John Lewis Christmas advert 2021: what is ‘Unexpected Guest’ about, when did it come out, and what is song?

Department store John Lewis has released its highly-anticipated 2021 Christmas advert in the run-up to the big day.

The business’ adverts have become an event every winter, with many looking forward to seeing the creative promos hit their screens.

This year sees an ‘Unexpected Guest’ premiering on television - but what story does the promo tell and what song is used in the advert?

When will John Lewis’ ‘Unexpected Guest’ Christmas advert be released?

The 2021 John Lewis Christmas advert will be released on Thursday 4 November.

Its first airing on television will be at around 8.15pm during the Pride of Britain Awards, which will air on ITV.

However, the advert will be available to watch at around 8.00am on John Lewis’ social media channels, and will be available to watch via email access at 6.30am for ‘My John Lewis’ loyalty customers.

The advert has been released slightly earlier than usual after the company revealed that Christmas related searches on its website are up around 50% from this time last year.

What is the ‘Unexpected Guest’ advert about?

The two-minute advert, created by agency adam&eveDDB, depicts a young alien celebrating her first ever Christmas.

The young alien, named Skye, crashes to earth and meets teenager Nathan, who shows her Christmas traditions such as decorating a Christmas tree, eating mince pies and wearing Christmas jumpers.

John Lewis customer director Claire Pointon said: “There is nothing more magical than discovering the joy of Christmas for the first time and enjoying your favourite festive moments with loved ones.

“After the last 18 months, we wanted our advert to really celebrate this as we look forward to a brighter future.

“We know our customers are excited for this festive season more than ever, as they reconnect with family and friends. Through the story of Skye and Nathan we celebrate friendship and are reminded of the joy of experiencing Christmas for the first time.”

John Lewis have also teamed up with charities FareShare and Home-Start UK to sell the Christmas jumper seen being worn by Skye and Nathan in the advert. Priced at between £14 and £29, 105 of profits made from the jumpers will go to the charities.

What song is in the advert and who performs it?

The John Lewis advert song has become somewhat of a phenomenon in recent years, with many high-profile and rising artists taking on the mantle to great success.

This year, 20-year-old singer-songwriter Lola Young takes the reins with a cover of Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder’s 1984 hit ‘Together in Electric Dreams’.

Previous years have seen chart success for artists such as Ellie Goulding, Celeste and Lily Allen with songs which appeared in the annual advert.

What happened in last year’s John Lewis advert?

Last year saw a different take of the iconic John Lewis Christmas advert due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This included a storyline which reflected the community spirit that came out during the height of the pandemic, with the advert series entitled ‘Give A Little Love’.

The advert took a different approach and focused on several different characters showing acts of kindness, telling each story in a different art style such as CGI and claymation

Celeste provided the soundtrack with the first original song written for the adverts called ‘A Little Love’.

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