The John Lewis Christmas advert has become one of the defining fixtures of the festive season.
Each year, viewers tune in for the retailer’s latest story, then discuss their favourite moments with family, friends and, increasingly, followers online.
Since the campaign began in 2007, John Lewis has delivered a memorable mix of emotional storytelling, distinctive characters and carefully chosen music. Here is a look back at every Christmas advert.
2025: WHERE LOVE LIVES
John Lewis moved away from its familiar tearjerker formula with Where Love Lives, an advert rooted in family memories and parental nostalgia.
The story offered a glimpse into the nightclub culture of 1990s Britain, particularly for parents who remember their pre-children years on the dancefloor.
It focused on the relationship between a father and his teenage son, marking the first time one of the retailer’s Christmas campaigns had centred on that bond.
The film began with the nervous teenager waiting for his father to discover a present hidden beneath the Christmas tree: a vinyl record featuring Alison Limerick’s 1990 club classic Where Love Lives.
Touched by the thoughtful gift, the father placed the record on his turntable while his son watched anxiously, headphones resting around his neck as he waited for a reaction.
When the opening beat filled the room, the father was suddenly transported from the living room into a packed, high-energy nightclub.
The advert moved between images of the father dancing and memories of his son as a toddler and baby. As a softer modern version of the song played, the action returned to the present, where the embarrassed teenager was drawn into an emotional embrace.
2024: THE GIFTING HOUR
The 2024 campaign returned to John Lewis’s emotional storytelling, following a sister’s heartfelt search for the perfect Christmas present.
Sally arrived at the retailer’s Oxford Street flagship moments before closing, having left her hunt for a gift until the last minute.
In a scene inspired by The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, she tumbled through a rail of dresses and entered a fantastical world, emerging from an old wardrobe in the attic of her childhood home.
Her search then became a journey through treasured memories as she tried to find the ideal gift for her sister. One of the advert’s most poignant moments came when Sally encountered her late mother and shared a brief Christmas memory with her.
2023: SNAPPER: THE PERFECT TREE
In 2023, John Lewis swapped its traditional tearjerker for a colourful, playful campaign. It was also only the second time the retailer had used an original song rather than a cover version.
Andrea Bocelli provided the soundtrack to the story of Alfie, a young boy who asked his grandmother for a seed so he could “grow your own perfect Christmas tree”.
After planting it, Alfie was thrilled to discover that his pot had produced something far less conventional than a fir tree: an animated, carnivorous Venus flytrap named Snapper.
Snapper soon created chaos and was banished outdoors. But on Christmas morning, Alfie gave the plant a present. After gobbling it up, Snapper spat out festive gifts for the family, including headphones, Lego sets and slippers.
2022: THE BEGINNER
Titled The Beginner, the 2022 advert followed a foster father who took up skateboarding in the weeks before Christmas.
His early efforts resulted in plenty of bruises and scrapes, but he refused to give up. He even studied skateboarding tutorials at work while completing his day-to-day tasks.
On Christmas Day, the reason for his determination became clear. He had been practising to impress Ellie, the foster child arriving to stay with him and his wife during the holidays. Ellie arrived carrying a sticker-covered skateboard close to her chest and was welcomed into their home.
The advert was soundtracked by a slowed-down version of Blink-182’s skater-pop hit All The Small Things, a livelier choice than the ballads usually associated with the campaign.
2021: UNEXPECTED GUEST
John Lewis’s two-minute 2021 advert, Unexpected Guest, told the story of a young boy who introduced an alien visitor to the traditions of Christmas before she returned home.
Space traveller Skye crash-landed in the woods near the home of 14-year-old Nathan, who showed her how to eat mince pies, decorate a Christmas tree and wear novelty jumpers—although the latter custom left her understandably puzzled.
London singer-songwriter Lola Young recorded the soundtrack, performing a cover of Together in Electric Dreams, originally released by Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder in 1984.
The story opened with Nathan walking home from school. After noticing a flashing light in the distance, he followed it into the woods beside his house, where he discovered Skye and her damaged spaceship.
2020: GIVE A LITTLE LOVE
The 2020 campaign aimed to lift spirits with a series of whimsical scenes, including flying snowmen, giant Christmas crackers and a hedgehog dreaming of becoming a pigeon.
At its heart, the two-minute film showed how simple acts of kindness can ease loneliness and offer hope to people facing difficult times in silence.
Nine connected vignettes formed a chain of good deeds, with one small gesture inspiring another and changing someone else’s day in a meaningful way.
Each sequence used a different visual style, ranging from hand-drawn animation and claymation to live-action cinematography.
2019: EDGAR THE DRAGON
The 2019 campaign introduced Edgar, an enthusiastic but accident-prone dragon living in a snowy mythical village with his red-haired best friend, Ava.
Edgar’s uncontrollable fire-breathing repeatedly threatened the village’s festive celebrations. A Christmas tree caught fire, a snowman was destroyed and the local ice rink melted before the pair set out to prevent further disasters.
The advert marked the first festive collaboration between John Lewis and its sister brand, Waitrose. Following the mixed reaction to the previous year’s celebrity-focused campaign, Edgar represented a return to the retailer’s more familiar formula.
2018: THE BOY AND THE PIANO
In 2018, John Lewis stepped away from its usual stories about lovable animals and charming children by placing Sir Elton John at the centre of its Christmas advert.
The film traced the singer’s journey from modest beginnings to international fame.
Set to Elton’s 1970 hit Your Song, the mini-biopic showed how a single present could change a life. It ended with four-year-old Elton unwrapping his first piano on Christmas Day in 1951.
The £7 million advert then returned to the emotional 71-year-old musician playing the same instrument as he reflected on his mother, Sheila, who died in 2017 aged 92. The closing message read: “Some gifts are more than just a gift.”
Some viewers criticised the campaign for concentrating more on Elton John’s life than on Christmas itself.
Others missed the cuddly characters of earlier years, such as Monty the penguin and Moz the monster, which were replaced by a celebrity-led story.
2017: MOZ THE MONSTER
The 2017 advert followed a young boy who formed an unlikely friendship with the monster living beneath his bed. Its soundtrack was a cover of The Beatles’ Golden Slumbers, performed by rock band Elbow.
Viewers were won over by Moz, a mischievous and flatulent creature, and his bond with seven-year-old Joe. Many compared the story to Disney and Pixar’s beloved Monsters, Inc.
With his bulbous nose, crooked teeth and habit of snoring, the giant furry monster emerged from under Joe’s bed each night to play.
Joe was initially terrified when he spotted two enormous eyes staring from the darkness. The role was played by London twins Ethan and Tobias.
Before long, the two friends were playing games, enjoying piggyback rides and racing Scalextric cars in Joe’s bedroom—without his parents or older sister discovering their secret.
2016: BUSTER THE BOXER
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Buster the Boxer took centre stage in John Lewis’s 2016 Christmas campaign.
The retailer said the playful advert, in which the dog beats a young girl to her new toy, was designed to bring some cheer after what had been a difficult year.
The story centred on Bridget, a little girl with an endless love of jumping.
Her parents bought her a trampoline and secretly assembled it in the garden while she slept. Set to a cover of One Day I’ll Fly Away, the advert showed a succession of animals using the trampoline in the snow as Buster watched from inside.
On Christmas morning, Bridget ran outside to try the trampoline, only to discover that cheeky Buster had got there first.
2015: MAN ON THE MOON
In 2015, viewers were introduced to a lonely man living on the moon, sitting alone on a bench and unaware that a young girl on Earth was watching him.
The elderly character, played by 77-year-old French actor Jean, gazed wistfully towards Earth as Norwegian singer Aurora performed a haunting version of Oasis’s Half the World Away.
Lily tried repeatedly to send the man a message, but each attempt failed. He remained isolated, with no idea that anyone was thinking about him.
On Christmas morning, a gift floated down from the sky beneath a cluster of balloons. Inside was a vintage telescope.
Using it, the man spotted Lily. As he realised that someone cared about him, tears filled his eyes.
2014: MONTY THE PENGUIN
John Lewis hoped the friendship between a boy and a penguin would capture the public’s imagination in 2014.
The two-minute advert followed seven-year-old Sam, played by Hertfordshire actor Rhys Edwards, and his penguin companion, Monty.
Sam gradually understood that Monty was lonely and wanted a penguin friend of his own. On Christmas morning, he surprised him with Mabel, a new companion.
The soundtrack was a version of John Lennon’s Real Love, performed by Tom Odell.
2013: THE BEAR AND THE HARE
John Lewis’s £7 million, Disney-inspired 2013 advert followed a selfless hare determined to ensure his best friend, a bear, did not miss Christmas yet again.
The two friends were saddened by the prospect of spending the festive season apart, as the bear prepared to hibernate.
The story began as winter arrived and the woodland animals started preparing for Christmas.
When the first snowflake landed on the bear’s nose, the hare realised that his friend would soon disappear into hibernation and miss the celebrations as usual.
The bear wanted to join the festivities but eventually could not fight off sleep and retreated to his cave.
As the other woodland creatures grew increasingly excited about Christmas, the bear slept through the preparations.
The hare missed his friend and struggled to enjoy the celebrations until he came up with an idea for a special present.
He ventured into the wilderness and returned with an alarm clock. The gift woke the bear just in time for him to join his friends around the beautifully decorated Christmas tree.
2012: THE JOURNEY
The 2012 Christmas advert, The Journey, explored the extraordinary lengths people will go to find a present for someone they love.
The 90-second film opened in a snow-covered family garden, where children built a snowman and snowwoman.
When the snowman vanished the following morning, the action shifted to a magical world as he travelled across rivers, mountains, roads and cities.
The reason for his secret journey was revealed only at the end, when he returned on Christmas morning carrying presents for his wife.
Gabrielle Aplin provided the soundtrack with her version of Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s 1984 hit The Power of Love.
2011: THE LONG WAIT
John Lewis’s 2011 advert portrayed a young boy counting down to Christmas with intense excitement.
Viewers were encouraged to assume that he was impatient to receive his own presents.
The final reveal showed the truth: he had been eagerly waiting to give gifts to his parents.
The campaign used a cover of The Smiths’ Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want.
2010: A TRIBUTE TO GIVERS
The 2010 campaign focused on people choosing and secretly wrapping presents ahead of Christmas, with Ellie Goulding performing a cover of Elton John’s Your Song.
The advert showed a series of people carefully hiding gifts from the recipients.
Parents carried a rocking horse upstairs while their children looked away, a mechanic struggled to wrap a spotted teapot, and a young boy ventured into the snow in his dressing gown to hang a stocking outside his dog’s kennel.
2009: SWEET CHILD O’ MINE
The 2009 campaign was the first John Lewis Christmas advert created by advertising agency Adam & Eve.
It also marked the first time the retailer used a cover performed by a current artist, with Taken By Trees recording Sweet Child O’ Mine by Guns N’ Roses.
Children opened presents intended for adults, including a laptop, coffee machine and handbag.
The film ended with the message: “Remember how Christmas used to feel? Give someone that feeling.”
2008: FROM ME TO YOU
The 2008 campaign followed a series of people as they were paired with carefully chosen gifts, ending with the line: “If you know the person, you’ll find the present.”
Its soundtrack was a campaign-specific cover of The Beatles’ From Me To You.
The recording featured vocals by Matt Spinner, a member of John Lewis’s IT department and music society.
2007: SHADOWS
The first John Lewis Christmas advert showed people stacking possible gifts—including a desk lamp, computer and leather satchel—in an empty room.
When the objects were arranged, their combined shadow formed the outline of a woman walking her dog through the snow.
The campaign closed with the tagline: “Whoever you’re looking for this Christmas.”
