Tissues at the ready – The John Lewis Christmas ad is here

It’s that time again…

Strap in folks, and have a box of tissues on hand, because the John Lewis Christmas ad is finally here, and it’s definitely going to pull on your heartstrings.

You can watch it below.

This year’s trailer is titled The Beginner and it opens with a man struggling to get to grips with a skateboard. As he nurses his injuries with some frozen peas, his partner is seen telling an unknown person on the phone that they “can’t wait”, and that they’re “so excited”.

Christmas rolls around, and as the couple decorate their home, it looks like the man still hasn’t improved his skating skills much. Undeterred, he continues practicing, and even watches tutorials on the sly at work.

By the end of it, he is able to skate without falling, and the reason for his new hobby becomes clear to the audience – they family are preparing to welcome a teenager Ellie into their home, and she loves to skate.

Across the screen, a caption reads: “Over 180,000 children in the UK are in the care system. We’re making a long-term commitment to support the futures of young people from care.”

For this campaign, John Lewis partnered with Action for Children, and Who Cares Scotland, two organisations that support young people in care, and young people leaving the care system.

The touching ad was met with praise online.

One Instagram commenter wrote: “When you are in care often the feeling that people are paid to care for you is hard. That is the kind of caring that most kids are looking for.”

Another penned: “Crying my eyes out watching this, then had to explain to my 6 year old. A difficult but important conversation.”

A third wrote: “Ooh that’s got me a bit misted up. Lovely to see a Christmas ad with such a heartwarming and meaningful message.”