I don’t know how the John Lewis Christmas advert campaign came about, but their annual videos started appearing in 2007, with a very simple but clever one in which a shadow is created with gift items, and then the shadow becomes something else. Always unusual in concept and relentlessly sentimental (which is perfect for me by the end of December) with some readjusted existing music or song that is not the usual yuletide carol, these videos have become a harbinger for the Christmas season in the UK. This year’s version was a fantasy Christmas around a Venus Flytrap, something that really appealed to me, as I was intrigued by them as a child and even did a Science Fair project with them. I did not win any prizes, but I sure wish I had invented this video.
Having watched a baker’s dozen, I think my favorite of all the John Lewis Adverts is this one, as it captured the belief that all children have that their stuffed animals have lives and feelings. This one with Monty the Penguin appeared in 2014.
But my all-time favorite is from the e-commerce platform, Allegro, which appeared in 2016 in Poland. It has a touching relevance for us, as I live with a particular Nonno who, while he is fluent in the language of his English grandson, is trying to learn the language of his Italian one.
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