The festive season is officially here, and the brands have pulled out all the stops. From John Lewis’s rogue toy dog to Sainsbury’s giant BFG delivery, we’ve rounded up the standout Christmas commercials of 2026.

Scroll down to watch the best of the best (and the rest), and stick around for our definitive Stack Rank at the end to see exactly which brand takes the crown for buzz, quality, and overall festive cheer.

The Ads 🧑‍🎄 🎅

John Lewis - “Gloria and Pickles”

Gloria, an anxious grandmother who usually gives cash, is jolted into action by her childhood toy dog Pickles, who comes to life and drags her on a last‑minute mission that inspires her to create a surprise “Gran Cave” experience gift for her grandkids instead of money.

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄 (out of 5)

What Do You Think?

Tesco - “The Wrong Address”

A misdelivered Tesco order ends up at the wrong address, leading two estranged old school friends to reconnect as one helps the other pull together their Christmas, turning a delivery mishap into a second chance at friendship.

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Argos - “Tales of Argos Past”

A Scrooge‑like character guided by Richard Ayoade is shown his “Argos past” and all the ways the catalogue has been part of his life, realising Argos is much more than just toys and rediscovering the joy of Christmas gifting.

The Score: 🎄🎄

Very - That’s The Very Thing

We follow a series of people juggling the chaos of festive prep presents, decorations, last‑minute panics showing how Very helps them get everything sorted so they can actually enjoy Christmas together.

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄

Sainsburys - Big Delivery

The BFG is ill and thinks he’ll miss Christmas, so supermarket colleague Annie undertakes a wild, perilous delivery drive through Giant Country dodging monsters and mayhem to bring him a full festive feast so “nobody should miss Christmas.”

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Lidl GB - Christmas Everybody

Different everyday people and communities come together around Lidl food and drink, showing that whatever your background or celebration style, there’s an affordable Lidl way to make Christmas special for “everybody.”

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄

Debenhams - For Everyone

In a small village, a woman (Emily Atack) preparing a Christmas party keeps bumping into the “one that got away” as various residents cross paths, with Debenhams gifts and fashion weaving through a slow‑burn, romcom‑style reunion story.

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Asda - All Of Christmas

Christmas explodes into life at Asda with a high‑energy montage of families and friends grabbing decorations, food and party gear as prices “go BOOM,” positioning Asda as the place to get “all of Christmas at Asda Price.”

The Score: 🎄🎄🎄

Have Your Say Who Won, Who Lost?

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The Quick Ads Breakdown

I see 3 big underlying patterns cutting across all of these ads:

“Christmas as emotional repair”
- Every film uses Christmas as the moment something broken gets fixed:
  - Distance or awkwardness between generations (John Lewis, Debenhams).
  - Drifted friendships or loneliness (Tesco, Sainsbury’s BFG, Debenhams).
  - Cynicism or jadedness about gifting or value (Argos, Lidl, Asda, Very).
- The core promise: Christmas (via this brand) repairs disconnection, whether emotional, social, or financial.
Brand-as-enabler of the nearly “perfect” Christmas system
- Each ad positions the retailer as the invisible infrastructure that makes the desired Christmas possible:
  - Delivery / convenience as plot engine (Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Very, Argos click‑and‑collect implied).
  - Range and value as enablers of “everyone can join in” (Lidl, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Debenhams).
  - Thoughtful, curated selection as emotional amplifier (John Lewis, Debenhams, Sainsbury’s).
- Underneath these stories, they’re all selling the same thing: “we de‑risk your Christmas so you get the emotional payoff.”
One signature creative lever repeated in different flavours
- They all deploy a primary creative lever to cut through, but the pattern is the same:
  - Nostalgic or iconic IP/characters (John Lewis toy dog + JL legacy formula, Sainsbury’s BFG, Argos catalogue/Scrooge, Debenhams romcom tropes).
  - Music and sound as the emotional shortcut (Sam Fender cover for JL, big anthems for Asda, warm soundbeds for Tesco/Debenhams).
  - Familiar comic archetypes of “the stressed modern Christmas” (Very, Lidl, Asda, some Tesco moments).
- Different executions but the same mechanics: take a recognisable cultural hook and attach the brand to it so it earns attention fast.

The Stack Rank

Here is a quick breakdown of the brand by:

Theme strength
Create quality
Engagement & buzz
Views (from day 1 of release)
Sentiment
Total Score

Thanks for reading

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