WATCH: The John Lewis 2026 Christmas advert has arrived with Sam Fender's vocals
It also stars Dame Kristin Scott Thomas
Last updated 4 hours ago
Christmas has landed! It may only be 3rd November, but Mariah Carey has officially defrosted and now the incredibly special John Lewis Christmas advert has arrived in all its glory, starring megastar Dame Kristin Scott Thomas and vocals from the one and only Sam Fender.
In a twist on recent years, the high street retailer has chosen to enlist the help of Slow Horses star Dame Kristin Scott Thomas, who is joined by a pull-along wooden dog voiced by actor and comedian Paul Whitehouse.
Watch the 2026 John Lewis Christmas advert below:
What is the advert about?
This year's theme is about making an effort to find a thoughtful gift and begins with a grandmother called Gloria (Dame Kristin Scott Thomas) welcoming her family into her well-appointed London home on Christmas Eve. However, Gloria is quickly left disheartened by her two young grandchildren Freddie and Maggie, who mess up her immaculate study in a quest to relieve their boredom.
In an attempt to please the children, Gloria retrieves her old toy dog called Pickles (voiced by Paul Whitehouse) – a vintage pull-along Little Snoopy from the attic to keep them entertained.
Pickles springs to life, berating Gloria – who has lost confidence in buying her grandchildren a gift they will appreciate – for her lack of effort, telling her: “You can do better than cash.”
Pickles drags Gloria out of the house on a last-minute gift mission, with the pair flying through the streets of London by tuk-tuk to high street store John Lewis.
On Christmas morning, Freddie and Maggie find their Christmas cards empty of the expected cash but are instead handed a key by Gloria, which opens the door to her study now transformed into a “Gran Cave” with sparkling lights, disco balls and a turntable for playing music and dancing together.
Speaking about her part in the advert, Dame Kristin said: “I simply couldn’t resist the opportunity to lead a John Lewis Christmas advert – it’s such a cherished part of the festive season.
“Plus, Gloria’s journey captured my heart straight away. She represents so many parents and grandparents who want nothing more than to create lasting memories with the younger generation.
“Working alongside Pickles to create the ‘Gran Cave’ was an absolute joy, and I hope the ad brings a big smile to families across the UK this Christmas.”
What is the song from the John Lewis 2026 Christmas advert?
The Rolling Stones' track 'You Can’t Always Get What You Want' features in the new advert, covered by Geordie boy Sam Fender.
Sam Fender said of his involement: “It was a privilege to rework such an iconic song by such a legendary band.
“In the spirit of Christmas, we re-recorded the children’s choir with the kids from my old school, John Spence Community High School, and we arranged a brass section with the Easington Colliery Band.”
Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger also added: “I’m a fan of Sam’s work, so I was pleased to hear he was covering one of my songs.
“I think he’s done a great job with it.”
Listen to the original version of 'You Can’t Always Get What You Want' below:
When will the advert be on TV?
The 2026 advert will premiere on ITV/STV and Channel 4 between 8pm and 9.15pm on Tuesday 3rd November 2026.
Check out all of the John Lewis Christmas adverts over the years:
2007: Shadows
Going back to 2007 for the first John Lewis Christmas advert 'Shadows', it's hard to believe it was released so long ago! In this advert, we see people stacking items together in a plain white room with a shadow building on a wall set to 'Aubade' from the Romeo and Juliet suite by Prokofiev. It's not clear what it is until a child runs in and throws glitter over the piece, bringing the picture to life - a girl with gifts and a dog all ready for Christmas.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2008: From Me To You
The 2008 offering was set to a soudtrack of the Beatles classic 'From Me To You' - sang covered by employees! The 2008 Christmas advert showed people being paired with present ideas - the thought being that if you know the person well, you're bound to find the right present.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2009: Sweet Child Of Mine
It was all about children in the 2009 Christmas advert as they opened gifts for adults like kitchenware, big slippers and adult-size handbags. Aptly, the soundtrack was a cover of Guns N' Roses classic 'Sweet Child O' Mine', performed by Taken By Trees. The tagline is simply 'remember how Christmas used to feel? Give someone that feeling'.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2010: A Tribute to Givers
It's one we can all relate to; the struggle of wrapping - and subsequently hiding - an awkward-shaped present, but persevering because you know they'll love it. In this Christmas advert, set to Ellie Goulding's cover of Elton John's 'Your Song', we see people attempting to wrap and hide all sorts of gifts. Not forgetting the animals either - as a boy leaves the warmth of the house to hang a stocking outside for his dog.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2011: The Long Wait
We all know the feeling when it seems as though Christmas is taking forever to finally arrive! In the 2011 advert, a little boy is opening his advent calendar day by day, looking impatiently out of the window in what we're led to believe is him waiting excitedly to open his presents on Christmas Day.
But when the big day arrives, he runs past his own presents, reaches into his wardrobe and fetches a messily-wrapped package... which he's waited all month to give to his mum and dad. Set to a cover of The Smiths' 'Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want' by Slow Moving Millie, this one really tugged at the heartstrings.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2012: The Journey
After the momentum of 2011, the John Lewis bigwigs stepped it up for the 2012 Christmas advert. It was incredibly moving, showing a little girl building a snowman and a snowlady, then looking disappointed when the snowman's gone by morning.
We then see that he hasn't melted - he's decided to go on his own journey through forests and fields and across mountains, all to buy his snowlady a special Christmas gift, with Gabrielle Aplin singing the soundtrack of 'The Power Of Love', originally by Frankie Goes To Hollywood.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2013: The Bear and the Hare
In 2013, we saw a complete change in direction with an animated advert about two unlikely friends - a bear and a hare. The hare leaves a Christmas present for the bear when he wakes up from hibernation and he's delighted to see Christmas for the first time, with all the animals around the tree. If that doesn't make your bottom lip wobble, Lily Allen's cover of Keane's 'Somewhere Only We Know' will.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2014: Monty the Penguin
The 2014 John Lewis Christmas advert saw super-cute Monty the Penguin playing with a little boy. The pair did everything together, with Monty helping him build lego, play hide-and-seek and going for walks. However, the little boy notices that Monty is longing for a fellow penguin companion, staringly longingly at other couples - so he decides to fetch him a friend for Christmas. As the mum watches on, we see that Monty and his friend were cuddly toys, after all. The song was 'Real Love', originally by the late Beatles star John Lennon and performed by Tom Odell.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2015: Man on the Moon
John Lewis teamed up with Age UK for their 2015 advert. Appropriately set to a cover of Oasis' 'Half the World Away' by AURORA, a little girl is looking at the moon through a telescope when she suddenly spots an elderly man living there, alone. Every day, she returns to her telescope and decides to try every way possible to reach out to him at Christmas.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2016: Buster the Boxer
The 2016 Christmas advert tells the story of Buster the boxer dog, looking enviously on the neighbourhood wildlife having fun on a trampoline, whilst he's stuck inside.
As daughter Bridget goes to bed for Santa's arrival, her dad can be seen carefully building a brand new trampoline in the back garden. When Christmas morning strikes, Bridget excitedly runs outside to try her new toy, only for Buster to beat her to it...
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2017: Moz the Monster
Set to the dulcet tones of Elbow's 'Golden Slumbers' cover, originally by The Beatles, a little boy is initially scared of the monster under his bed. Eventually, he befriends Moz the Monster and they play together every evening.
However, staying awake through the night starts to take its toll on him, and he can hardly keep his eyes open during the day! After receiving the gift of a night light from a mysterious present-giver - presumably Moz himself - the monster under the bed disappears so that the boy can get some rest... Or does he?
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2018: The Boy and the Piano
2018's advert was all about Sir Elton John, entitled 'The Boy and the Piano'. Featuring Sir Elton John playing his hit 'Your Song', which was originally covered by Ellie Goulding for the 2010 advert, this year's offering shows Elton's journey to fame and revisiting some of his famous on-stage looks.
We then see a very young Elton receive his first piano as a gift for Christmas, with the singer reflecting on that precious memory now. 'Your Song' was first released in 1970, and proves to be a timeless classic in the heartwarming Christmas advert that aims to spread the message that 'Sometimes a gift isn't just a gift'.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2019: Excitable Edgar
The 2019 advert follows Excitable Edgar as he thoroughly enjoys the festivities in his village. Unfortunately, he struggles to control his flaming nostrils, and accidentally melts the ice-rink, reduces a snowman to a puddle and sets fire to a Christmas tree.
Edgar shuts himself away in despair, but his friend Ava encourages him to rejoin the village with the gift of a Christmas pudding, which allows him to put his fire to perfect use. All of these Christmas shenanigans is set to Bastille's Dan Smith's cover of REO Speedwagon's classic song, 'Can't Fight This Feeling'.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2020: Give a Little Love
The 2020 Christmas advert was all about celebrating acts of kindness, and how these small actions can make a big difference. Using a variety of animation techniques, interspersed with live-action, the 2020 advert was just the heart-warming sentiment we needed during the global pandemic.
It aptly dropped on World Kindness Day too, set to the first song written specifically for the John Lewis advert instead of being a cover - 'A Little Love' by Celeste.
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2021: Unexpected Guest
Released two weeks earlier than usual, the 2021 John Lewis advert shows space traveller Skye crash-landing at the height of festivities in the woods near the home of 14-year-old Nathan, who introduces her to the traditions of eating mince pies, decorating the tree and, to her slight confusion, wearing novelty jumpers.
As Skye fixes her ship, she and Nathan share a sweet goodbye kiss, with Nathan handing over his novelty Christmas jumper. The advert featured Lola Young's cover of 'Together in Electric Dreams', originally by Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder. John Lewis customer director Claire Pointon said of the 2021 advert: "After the last 18 months, we wanted our advert to really celebrate this as we look forward to a brighter future. Through the story of Skye and Nathan we celebrate friendship and are reminded of the joy of experiencing Christmas for the first time."
Watch the advert on YouTube.
2022: The Beginner
John Lewis' 2022 Christmas advert has seen the retail giant work with charities Action For Children and Who Cares? Scotland, supporting young people in care. It follows the story of a middle-aged man learning to skateboard, and persevering despite the aches and pains that come with falling off repeatedly. By the end of the advert, we see him and his wife taking in a young girl clutching a skateboard at Christmas time. The advert also reveals the company have pledged to support the "futures of young people from care". The song is a cover by Mike Geier of 'All The Small Things', originally by blink-182.
2023: Snapper, The Perfect Tree
The 2023 advert sees young boy finding a grow-your-own Christmas tree, which turns out to be a mischievous Venus flytrap. The advert follows the boy as he lovingly nurtures the seed he bought from a local market, thinking he's growing a Christmas tree. The ad features Andrea Bocelli's new song 'Festa'.
2024: The Gifting Hour
The 2024 advert features Richard Ashcroft's 'Sonnet' and it makes history as a John Lewis store appears for the first in a Christmas ad! Falling through a rack of dresses, she steps into the attic of her childhood home, and begins a journey through her memories of growing up with her sister as she searches for a thoughtful present. Returning to reality, Sally meets her sister outside the store with her wrapped gift, and as they walk away her sister is reflected in the John Lewis window as the child from her memories.
2025: Where Love Lives
In 2025, for the first time in history, the John Lewis Christmas advert focused on a father and son relationship, as a surly teenager gives his father the Christmas gift of a memory-laden '90s vinyl. Alison Limerick's 90s club hit 'Where Love Lives' provided the soundtrack, with British singer/songwriter Labrinth providing vocals for the new version of the track.
2026: Gloria and Pickles
Dame Kristin Scott Thomas stars as Gloria in the 2026 ad, and she is joined by a pull-along wooden dog voiced by actor and comedian Paul Whitehouse. Sam Fenders provides vocals on a cover of The Rolling Stones' hit 'You Can't Always Get What You Want'.
Author: Alex Ross
Alex Ross is a Digital Content Editor across Rayo brands, including the Hits Radio Network, Greatest Hits Radio, KISS, Cool FM and Magic Radio. After beginning her career as a Marketing Intern with Bauer Media in 2016, she transitioned into digital editorial and has spent the past decade creating engaging content for millions of readers. Whether it’s reality shows, sitcoms, gritty crime dramas or hard-hitting documentaries, Alex is an expert in all things TV, as well as knowing the ins and outs of celebrities.