Christmas adverts 2023: all the festive TV films released so far including M&S, Waitrose and Asda
CHRISTMAS is fast approaching and festive adverts have started making their way to our TV screens.
More than half a dozen Christmas adverts have already been released with tons of retailers hinting more are to come.
M&S took things in a different direction this year with their ad starring Hannah Waddingham and Sophie Ellis Bextor, offering a different take on festive celebrations.
We had Dawn French return as her role of the Christmas fair in the M&S Christmas food advert but A-list stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney also appeared as cheeky mittons.
Lidl chose to use its Christmas advert to highlight a good cause this season launching it with a Toy collection campaign and fans say they much prefer it to the M&S Christmas Ad.
Boots says it will donate 100,000 hygiene products to its Christmas charity partner, The Hygiene Bank.
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Its Christmas ad features the heartwarming story of a young girl's journey to the North Pole.
The Waitrose Christmas ad this year stars talk show host Graham Norton in a series of Christmas moments that viewers will be able to relate to.
Asda's Christmas advert features global superstar Michael Bublé and Aldi has brought back Kevin the carrot.
But that's not all we've summarised all the Christmas adverts so far from, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Aldi and Shelter.
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So grab a festive drink while you enjoy our Christmas ad wrap-up.
Shelter
Shelter released a heart-wrenching Christmas advert this year revealing the stark realities faced by children in England right now.
The 90-second film, entitled 'Good As Gold' follows Maddy, played by eight-year-old Tilly Walker.
The film is set to the iconic 1986 Higher Love soundtrack by Steve Winwood.
At first, we see Maddy being as "good as gold" in the hope of being rewarded with the one thing she wants the most for Christmas - a home.
But the end is far from merry as it's revealed that Maddy is left living a nightmare stuck in temporary accommodation.
You'll find the full ad here.
Waitrose
On a happier note, the new Waitrose Christmas advert stars British chat show host Graham Norton.
The 90-second advert is a celebration of the "Good Stuff" highlighting the festive food and drink Waitrose has on offer this year.
A series of mishaps occur at a Christmas party throughout the clip but no one notices because the food is just that good.
The soundtrack for the advert is the party anthem Just Can’t Get Enough from Depeche Mode while Graham Norton covers the voiceover.
You can watch the full ad here.
Sainsbury's
The Sainbury's Christmas ad focuses on the topic of one very important question about Santa.
A sweet-looking young girl hops up to the tannoy to ask Sainsurys her question.
As soon as she mentions Santa, shoppers are left stunned, worrying that she will ask if Santa exists.
Thankfully the little girl wants to know what Santa has for his Christmas dinner and a flurry of Sainsbury’s colleagues are more than happy to recommend what they have in stores.
Check out watch the full ad here.
Morrisons
The soundtrack is the star of the show in the Morrisons Christmas ad.
Families are seen preparing food for Christmas Day, supported and serenaded by their favourite oven gloves.
Viewers see a range of oven gloves mouthing the words to a rendition of American rock band Starship’s classic power ballad Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now.
The advert airs on Monday, November 6 during ITV's Coronation Street if you want to have a watch.
You can watch the full ad here.
M&S
M&S's Christmas advert stars Ted Lasso actress Hannah Waddingham among other famous faces including Fresh Meat's Zawe Ashton, and Murder on the Dancefloor singer Sophie Ellis Bextor.
The campaign, titled "Love Thismas, Not Thatmas", showcases what M&S calls the "honest truth" about Christmas.
In the ad we see the stars across four different homes facing the prospect of completing various Christmas traditions like prepping decorations.
In the end, the stars decided not to go ahead with activities they were not interested in. We even see Sophie Ellis Bextor take a blowtorch to a pile of Christmas cards after creating a festive gingerbread house.
You'll find the full ad here.
The M&S food advert stars Dawn French again this year and she is joined by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney voicing the characters of "Left" and "Right" Mittons.
The Mittons detail a story of how they ended up abandoned in the snow after their owner lost them.
In a bid to cheer the pair up Fairy whisks them away to "sprinkle them with M&S magic".
You can watch the full ad here.
Boots
The Boots "Thank you, Santa" Christmas ad chronicles a girl and mother's quest to get a gift to the pot-bellied figure.
Armed with a Boots shopping bag, the pair cross land, sea and air, and are helped along the way by many kind strangers who are offered gifts as thanks.
The pair reach their intended destination, finding Santa's very own chimney to drop a present down, but it's not the kind of gift you'd except - a pair of travel flight socks.
Check out the full ad here.
Lidl
This year the supermarket aims to embrace the spirit of Christmas whilst reminding viewers of the huge impact that small acts of kindness can have over the festive season.
The short clip charts the story of an adorable raccoon whose small gesture makes one little boy’s Christmas extra magical.
The story begins when the raccoon looks curiously through a window to see a family excitedly decorating a Christmas tree - when the beloved family dog accidentally smashes the little boy’s favourite monkey Christmas decoration.
Wanting to cheer her son up, the boy’s mother picks up a cuddly toy while doing the weekly shop at Lidl, but accidentally drops it on the cycle home.
Having spotted the toy monkey stranded in the cold snow the raccoon jumps into action and crosses the city by any means possible.
We see the little raccoon climb road signs, ride the tube, and sail on a log across a river all to reach the family home and put the toy under the Christmas tree.
After the boy is reunited with his cuddly friend, the family dog brings out some festive treats with the friendly protagonist as a thank you.
We get to see a glimpse of some of the festive food Lidl has on offer from their Christmas menu at the end of the clip when we see the whole family sitting down for a Christmas meal.
You can view the clip here.
Asda
Asda's Christmas advert sees Michael Bublé take on the role of chief quality officer.
It comes days after the supermarket released a teaser ad confirming the multi-platinum-selling global superstar's appearance in the campaign.
Tasked with ensuring the retailer delivers the very best quality for the nation this Christmas, Bublé is seen measuring rows of individual chocolate and orange panettones and indulging in some delectable brown butter and spiced dark rum mince pies.
Shot by Oscar-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi, the ad opens with Bublé sitting, full of cheer, feet up on his new desk, and his gold-plated Chief Quality Officer desk sign in full sight for all to see.
"Products to approve – so bring Mr. Bublé your best", orders an Asda colleague, once Bublé has finished cheekily requesting a "clean up on aisle five" – something he's 'always wanted' to do.
As he walks into a room full of Asda colleagues eagerly awaiting his arrival, he admonishes the fishmonger who has tried, again, to push mackerel for Christmas dinner this year.
He then enters the festive warehouse as seen in the teaser as he gets to work approving Asda's finest Christmas offerings.
From selecting the final cheese to complete Asda's Extra Special Christmas Cheeseboard, to sampling some succulent truffle and parmesan pigs in blankets, as an indisputable connoisseur of Christmas Bublé draws on his expertise to ensure the quality of every product on the supermarket's shelves.
Bublé quickly dismissed the maple-covered sample as "so last year" - a nod to Buddy's love for sweet treats, and the tray of samples he scoffed in 2022.
As the ad draws to a close an Asda colleague calls out "Off for the night are you?" - to which Bublé declares he's just getting started, as he joins a store-front choir to sing Walking in a Winter Wonderland.
Aldi
Kevin the carrot has made his much-anticipated TV return, as supermarket Aldi launches its 2023 Christmas ad.
This time, he's paying a visit to William Conker's magical Christmas factory.
The ad opens with the five lucky winners excitedly waiting to enter the magical Christmas factory.
Accompanied by grate grandpa, Kevin embarks on his tour of the festive goodie-filled factory, encountering all sorts of mischievous characters on the way including dancing plumty-dumptys and a spoilt little sprout.
With the other lucky winners including 'greedy, gluttonous grape' and 'naughty green kiwi' each landing themselves in bother and falling away, Kevin is finally the last carrot standing.
Upon passing the test and being handed the 'cheese' to the factory, Kevin asks the wholesome question - "Can I share my good fortune with everyone?".
The ad concludes with the charming closing message "Seasonal goodwill was truly in the air as Christmas is a time that's sweeter when you share’" accompanied by a cheerful crowd of characters from Aldi's Christmas past, including Ebanana Scrooge and Marcus Raddishford.
Debenhams
Debenhams have also unexpectedly released their Christmas advert which stars celebs like Lisa Snowdon and Alison Hammond.
With its "Winter Wonderland" campaign, Debenhams hopes to reaffirm its status as a definitive destination for shoppers on the high street.
Shoppers will be able to find several brands like Coast, YSL, Prada and Hugo Boss all under one roof.
Amazon
Amazon’s 2023 global Christmas campaign shows how joyful holiday moments are made even more special when they're shared and that having fun doesn't have to stop at a certain age.
The campaign centrepiece is a 60-second brand film called 'Joy Ride', which stars three older women as main characters in a story about life-long friends reviving the joy of their youth atop a sledging hill – all thanks to a flash of inspiration.
The spot features a rendition of The Beatles' "In My Life".
Argos
Argos' Christmas advert captures a classic family moment everyone is bound to have found themselves in.
The ad features much-loved toy characters Connie and Trevor as the fashion designer doll dances across the screen to Chic's Le Freak.
Steam from a coffee machine rises and a Sonos speaker pumps out the iconic 1978 song as Connie perks up her hair with a Shark hair dryer.
But the grand finale captures a hilarious moment most of us are guaranteed to have experienced at some point.
As the video closes, Connie somersaults herself into the air, landing in a splits and yells "cut", pleading with the toy dinosaur: "Please tell me you got that Trev."
But unbeknown to the popular blonde-haired doll, Trevor has been taking a video of himself the whole time.
Trevor nervously replies: "Uh, yeah," before admitting: "This is gonna break the internet."
The 30-second clip is a modern day take on the classic "toys come to life" narrative and builds on Argos's "There's More to Argos" brand platform which launched earlier this year.
You can view the ad here.
McDonald's
McDonald's joyful 60-second advert is set to the soundtrack of Van Halen’s iconic 1980s smash hit "Jump" and sees Maccies fans give into their cravings.
It's titled "Fancy A McDonald’s" and was directed by Killing Eve’s Shannon Murphy.
It follows various groups of kids, co-workers, parents, party-goers and even Santa himself flee the chaos of Christmas to grab a quick bite.
This includes an awkward work Christmas party, a cringe-worthy nativity play and a trip to the darts.
One by one each group turns to each other and raises their eyebrows indicating they're ready for a McDonald's.
This leads to hundreds of Maccies fans flooding the streets in search of their favourite snacks.
Along the way, the shot cuts to a resident who opens the door tangled in Christmas lights, to a man holding large cue cards asking if he fancies a trip to McDonald's - Love Actually-style.
The clip then lands in a McDonald's branch where eagle-eyed viewers may spot hints of a menu change.
Above the workers at the counter, the screens show two never-before-seen in the UK, burgers The Big & Cheesy and The Big & Cheesy Bacon.
Plus, the sell-out Chicken Big Mac can be seen as well.
Another familiar item can also be spotted on the screens, the Cheese Melt Dippers.
McDonald's did not want to confirm if these items are part of an upcoming menu change.
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