Christmas is almost upon us, and nothing says it better than the arrival of adverts on our TV screens.
Whether they’re comical, tearjerkers, or just plain daft – the greatest Christmas adverts have a special place in the nation’s heart. We’re celebrating that this festive season with a jolly ranking of our favourite Christmas adverts over the years.
There’s been plenty of competition from big contenders such as John Lewis, Sainsbury’s and M & S in the last few decades. Who will bag that top spot on our list? Read out countdown!
10. Asda, Elf (2022)
In 2022, Asda did an excellent job of repackaging clips from the hit Christmas film Elf to make it look as though Will Ferrell’s Buddy was actually mostly interested in discounts at Asda instead of his missing father. For fans of the nostalgic Christmas movie, it was a class act. And even Will Ferrell got on board and commented on how well they did it.
9. Robert Dyas, We’re Robert Dyas and we’re gay. And straight. And bi. (2015)
Not the most beautiful or expensive Christmas advert to feature in this list, but definitely the funniest. Hardware store Robert Dyas confused Britain with this bizarre Christmas advert in 2015, later revealed to be a parody of a panned American furniture store advert from 2009. It still elicits a chuckle to this day, and continues to make the rounds on social media every Christmas. In a Christmas advert landscape dominated by sentimentality, sometimes we just want a laugh.
8. Coca-Cola, Holidays are Coming (1995)
This is the classic Christmas advert. We’re hard-pressed to find someone who can resist feeling a little Christmas cheer when they hear the iconic ‘Holidays are coming…’. For kids (and adults) everywhere, this advert signalled the start of the Christmas period. Of course, you can’t be ahead of your time without attracting criticism, and Coca-Cola did face the wrath of those against the commercialisation of Christmas.
7. H&M, Come Together (2016)
Clothing retailer H&M pulled out all the stops in 2016 when they hired Hollywood heavyweight Wes Anderson to direct their Christmas ad. As expected, it’s dripping with Anderson’s typical sophisticated and stylish production values, and just lovely to watch. Oscar-winner Adrian Brody has some fun as a train conductor (aboard a Snowpiercer-esque carriage) who plans a Christmas party on board his train. It hits all the sentimentality marks, while being engaging, well-characterised and visually beautiful.
6. Allegro, English for Beginners (2016)
The only non-British ad on this list, but here for good reason. Polish e-commerce platform Allegro released this touching advert in 2016, which saw a Polish grandfather spending all his spare time learning English via online learning. At the end, it’s revealed he’s visiting his son in London for Christmas and wants to introduce himself to his toddler granddaughter for the first time. Heartwarming stuff.
5. Boots, Special Because (2014)
Boots’ 2014 Christmas advert paid homage to the heroes of the NHS, working all hours over the festive period. It packed an emotional punch long before the days of the pandemic and clapping outside houses. Acknowledging those who work over Christmas, as well as their families and loved ones, was a classy move from Boots that will always surely bring a tear to the eye.
4. M&S, Mrs Claus (2016)
Why should Christmas be all about one man travelling the globe delivering presents? His wife could arguably do just as good a job. This seems to be the premise of M&S’s 2016 ad and it was delivered well. Directed by Tom Hooper, who also directed Les Miserables and – less memorably – Cats, Mrs Claus tells the story of Santa’s loving wife, who delivers her own very special dose of magic on Christmas Day. One of our favourite moments is Mrs Claus arriving for duty. Who needs a reindeer-drawn carriage when you’ve got a stylish red helicopter?
3. From Our Family To Yours, Disney (2020)
Disney became a surprise late entrant to the Christmas advert game in 2020, when they premiered the first of a trilogy of family adverts animated in their classic style. As one might expect with Disney, given this is their main job, they started strong. The first, and arguably their most hard-hitting, features a Filipina grandmother and her granddaughter Nicole (the star of later adverts).
2. John Lewis, The Long Wait (2011)
Honestly, this list could quite easily be the ’10 greatest John Lewis ads of all time’ and strong efforts were made to avoid John Lewis dominating. There’s no denying that John Lewis are champions of the Christmas commercial, becoming more famous for this than their ‘never knowingly undersold’ policy (which was then dropped in 2022). For us, however, it was 2011’s The Long Wait that really cemented their status as Christmas advert kings. Set beautifully to Slow Moving Millie’s cover of The Smiths classic Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want, the ad shows a young boy counting down the days to Christmas, only to wake up on the day itself, ignore his pile of presents and surprise his parents in bed with a present of his own. Tearjerker stuff.
1. Sainsbury’s, 1914 (2014)
In 2014, Sainsbury’s made their first serious play for the Christmas advert crown with a spectacular effort made in partnership with The Royal British Legion. Commemorating the moment a century prior, when rival British and German soldiers celebrated Christmas together with a game of football, it hit all the right sentimentality buttons and worthily claims top spot on this list.
Do you agree with our ranking of the greatest Christmas adverts? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think of this story.