It’s that time of year again. The Christmas ads are on their way. And like opening windows in an advent calendar we marvel or groan at the content, and then after seeing the same ad played over in the run up to the big day we just want it to stop!
Nevertheless, there is the frisson of excitement at the competition amongst the big guns with their big budgets vying for awards and the best ad spots over the Festive period.
M&S are already up and running with a luscious fantasy number that begs the question, how is John Lewis going to up the ante?
John Lewis is the bookies favourite to scoop the Christmas plaudits after its strong showing last year with The Journey.
But M&S has started brightly with a stellar cast that includes Rosie Huntington-Whitely, David Gandy and Helena Bonham-Carter. The play is on fairy tales, mixing them up in the longer version of the ad to include Alice in Wonderland, Little Red Riding Hood, Aladdin and Wizard of Oz.
It’s a stylish, narrative driven storyline showcasing M&S products with Hollywood production values that’ll have cost a pretty penny. Whether its escapism will appeal to the under 30s, a market the business is desperate to corner, is a moot point.
But for the rest of us, it’s pretty classy.
Now we wait with baited breath to find out what John Lewis’ teaser photo of a bear is all about.