The anticipation for the 2016 John Lewis 2016 Christmas advert is hotting up. A lot of people expected that it would launch on the first Friday of November (the 4th) but the date passed by without so much as a teaser. Now, experts are saying it will launch on Thursday the 10th of November and just today (the 7th), a mysterious Twitter account appeared, posting a 10-second teaser clip of a dog with the hashtag #BounceBounce, prompting many excited social media users to point to the retailer. Over the years, John Lewis has gone from using simple anti-consumer adverts to breaking the budget by spending millions on full campaigns. Let’s take a look at 2007-2015.

2007: Shadows



After taking a three-year break from television advertising, John Lewis returned to our screens with their festive ‘shadows’ campaign, featuring presents in the shape of a woman and a dog in the snow. The message of the advert was that John Lewis can help you find the perfect present for anyone. The advert didn’t use the now-traditional slowed down cover version of a classic song, instead opting for Morning Serenade from Romeo and Juliet.

2008: From Me to You



With John Lewis still focusing on anti-consumerism messages, this advert featured many different people and their ideal gifts, with the strapline “If you know the person, you’ll find the present”. It was the first advert to feature the slowed-down cover version, with a group of John Lewis employees recording a version of the Beatles From Me to You. The song was available to download for free from the John Lewis website.

2009: Sweet Child O’Mine



2009 was the year that the current advertising agency, Adam and Eve, produced their first campaign. The advert featured children opening gifts intended for adults such as slippers, a coffee machine and a laptop, with the final scene culminating in a girl becoming a woman. The advert was also the first to reintroduce the ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ tagline that John Lewis has been using since it first opened. The song featured was a cover of Guns n Roses Sweet Child O’Mine by Tall Trees, and it was the first John Lewis song to be released as a single, reaching number 23 on the official chart.

2010: A Tribute to Givers



2010’s campaign centred around people preparing gifts for their loved ones. Parents carried a rocking chair up the stairs whilst their children watched TV and a little boy took a stocking to his dog’s kennel. The latter scene prompted complaints from animal rights activists with some complaining that the dog was left outside in the cold whilst the boy got to go inside. The song in the advert was a cover of Elton John’s Your Song, sung by Ellie Goulding. It reached number two in the charts.

2011: The Long Wait

The Long Wait touched the hearts of viewers when it featured a little boy impatiently counting down the days to Christmas. However, instead of being excited about what he was receiving, he was excited to give his parents their present. The song featured was a cover of the Smiths Please Please Let Me Get What I Want, sung by Slow Moving Millie. The campaign was the most successful yet for the retailer, with over five million views on YouTube and a sales increase of 9.3%.

2012: The Journey

The 2012 campaign featured a snowman crossing mountains, rivers and fields to get a gift for his snowwoman lover. The advert featured a cover of Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s The Power of Love, sung by Gabrielle Aplin and the song became the first John Lewis song to hit number one on the charts. Once again, it was incredibly successful for the retailer, with an increase in sales of 44% and over £800 million in online sales. When the advert was released, a picture book of the story followed.

2013: The Bear and the Hare



This epic Disney-style advert was first teased during a showing of Agatha Christie’s Poirot, where a 10-second clip was played on TV with the hashtag #SleepingBear. The full advert was two minutes long and it told the story of a bear hibernating until a hare wakes him up to see Christmas. The accompanying song was a cover of Keane’s Somewhere Only We Know, sung by Lily Allen and it reached the top of the charts just as Gabrielle Aplin’s song did the year before. A portion of the profits from the song went to Save the Children in aid of the Philippine Typhoon campaign.

2014: Monty the Penguin

2014’s advert had the message of ‘giving someone the Christmas they have always wished for’ and this was the case for little Sam and his friend Monty the Penguin. As Christmas draws closer, Sam notices Monty looking increasingly sad and he finds him a penguin partner in Mabel. It’s only at the end of the advert that we discover the penguins are only toys (and at this point practically everyone burst into tears). The song was a cover of John Lennon’s Real Love, sung by Tom Odell and it reached number seven in the charts. The campaign really evoked the magic of make believe and an extensive range of merchandise with toy penguins and clothing followed.

2015: Man on the Moon

The Man on the Moon campaign tells the story of a young girl trying to make friends with a lonely old man who lives on the moon. It’s only when she sends him a telescope that he sees Earth for the first time. The campaign was launched in partnership with Age UK and it aimed to spread the message of showing someone that they are loved. It cost £7 million to make and featured a cover of Oasis’ Half the World Away by a Norwegian singer, Aurora. The song reached number 11 in the charts.

And whilst you’re getting excited for the 2016 Christmas advert (or, if you’re like me, gathering the tissues if the rumours of it featuring a dog are true) please do spare a thought for the kindest and most patient man on Twitter, @JohnLewis, for whom it is the busiest time of year. However, this year he seems to be actually looking forward to it! Merry Christmas, John.