‘Does anybody care about the John Lewis Christmas advert any more?’

It was once a highlight of the festive season, but it appears to have gone out of style

Year after year, me and my friends would gather round a phone during our lunch break to watch the new clip.

From a snowman looking for the perfect gift for his wife to a young girl trying to contact a lone man on the moon, the stories of adverts gone by still stick in my mind.

However, in recent years, the John Lewis Christmas advert has fallen flat - and this year's version appears to be no different.

The 2025 edition of the John Lewis ad features a father and son, seemingly distant, until the dad opens his Christmas present.

Lo and behold, he has been gifted a vinyl of the 90s classic 'Where Love Lies' by Alison Limerick.

He is transported back to his clubbing days, and sees visions of his son as a toddler there with him. Flash back further, now he's a baby. Ah, how life flies by!

Cut to the end of the ad, the dad is back in his living room. He sees his son coming down the stairs, and is moved to give him a hug.

"If you can't find the words," the end text reads, "find the gift".

Perhaps they thought they were about to solve the toxic masculinity crisis, but, to me, it leaves a bitter taste.

If you are incapable of talking to each other, then turn to capitalism instead, they might as well have said.

Yes, the song evidently means something to his dad, but would it have meant more if the son had performed a rendition himself, rather than what appears to be a hastily wrapped present that he no doubt ordered on next day delivery.

Reaction to the ad has been mixed, with some saying it is "lovely" and "the best Christmas ad in years".

However, others have called it how it is.

One social media user dubbed it "dull, depressing, boring and not very Christmassy".

Another said it was a "massive let down".

"What a bunch of nonsense. Unimaginative, unfestive, rubbish. Bring back Moz the Monster or Edgar the Dragon," a third said.

It's unfair to place the blame solely at John Lewis' door. The ad does stir something inside me (I'm not a monster), but in 2025, big businesses trying to sell us emotion doesn't seem to work the same way it did way back when.

Take Coca-Cola's festive offering this year - it's AI generated, for the second year in a row.

It's a far call from the days when watching the iconic truck roll in brought a fizz of excitement to your heart.

Now, it feels soulless, with AI generated creatures gazing nothing but a emblem of capitalism that doesn't even exist in real life.

Perhaps that's actually what Christmas is all about now, though. Nothing screams the holiday season quite like global corporations trying to sell you things that you, or whoever you are gifting them to, don't actually need.