, sadly work has kept me busy, so much so I won't get a day off this week and I've not been able to get in world, subsequently, there's no fashion but here's this years advert followed by two other personal favs from other retailers that have been inspired by John Lewis from over the years! Stay safe everyone!!