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The John Lewis 2020 Christmas advert will focus on food poverty and aim to rise £5 million

The retailer has promised this year's campaign will be "like no other".

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 3rd November 2020
John Lewis & Partners

The John Lewis Christmas advert is has become an integral part in the lead-up to the festive season, and the retailer has promised this year’s campaign will be “like no other”.

While plans for the festive period remain uncertain at this stage due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions, the release of the John Lewis Christmas advert is sure to bring a smile to people’s facing and have us shedding a tea or two of joy.

And ahead of this year’s launch – the date of which is as yet unconfirmed – the department store chain has shared some details of the advert, which is set to be “like no other” and will coincide with a festive campaign aimed at raising £5 million for struggling families.

John Lewis will kick-start an appeal in November to raise the funds for two worthy charities.

The money raised from the campaign will go toward FareShare – a charity which aims to help solve food poverty, and Home-Start – which works with parents who need support.

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Speaking on the 2020 Christmas campaign, Pippa Wicks – Executive Director of John Lewis & Partners – said: “In a year like no other, the world has changed – so we will be delivering a Christmas campaign like no other,”

“During 2020, we’ve seen some inspiring and heartwarming acts of kindness throughout our country and our communities [and] now we want to build on this spirit to create a legacy that extends well beyond Christmas,

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“Together we can all make a big difference to the families who need our help most.”

John Lewis said the £5 million total will help to support an estimated 100,000 families in need, and customers will be encouraged to donate to the campaign, with the retailer promising to match all donations up to a maximum of £2 million.

Not only that, but purchases using the My JL and My Waitrose loyalty cards will also generate donations for the two charities over the festive period.

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Lindsay Boswell – Chief Executive at FareShare UK – said: “In what has been an incredibly tough year for so many, more people than ever are turning to local charities and community groups for support because they simply can’t afford the food they need to feed their families and themselves.”

“We are so delighted to partner with Waitrose and John Lewis to provide support for the thousands of people in need across the UK in the run-up to Christmas and over the winter months,”

The advert and campaign comes in the midst of the ongoing #endchildfoodpoverty campaign fronted by Wythenshawe-born Manchester United star Marcus Rashford – who works in partnership with FareShare UK – which has already enabled thousands of children to claim free school meal vouchers throughout school holidays in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Waitrose – part of John Lewis & Partners – is a member of Rashford’s ‘Food Poverty Taskforce’.

Taking to Twitter this morning to acknowledge the campaign this morning, Rashford said that the advert concept was “brilliant”.

The John Lewis 2020 Christmas advert is expected to air this month.

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Eurovision 2025 final to be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Eurovision 2025 stage

The grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest is to be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester next month.

Following the success of the previous two years, initially starting back when the internationally renowned televised event was held on British soil in Liverpool in 2023, cinemas up and down the UK are, once again, set to come together to celebrate 2025’s edition of the major night in the music calendar by hosting the ultimate viewing events.

The epic Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final on Saturday 17 May will be broadcast live on BBC One, and streamed into more than 100 cinemas nationwide – including several in Greater Manchester.

Distributed by CinemaLive, the live stream events will allow Eurovision fans to gather under one roof and share in the unbeatable experience of celebrating the brightest and boldest music party of the year on the big screen.

People in the cinema
The Eurovision 2025 final will be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester / Credit: CinemaLive | Krists Luhaers (via Unsplash)

You may remember that Switzerland is hosting Eurovision this year, following the nation’s well-deserved victory at the 2024 contest with the song ‘The Code’ performed by Nemo.

But thanks to these live stream events, you won’t need to make the trip to Basel to get in on the action, as you’ll just need to nip down to your nearest participating cinema instead.

Not only will the long-awaited final of the show be streamed live onto the big screen in 5.1 surround sound, but fans are invited to bring their Eurovision parties from the front room to the cinema instead, as organisers say fancy dress is ‘heavily encouraged’, as are enthusiastic sing-alongs too.

Speaking ahead of the event next month, John Travers from distributors CinemaLive, said: “We’re delighted to be working with the BBC to bring Eurovision’s grand final live into cinemas across the UK for the third year in a row.

“There’s simply no better way to enjoy the biggest night in music than in a cinema.”

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Tickets are now live and available to book at your local cinema here.

Some of the participating Greater Manchester cinemas include Vue Manchester Printworks, Everymans in Manchester city centre and Altrincham, The Light in Stockport, and Cineworld in Didsbury, among others.

Featured Image – EBU

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Only 37% Brits claim they use swear words every single day

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Swearing

Whether you can believe it or not, a new survey has revealed that only 37% of Brits reckon they swear every day.

Or maybe you can believe it.

Swearing and using inappropriate language definitely used to be considered far more offensive among generations gone by, but here today in the 21st century, it’s fair to say that curse words encompass a large part of the vocabulary used by a wide range of Brits spanning all ages.

For some, swearing is just another way of expressing yourself, but for others, it’s typically not acceptable.

But while it might be a controversial topic, an interesting new YouGov survey has found that swearing is something we nearly all do – with the majority of Brits (57%) saying they swear on most days, and only 8% claiming to never swear at all.

As many may have predicted, men tend to be more regular swearers than women, with 41% saying they swear every day, compared to just 33% of women, and it was also found that younger Brits are more likely to curse on a regular basis too, with 47% of 18-34 year olds swearing every day, compared to only 19% of over 65s.

Even though lots of people perhaps don’t feel that comfortable using inappropriate language, just a third of Brits (33%) say they have an outright negative view of swearing, and nearly half of the public (48%) have what they would consider to be a ‘neutral attitude’ towards it.

When it comes to view points, YouGov found that there is, yet again, a clear generational shift in attitudes, with older Brits being the most likely to have a negative view of swearing (51%), compared to just 21% of 18-34 year olds.

In fact, 18-34 year olds are actually more likely to have a positive view of swearing (30%) rather than a negative one, the survey found.

Does all of this change given the circumstances though? Do Brits consider it to be generally more acceptable to swear in certain places than others? The survey found that Brits are largely agreed on it being acceptable to swear when you’re in your home by yourself (91%), in response to physical pain (87%), or when you’re with friends in private (86%).

On the flip side, it’s considered unacceptable to swear in a place of worship (91%), while with a customer or client at work (94%), in front of children (95%), or at shopworkers (97%).

There are some instances, though, where the public are more divided, as when it comes to being with your with colleagues at work, nearly half (45%) of survey respondents see swearing as okay, but 53% see it as inappropriate.

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The survey also looked into Brits’ particular favourite swear words, claiming that ‘most of us, deep-down’ have one we prefer to use most.

For this, it was the good old ‘f-word’ (f**k) that reigned supreme.

Featured Image – Etienne Girardet (via Unpslash)

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