John Lewis adds a serious side to sparkly festive ad

Bang on trend, the retailer has made a touching advert about a father and son rekindling their bond

- Ellie Muir

Oh, they grow up so fast. The John Lewis Christmas advert, the sickeningly British festive institution, has just turned 18. In that time, we’ve had eight prime ministers, two monarchs and 19 seasons of Strictly Come Dancing. Its success has been down to a foolproof formula: make it impossibly saccharine, a little bit sad and unbelievably sparkly. To really get the tears flowing, the JL advert must - and I repeat, must - have a twinkly, slowed-down piano ballad cover version of a nostalgic hit from a baby boomer's youth. Bonus points for using an adorable five-year-old and/or an anthropomorphic animal as the protagonist. Anyone remember that lonely elderly man trapped living on the moon (2015)? Or the misunderstood boxer dog with a passion for trampolines (2016)?

This year, though, the John Lewis advert might just be too grownup. They've stripped away the lovable fictional characters, Up-style elderly people and Santa Clauses and gone full