Grab the tissues. This year's John Lewis Christmas advert has arrived, meaning it's officially acceptable for us to start getting excited about the festive season.
This year’s advert is as heart-warming as ever, following the story of Buster the Boxer dog and his family. It begins with a little girl jumping on her bed, with her pet dog watching with jealousy. The scene then cuts to her dutiful father assembling (with the difficulty we’re sure all dads can relate to) a trampoline outside in the garden, ready for Christmas day. As Buster watches from the window, a cast of woodland creatures – including foxes, a badger, a hedgehog and a squirrel – find the trampoline and start bouncing on it gleefully. As you can imagine, Buster is not impressed, growling through the window in that way anyone who owns a dog will remember… All is not lost though, as the next morning, Buster races his owners outside, leaping on the trampoline before the little girl gets her shot. It’s a hilarious 2-minute film, set to an uplifting soundtrack of ‘One Day I’ll Fly Away’ (obviously) by British band Vaults.
This year’s ad is perhaps a little more light-hearted than previous years – with 2015’s ‘The Man on the Moon’, in aid of Age UK, particularly tugging at the heart-strings. This was intentional on the part of John Lewis, who want to cheer us up after a particularly tough year.
‘2016 has certainly been quite a year, so we hope our advert will make people smile,’ acknowledges Craig Inglis, Customer Director at John Lewis. ‘It really embraces a sense of fun and magic, reminding everyone what it feels to give the perfect gift at Christmas.’
Those who rushed to get Monty the Penguin soft toys in 2014 will be pleased to know that #BusterTheBoxer will be on sale in store and online – as will the full cast of woodland creatures. What’s more, proceeds from the sale of the teddy bears will go towards helping The Wildlife Trusts, who work to raise awareness of endangered species in the UK.
‘The Wildlife Trusts believe that everyone should have the opportunity to experience the joy of wildlife and wild places in their daily lives,’ said Stephanie Hilborne OBE, Chief Executive, The Wildlife Trusts. ‘So John Lewis putting some of our most beautiful British wild animals at the centre of their Christmas advert and making The Wildlife Trusts their charity of choice this Christmas is great news. With this support we will be able to inspire thousands more children about the wonders of the natural world.’
If you want to celebrate the arrival of Christmas and the John Lewis ad, head to Snapchat, where there is a special filter available all day today that will turn you into Buster the Boxer himself (don’t forget to raise your eyebrows…) If you’ve missed that, just head in store where there will be a bespoke filter available for all customers.
Watch the advert below.
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