John Lewis has unveiled its Christmas advert for 2026, casting Kristin Scott Thomas as a grandmother searching for presents for her grandchildren, with a toy dog called Pickles urging her on. The retailer said it had increased its spend on the festive campaign, its 20th, and was trying to grab shoppers’ attention before the Black Friday discount period later this month.
Scott Thomas, known for playing upper-crust characters in films such as Four Weddings and a Funeral and the Apple TV show Slow Horses, plays Gloria, a grandmother looking for gift inspiration for her grandchildren, Freddie and Maggie. Pickles, voiced by the comedian Paul Whitehouse, challenges her to "do better than cash". After rejecting options in other shops, she travels by tuk-tuk to John Lewis, where she buys disco balls and fairy lights to create a "gran cave" in which to hang out with her grandchildren. The tagline is "don't give up on giving".
The advert is the 20th version of John Lewis's Christmas ad; its first big-budget festive TV ad launched in 2007. It is now considered a national moment which invites social media comment and skits. This year's was created by the Saatchi & Saatchi agency and returns to the formula of using a cute character, after two years foregrounding other family relationships, with the twist of focusing on the relationship between Pickles and a grandmother rather than cute children.
Rosie Hanley, the marketing director of John Lewis, said production costs had risen and the company wanted to “push the boat out” for its 20th year. She said it was confident it would see “a really strong return on our investment”. Hanley said the company had wanted the ad “to be more joyful” this year because “things are tough for lots of families”, and that spending on Christmas-related gear at John Lewis was already up on last year despite concerns among British households about higher energy bills and housing costs.
John Lewis said the ad was inspired by research showing that 52% of grandparents give cash as presents because they do not know what to buy. "People want to give thoughtful gifts but can often lack confidence, so resort to giving cash," Hanley said.
The three-minute film launches on social media on Tuesday morning, including on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, before a 60-second version airs for the first time on TV in the ad breaks for ITV's Coronation Street and Channel 4's The Great British Bake Off on Tuesday evening. It is set to a Sam Fender version of the Rolling Stones song You Can't Always Get What You Want, featuring the choir from the John Spence community high school, which Fender previously attended, and the Easington Colliery Band; the track will be released on vinyl later this month, with proceeds going to Action For Children.
Products in the film span price brackets, including the £12.99 Fisher-Price pull-along toy dog and a £255 Weekend Max Mara top and matching £290 skirt worn by Gloria. Pickles is based on Fisher-Price's Little Snoopy pull-along toy, which is celebrating its 60th year. John Lewis will also erect a giant Christmas tree outside its store on London's Oxford Street to mark the recent pedestrianisation of the road, and said visitor numbers at the store last week were up by more than a fifth on the same week last year.
The launch comes after festive ads from most of the big supermarkets kicked off last weekend. Total ad spending across the festive period is set to reach £14bn, up 8.2% year-on-year, according to the annual review by the Advertising Association and research group WARC, led by an 18.5% year-on-year surge in social media spend, while total TV spending is expected to be up by 1.6%.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The advert is John Lewis's 20th Christmas campaign and its biggest annual marketing moment, so how it lands is a marker of whether the retailer can convert attention into sales during the Black Friday and Christmas trading period.
- Industry figures put total festive ad spending at £14bn, up 8.2% year-on-year, with social media spend the fastest-growing part, which shows where retailers expect shoppers to be looking.
- For shoppers, the campaign doubles as a showcase of products across price ranges, from a £12.99 toy to garments costing hundreds of pounds.
Background
John Lewis is a British department store chain, and its Christmas television advert has become an annual fixture of the UK festive season, discussed and parodied on social media. The first big-budget festive TV ad launched in 2007, and the company has since built each year's film around a soundtrack cover and, often, a cute central character. This year's returns to that formula after two years focused on other family relationships, and is the 20th version of the campaign.
What to Watch
- Whether the ad translates into store and online visits before Black Friday later this month, the period Hanley identified as the target.
- Sales of the featured products, including the £12.99 Fisher-Price pull-along toy dog, and takings from the vinyl release supporting Action For Children.
- Footfall on Oxford Street, where John Lewis is erecting a giant Christmas tree following the road's recent pedestrianisation, after the company reported visitor numbers up by more than a fifth last week on the year before.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedJohn Lewis’s Christmas ad casts Kristin Scott Thomas as a grandmother searching for gifts.Business | The Guardian: “Kristin Scott Thomas ... is cast as Gloria, a grandmother searching for gift inspiration”
- Not in the sourcesThe advert is for 2026.Business | The Guardian: “this year’s festive ad”
- SupportedPickles challenges Gloria to “do better than cash”.Business | The Guardian: “Pickles, voiced by the comedian Paul Whitehouse, challenging Gloria to “do better than cash””
- SupportedJohn Lewis increased spending on the festive ad for its 20th year.Business | The Guardian: “the retailer had increased its spend on this year’s festive ad as the cost of production had risen and it wanted to “push the boat out” for its 20th year.”
- SupportedJohn Lewis was trying to attract shoppers before the Black Friday discount period later that month.Business | The Guardian: “as it tries to grab shoppers’ attention before the Black Friday discount period later this month.”
- SupportedHanley said the company expected “a really strong return on our investment”.Business | The Guardian: “she said the company was confident it would see “a really strong return on our investment””
- SupportedHanley said the ad was intended to be more joyful because things were tough for many families.Business | The Guardian: “She said the company had wanted the ad “to be more joyful” this year because “things are tough for lots of families”.”
- SupportedJohn Lewis said research found that 52% of grandparents give cash because they do not know what to buy.Business | The Guardian: “John Lewis said the ad was inspired by research showing that 52% of grandparents give cash as presents because they don’t know what to buy.”
- SupportedThe ad’s tagline is “don't give up on giving”.Business | The Guardian: “with the tagline “don’t give up on giving”.”
- SupportedA three-minute version was due to launch on social media Tuesday morning, followed by a 60-second TV version Tuesday evening.Business | The Guardian: “The three-minute ad will launch on social media on Tuesday morning, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, before a 60-second version airs for the first time on TV ... on Tuesday evening.”
- SupportedThe ad is the 20th version, and John Lewis’s first big-budget festive TV ad launched in 2007.Business | The Guardian: “In the 20th version of its blockbuster Christmas ad”
- SupportedFestive-period ad spending is forecast to reach £14bn, up 8.2% year on year.Business | The Guardian: “Total ad spending across the festive period is set to reach £14bn, up 8.2% year-on-year”