The countdown to Christmas is officially on. McDonald's has announced its festive menu, I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! is about to start and supermarkets have begun to drop their highly-anticipated Christmas adverts. Every year the stores release new Christmas campaigns with John Lewis, M&S and Aldi among those that go all out.
This year Lidl's Christmas advert follows the story of an adorable bear who becomes an unlikely festive icon, while Dawn French returns as the Christmas fairy in Marks and Spencer's campaign, only this time she's joined by her co-star Jennifer Saunders, who takes on the role of Duckie.
Meanwhile, This Morning's Alison Hammond takes centre stage as The Countess in the Sainsbury's Christmas advert, while Buddy the Elf is recruited by Asda for a "joy-filled" Christmas campaign. Morrisons has also teased their television promotion with the return of Christmas Farmer.
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Below we take a look at all the Christmas adverts for 2022 as they drop. From Asda, to Lidl, M&S, John Lewis, Aldi and more - here's the full list of Christmas campaigns so far.
John Lewis Christmas advert 2022
John Lewis has used its Christmas ad to raise awareness of children in care with the story of a middle-aged man learning to skateboard before welcoming a young teenager into the family home. The 90-second ad, entitled The Beginner and set to a cover of Blink 182’s All the Small Things by US artist Mike Geier, shows the man as he struggles painfully to master skateboarding in the build-up to Christmas.
Viewers are left questioning the motive behind his perseverance until the final scene, which shows a social worker arriving at his door with young teenager Ellie, who has arrived at her new foster home carrying her skateboard. John Lewis said it understood that not all foster carers had the benefit of knowing who they would be looking after in advance and that its broader campaign also featured “authentic voices of carers” and “young people with different experiences of a complex care system”.
Aldi Christmas advert 2022
The ad opens with Katie, Baby, Jasper and Chantenay hurrying through a busy airport as they race to catch a flight to Paris. Once they are sitting happily on the plane, Katie notices that someone is missing…it’s ’KEVIN!’.
Separated from his family, the scene cuts to Kevin, who is Home Alone. He is watching the big game on TV, when he hears heavy footsteps of an unknown intruder on the roof.
‘Quaking in his roots’, he devises a plan to warn off the uninvited guest. What follows is a series of fun, incident-packed exchanges between Kevin and the intruder - culminating in a finale where the identity of the intruder is finally revealed.
Asda Christmas advert 2022
Will Ferrell is the star of the show in Asda's new Christmas advert. His iconic character, Buddy the Elf, becomes the supermarket's newest seasonal recruit in the campaign.
Set to Santa Clause is Comin' to Town and created by merging classic film footage with newly filmed scenes, the ad charmingly captures Buddy’s wide-eyed wonder and unbridled passion for all things festive during his first day as a member of the Asda in-store Christmas team.
Acting Chief Customer Officer at Asda, Sam Dickson, said: "Like Buddy, we absolutely love Christmas – so we’re thrilled to welcome him to our team. We know this has been a tough year for so many people, which is why we want to create some little moments of joy for families this year with our Christmas campaign, and more importantly, our amazing products. We hope that with a little bit of help from Buddy, our joy-filled Christmas offering will create some festive magic and helps give families a Christmas to remember together." You can see more on the Asda Christmas advert 2022 here.
Lidl Christmas advert 2022
The supermarket has unveiled its Christmas advert for 2022 and it features an adorable poker-faced Lidl Bear. Lidl Bear’s story begins when a dad accidentally shrinks his Lidl jumper in the wash, and his young daughter has the ingenious idea of putting it on her teddy bear.
And, just like that, a star is born – finding fame in the aisles of Lidl before becoming the (expressionless) face of Lidl’s advertising campaign and experiencing the highs and lows of fame at Christmas time.
Marketing Director at Lidl GB, Claire Farrant, said: "What stands Lidl Bear apart from other Christmas characters is its hilarious, deadpan expression. By displaying no emotion it manages to create humour and deliver our message about what’s actually important this Christmas.
"You also won’t be seeing Lidl Bear for sale in any of our stores – because, in the face of unrealistic Christmas expectations and pressure, we know what really matters is being with the people we care about." You can read more about the Lidl Christmas advert 2022 here.
M&S Christmas advert 2022
The fabulous Marks and Spencer advert sees Dawn French return as the Christmas Fairy while her iconic co-star Jennifers Saunders joins her as new character Duckie - a dog chew toy. The campaign sees the Christmas fairy leave her perch atop the Christmas tree, to look for a new "very special friend".
Set once again in a cosy home, the Christmas fairy heads straight for the family dog's basket and brings to life a tattered, yet adorable, chew toy. As Duckie finds her voice, she is then chased by dog Wylie, delighted to see his favourite toy awakened.
Fairy works her magic and Duckie learns to fly out of his reach as they then soar over a Christmas table spread of M&S festive favourites. Voice of fairy, Dawn French, said: "I had the time of my life lending my voice to the Fairy that brought Percy Pig to life last year.
"I was so excited that M&S wanted to bring her back for more adventures and discover more of that AMAZING food… and, this time with a trusty new sidekick! To have my right-hand-woman back as that sidekick… well, obviously it was a yes with festive bells on from me!"
While voice of Duckie, Jennifer Saunders , added: "When the call came in asking me to be in the M&S Christmas ad, I didn’t have to think about it. And to bring the team back together for it? It was a Christmas MUST. I mean M&S Food just IS Christmas. And, I’m so thrilled to be the voice of the tatty and downtrodden, yet very lovable, Duckie!" You can see more on the M&S Christmas advert here.
Sainsbury's Christmas advert 2022
This Morning's Alison Hammond stars in Sainsbury's brand new Christmas advert that celebrates its Taste the Difference Christmas range. The story is set in an imaginary medieval world where a festive feast is being planned. The Countess, played by Alison, is in charge of choosing the food, but her distaste of Christmas pudding means it is strictly off the menu – that is, until a young cook changes her mind.
As her royal subjects bring an array of deserts, Alison, tells them: "I've never really liked Christmas pudding - bring me something different - or else". The young chef goes back to the kitchen to ponder The Countess' order, before having an epiphany and quickly getting to work.
Alison is then presented with another Christmas pudding, but this time it's caramelised biscuit flavour, which The Countess concedes is "a bit of me" before bursting into laughter.
The advert is set to a medieval instrumental version of Wheatus' Teenage Dirtbag, while Stephen Fry can be heard as the voiceover. Alison Hammond said: "I absolutely loved playing The Countess in this year's Sainsbury’s Christmas advert.
"It got me feeling all festive and was such a laugh. The Taste the Difference Caramelised Biscuit Christmas Pudding was absolutely a bit of me and will definitely make an appearance on our table this year. Just not sure if I can wait until Christmas day to try it again!" You can read more on the Sainsbury's Christmas advert here. For more showbiz and television stories get our newsletter here.
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