John Lewis has made raver dads like me feel seen at last

The most keenly awaited Christmas advert of the year has reduced people of a certain age to floods of tears. Here's why, for Gen X-ers like Stephen Armstrong, it feels so personal

- STEPHEN ARMSTRONG

One look at my social feed and there is no mistaking the love for this year’s John Lewis Christmas ad. “My husband has been crying all day. The rave synapses were deeply triggered.” “Hear hear, cried like a baby.” “They should have kept the song as it is

– absolute banger. Still, I did shed a tear.” “I’ve just seen it described as ‘first E with dad, so moving’. Lol.”

If you haven’t seen it, this year’s ad is a typical family Christmas Day with Dad grumpily tidying up the present wrapping paper and Mum a little tense. There’s some serious lack of communication between father and son going on – “Adolescence vibes” - and then, as the boy heads up to his room, Dad finally spots he’s left a present for him under the tree.

He opens it, it’s a 12” vinyl extended mix of the monumental 1990 hands-in-the-air rave anthem “Where Love Lives” by Alison Limerick. Suddenly, Dad’s back in 1990 on a packed, sweat-soaked floor, surrounded by gurning punters in those stupid hats with the ecstasy of life coursing through his veins.

Then he pauses and sees his son across the dancefloor like a ghost of Christmas yet to come. The dancers fade and vanish.

He reaches for the boy, who’s suddenly just a few years old, running with faltering early steps until Dad scoops him up and he’s a baby, newborn, laughing and tweaking his dad’s nose. The first day of that new adventure.