For its 2021 Christmas spot, John Lewis appropriately focuses on the little things that matter after a rather depressing Christmas 2020. The ad was created by adam&eveDDB and directed by Mark Molloy. 

Since the traumatic events of March 2020 and onward, John Lewis moved away from its traditional mascot focused Christmas spots last year and continues to do so for 2021. Unexpected Guest takes viewers on a Christmas journey through the eyes of a boy called Nathan and a young space traveller called Skye.

While the mascot theme is no more, the department store has stayed true to its yearly tradition of playing a rather cheesy cover track over its Christmas spots. Previous years have seen Ellie Goudling covering an Elton John song and a Lily Allen rendition of ‘Somewhere Only We Know’. This year sees a rather unknown London-based singer-songwriter Lola Young take on 80s classic Together in Electric Dreams by the Human League’s Philip Oakey and composer Giorgio Moroder.

John Lewis has also made headlines recently with its home insurance ad causing controversy after featuring a little boy in a dress dancing to Stevie Nicks. The spot was charmingly inclusive and celebrated the beauty of childhood joy unrestricted by gender binaries. Unfortunately, it was considered to be too ‘woke’ by some and was subsequently pulled after the Financial Conduct Authority found it to be “potentially misleading” with regards to the brand’s home insurance offering.