'Tis the season to spend money...
Whether you're weeping at a John Lewis advert or counting your pennies for McDonald's festive treats, we're all prey to the season of commercialism. Alfie Lovett talks us through the Christmas TV advertising bonanza.
From early October, big brands and shops started rolling out their Christmas adverts like it was December already. While I find ad breaks between shows intensely irritating and boring, apparently many people out there love them; in fact, some people watch them for fun! So here is my round up of the best Christmas adverts, for all those advert fans out there who huddled at their computer screen waiting excitedly for the premier of the John Lewis Christmas advert. Whether you love the Christmas ads, or you dislike them (like myself) read on for my comical, not-so-serious take on them.
Woodies: everyone’s favourite DIY store. It stars a loveable, elderly woman named Mrs Higgins. Frequently, she struggles to leave her house due to her broken gate, so it is fixed by her friendly neighbour. However, did her neighbour sanitise before putting his dirty hands all over the gate to fix it? No! Poor Mrs Higgins was put at risk of contracting Covid-19, as a result. Anyway, she should be staying inside and shielding! Despite this, the advert carries an important message for this Christmas: the importance of being kind. So, go and find your neighbourhood’s Mrs Higgins, or anyone in your area, and do something kind - the result will be heart-warming.
Tesco is leading a ‘No Naughty List’ campaign, with the aim to convince Brits to purchase more from Tesco (and for many of us, this means not even entering the store but shopping online instead). No matter where you shop, whether that’s Waitrose or Aldi, the message this advert brings is important. Show yourself some love this Christmas - it has been a tough year, after all. On a less serious note, the mystery of panic buying has finally been solved: it was Tesco! They bought hundreds of loo rolls just to go in their Christmas advert - and they had the cheek to blame it on consumers! Ever wondered why the Tesco staff are always standing near the toiletries aisle with a rather large bag? Well, now we know! They were taking advantage of the absence of a naughty list by stealing loo rolls to make a giant snowman!
John Lewis and Waitrose weren’t sure if they would make their Christmas advert; they said they felt it might not be right to make an advert this year – this considerate comment didn’t stop them from making one! It is meant to be two minutes of emotive advertising, but I spotted some noticed something strange happening: a man is spying on his lonely neighbour across the street! But he can spy if he wants to because Tesco have taken away this year’s naughty list! After, the man’s next action is something we should all undertake this Christmas: he put a smile on his sad neighbour’s face. Showing everyone some love is very important this year and as we move forward.
McDonald’s’ Christmas advert portrays how their Drive-Thru can make teenagers feel the Christmas spirit. In this advert, I think I spotted the mum’s hidden motive: we see her eyes light up when her son brings her the bag of Reindeer Treats, and whilst we are led to believe this shows she is pleased that her son has found his Christmas spirit, I think she could also secretly be partly happy because she now has an excuse to eat all the carrots! This advert highlights how we can get caught up in daily routines, leading us to forget the things that are most important in life. It is important that we remember to have fun, find moments in the day to relax, and enjoy ourselves.
I hope you enjoyed my highlights of the main Christmas adverts of 2020. If you are someone who follows adverts more closely than the government’s Covid-19 guidance, I’m sure there will be some exciting Easter adverts released by the end of January!
Links to the adverts mentioned:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cAzAf6s3ic - Woodies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CfrpexaCwg - Tesco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juv2c0xgGno - John Lewis and Waitrose
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJntbYytPz8 - McDonalds
By Alfie Lovett, Year 10
From early October, big brands and shops started rolling out their Christmas adverts like it was December already. While I find ad breaks between shows intensely irritating and boring, apparently many people out there love them; in fact, some people watch them for fun! So here is my round up of the best Christmas adverts, for all those advert fans out there who huddled at their computer screen waiting excitedly for the premier of the John Lewis Christmas advert. Whether you love the Christmas ads, or you dislike them (like myself) read on for my comical, not-so-serious take on them.
Woodies: everyone’s favourite DIY store. It stars a loveable, elderly woman named Mrs Higgins. Frequently, she struggles to leave her house due to her broken gate, so it is fixed by her friendly neighbour. However, did her neighbour sanitise before putting his dirty hands all over the gate to fix it? No! Poor Mrs Higgins was put at risk of contracting Covid-19, as a result. Anyway, she should be staying inside and shielding! Despite this, the advert carries an important message for this Christmas: the importance of being kind. So, go and find your neighbourhood’s Mrs Higgins, or anyone in your area, and do something kind - the result will be heart-warming.
Tesco is leading a ‘No Naughty List’ campaign, with the aim to convince Brits to purchase more from Tesco (and for many of us, this means not even entering the store but shopping online instead). No matter where you shop, whether that’s Waitrose or Aldi, the message this advert brings is important. Show yourself some love this Christmas - it has been a tough year, after all. On a less serious note, the mystery of panic buying has finally been solved: it was Tesco! They bought hundreds of loo rolls just to go in their Christmas advert - and they had the cheek to blame it on consumers! Ever wondered why the Tesco staff are always standing near the toiletries aisle with a rather large bag? Well, now we know! They were taking advantage of the absence of a naughty list by stealing loo rolls to make a giant snowman!
John Lewis and Waitrose weren’t sure if they would make their Christmas advert; they said they felt it might not be right to make an advert this year – this considerate comment didn’t stop them from making one! It is meant to be two minutes of emotive advertising, but I spotted some noticed something strange happening: a man is spying on his lonely neighbour across the street! But he can spy if he wants to because Tesco have taken away this year’s naughty list! After, the man’s next action is something we should all undertake this Christmas: he put a smile on his sad neighbour’s face. Showing everyone some love is very important this year and as we move forward.
McDonald’s’ Christmas advert portrays how their Drive-Thru can make teenagers feel the Christmas spirit. In this advert, I think I spotted the mum’s hidden motive: we see her eyes light up when her son brings her the bag of Reindeer Treats, and whilst we are led to believe this shows she is pleased that her son has found his Christmas spirit, I think she could also secretly be partly happy because she now has an excuse to eat all the carrots! This advert highlights how we can get caught up in daily routines, leading us to forget the things that are most important in life. It is important that we remember to have fun, find moments in the day to relax, and enjoy ourselves.
I hope you enjoyed my highlights of the main Christmas adverts of 2020. If you are someone who follows adverts more closely than the government’s Covid-19 guidance, I’m sure there will be some exciting Easter adverts released by the end of January!
Links to the adverts mentioned:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cAzAf6s3ic - Woodies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CfrpexaCwg - Tesco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juv2c0xgGno - John Lewis and Waitrose
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJntbYytPz8 - McDonalds
By Alfie Lovett, Year 10