It’s that time of year again!… Our TV screens have been taken over by Christmas adverts, as they tap into our emotions and excitement through the festive season. Over the past decade, brands had competed against each other to put out the best Christmas advert of the year. Over the years, John Lewis has been setting the bar, but other brands such as Aldi with their cute carrots have been pushing to become the years favourite as we sit on the sofa with a sip of mulled wine and a mince pie.
Ad campaigns anytime of year aim to tap into our emotions, as well as promoting campaigns that use the best tactics of content marketing to get us spending.
Christmas is a unique time of year for adverts, we really get invested emotionally and get excited about these festive adverts hitting our screens each year
So Entertainment Swindon team have sat back in front of YouTube to go through all of this years festive adverts, ranking them from favourite, to least favourite and giving a score out of 10. Let us know what you think and comment below.
Asda – 10/10
We loved Asdas 2024 Christmas advert!… As soon as the A-Team theme tune kicked in, it certainly had our editor grinning from ear to ear!
It has nostalgia, it has fun and comedy, with a fantastic mix of animation and live action. Asda really have lived up to the theme of this years advert ‘Go Big or Go Gnome’.
A fun quirky advert where an army of gnomes led by five pint-sized heroes Max, Gnibbles, Gnorma, Gnicky and Gnarla as they set about saving the snowed in store.
The ad features Asda store colleagues Maggie and Bill activating the garden gnome’s, who spring to life and begin decking out the store with Asda’s 540-strong festive range, including Exceptional mince pies, a gingerbread gnome and a sparkling George sequin dress.
Amazon – 9/10
Amazon’s festive advert is only pipped to the post by Asda’s gnomes… Amazon’s Christmas ad for 2024 shows the joyful impact of everyday acts of kindness, set to the 1965 classic “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” Amazon’s 2024 Christmas ad shows how heartfelt gestures and gifts can have a profound impact.
The heartwarming ad, tells the story of a theatre janitor whose hidden vocal talent is discovered and celebrated by his colleagues during his daily shift. A wonderful, heartwarming advert that fills you with joy.
M&S Food – 9/10
Dawn French is on top form in M&S Food’s Christmas advert, follow Dawn feeling overwhelmed, trudging home through the snow.
Finally sat at home in her cosy checked PJ’s, she enlists the help of a fairy Christmas decoration from her box of baubles – also voiced by Dawn.
With a wave of her wand, the table is laid with a tasty selection of M&S’ festive food before she is also transformed into a glam evening look. With Dawn’s trademark funny facial expressions and sarcastic comments, before dancing around with her guests, the ad has a real flavour of fun. It’s perhaps a welcome respite from the tearjerker ads of Christmas past, which were designed to have viewers bawling rather than laughing. Will the other brands follow suit this year?
John Lewis – 8/10
Has John Lewis dropped the Ball Ball?… Well, they have certainly dropped tradition and gone with an advert with the store front and centre rather than our usual festive mini-movie treat.
Lidl – 8/10
A magical Christmas with Lidl, promoting their ‘Gift a Toy to Lidl Toy Bank’ campaign showing the true spirit of giving at Christmas, a simple advert, no thrills or trimmings, no high budget animation, just a message that truly says Christmas.
Aldi – 8/10
It’s that time of year again! The Aldi Christmas advert has pulled out all the stops with another helping of the loveable Kevin the Carrot, back for a ninth year. This Christmas we see Kevin saving Christmas from the evil ‘Humbugs’ with his wife Katie.
Watch out for the ‘booby traps’, one of the cheeky moments in the advert which will go over the heads of the kids and make the adults in the room chuckle. There are a few of this years Christmas adverts that could easily be number one this year and Aldi is one of them.
Jemma Townsend, marketing director at Aldi UK, said: “Would it even be Christmas without Kevin the Carrot on our screens? We’re delighted to bring back everyone’s favourite carrot for a ninth year to help the nation get into the Christmas spirit.”
Kevin the Carrot merchandise such as festive decorations, plushies and plastic toys from Aldi has sold out multiple times over the years due to high demand.
Sainsburys – 8/10
Sainsbury’s Christmas advert has now landed and Roald Dahl’s loveable character – the BFG – takes a lead role as he heads to the supermarket to do his shopping
This year, the Sainsbury’s Christmas ad features the beloved Roald Dahl character the BFG, who enlists the help of a real Sainsbury’s food services assistant, who plays Sophie in the advert, to source his Christmas dinner.
For BFG fans new and old, especially those of us GenX, this will just fill you with fuzzy memories of childhood. A wonderful festive advert to put a smile on your face.
M&S Clothing – 8/10
Discover the magical M&S Clothing & Home Christmas advert, featuring rising star Skylar Blue from Britain’s Got Talent and directed by Emmy-nominated Elliot Power.
A visual spectacle showcasing the very finest of M&S partywear, decorations, gifting and homeware for the festive season.
The advert celebrates the transformative effect that Christmas has over us, and is set to bring joy, inspiration and style to all, making the run up to Christmas day feel just as magical as the day itself.
Argos – 6/10
Argos have launched their 2024 Christmas advert featuring Connie The Doll & Trevor the Dinosaur for this fun advert that will get you jumping up and playing air guitar in this festive fun and magical advert.
“At Argos, whatever your loved ones are dreaming of this Christmas, we’ve got it covered. Whether it’s the latest and best in sound and tech, or the top toys of the season”. Michael Gracey, Director, said: “Bringing this unique Christmas story to life for Argos was a joy, merging Trev’s rockstar vision with Connie’s warmth to capture our collective desire for the perfect gift.”
Boots – 5/10
Boots have unveiled their new festive advert starring Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh as Mrs Claus, while she overseas her Christmas ‘werkshop’ with a few famous helpers.
The Bridgerton star is seen hard at work preparing a variety of glam gifts with popular TikTok influencers @soph and @snatchedbywill.
Titled the ‘Christmas Makeover’, Boots provides a sneak peak as Mrs Claus and her esteemed warehouse workers gear up to provide beauty gifts for everyone, at every price point.
Among them include 55 newly launched beauty brands within the last year, as well as 46 seasonal gifting brands for Christmas 2024, such as setting sprays, eyeshadow palettes and lipstick by brands like E.l.f Cosmetics and No. 7.
Morrisons – 5/10
Singing oven gloves belting out Bugsy Malone classic You Give A Little Love… This fun chirpy festive advert is one of our adverts on the list undeserving of its low score, its a really fun advert that you find yourself singing along to, as you enjoy the singing oven gloves.
Morrison’s Christmas campaign this year is entitled ‘The Greatest Show at Home’ has recruited the talent of Michael Gracey, who is also behind the 2017 hit movie ‘The Greatest Showman’ to direct the soundtrack for this years advert.
This years advert, in true musical theatre style showcases the supermarkets finest festive produce and food experts can offer a helping hand to relieve our kitchens of stress across the country, serenaded by a choir of oven gloves.
Waitrose – 4/10
Christmas with an Agatha Christie who done it twist… Who has taken the the desert from the fridge?… They’ve all got good alibis, but someone’s not telling the truth. Who could it be? Can you crack the case?
Waitrose has released it’s Christmas advert. A ‘whodunnit’ featuring an all-star cast including Matthew Macfayden it channels Agatha Christie in a very memorable way. This advert which is actually part one of a two part festive whodunnit has left a cliffhanger, can you work out who is the guilty party before the mystery will be resolved?
Tesco – 4/10
Undeserving 4/10, but there are jut better adverts out there… It does have the makings of a great pulling on the heartstrings nostalgic advert remembering those loved ones that are no longer here, but the advert just drags on too long leaving you to switch off or fast-forward to the program you are watching. A great advert lost in editing, or lack of. An advert that could easily have been a heartfelt 7/10.
Matalan – 3/10
Fashion and homeware retailer Matalan has unveiled its 2024 Christmas campaign, which aims to honour its customers as everyday family heroes.
The brand’s festive advert, devised by creative agency McCann Manchester, celebrates the reality of familiar family moments and sits under the retailer’s recently launched ‘We get it, we’ve got you’ brand platform.
A fun advert that highlights how much we all put into that one day of the year, that everyone can all relate to the Melling’s where the realities of getting everyone picture perfect at Christmas time are the parts that don’t make it to Instagram! But at Matalan we get it and we’ve got our customers during this fun but hectic season.
John Lewis -3/10
John Lewis is normally found at the very top of the food chain when it comes to Christmas adverts, but this albeit heartwarming gifting campaign advert just doesn’t stack up against the wonderful festive adverts that have already been released this year and why for us, this advert is way down the list. But fear not!… This is not the official John Lewis Christmas advert. John Lewis who normally release their advert on 9th November each year will be releasing their official Christmas advert on 14th November, so we might just have to adjust our list, will John Lewis top our list? You will just have to come back to see…
Greggs – 1/10
Our final festive advert on our list…. Its festive, its like Ronseal, it does exactly what it says on the tin, but doesn’t really do it for us! Sorry Greggs… We will still be in for our Greggs Sausage Rolls though, just not the vegan ones lol.
Entertainment Swindon 
Leave a comment