It’s officially that time of year once again… the John Lewis Christmas advert has been released to the world this morning.
November is here, the festive season is right around the corner, the 2022 Manchester Christmas Markets officially start today, and now, after teasing it on social media for the past few days and after leaving people nationwide waiting with baited breath, department store retailer John Lewis has finally unveiled its 2022 Christmas advert.
And this year, the company has toned things down and taken it back to basics.
The release of the John Lewis Christmas advert comes hot off the heels of releases from competitors Tesco, Argos, Morrisons, and Aldi – as well as Asda, which many Brits have already claimed has “won Christmas” thanks to its use of classic footage from the iconic 2003 Christmas film Elf.
But with the rising cost of living crisis sadly continuing to make its impact felt nationwide, retailers are facing a tough battle for Christmas sales this year.
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So, John Lewis has decided to use its 2022 Christmas advert – which is titled ‘The Beginner’ – to shine a spotlight on what it has called an “often overlooked issue” – children in the UK foster care system.
The 90-second advert, which is set to a cover of Blink-182’s All The Small Things by US artist Mike Geier – which was actually recorded around five years ago, and hasn’t been commissioned by John Lewis especially for the advert as the retailer has done so in previous years – shows the man as he struggles painfully to master skateboarding in the build-up to Christmas.
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As the advert continues, we are left questioning the motive behind the man’s perseverance until the final scene.
The final scene then shows a social worker arriving at the man’s door with a young teenager named Ellie – who has arrived at her new foster home carrying her skateboard.
John Lewis said it understood that not all foster carers had the benefit of knowing who they would be looking after in advance, and that’s what the advert is aiming to highlight – with the retailer’s broader campaign also featuring “authentic voices of carers” and “young people with different experiences of a complex care system”.
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“We could have heavily gone for Christmas magic and fun but that didn’t feel the right thing to do this year with everything going on,” explained Holly Kicul – Senior Advertising Manager at John Lewis.
“It felt the right thing to use this platform we have to get this message out.”
She also added that the retailer wanted to have the usual laughter and sentiment that its Christmas adverts are known for, but “in a different way to what we do normally.”
The John Lewis 2022 Christmas advert has officially been released / Credit: John LewisIt shines a spotlight on an “often overlooked issue” – children in care / Credit: John Lewis
The release of the 2022 John Lewis Christmas advert also follows the launch of the John Lewis Partnership’s Building Happier Futures programme – which is aimed at providing young people in care with more career opportunities and chances to move into the workforce.
Claire’s is closing down stores in the UK and Ireland with more than 1,300 jobs set to be lost
Danny Jones
In another hit to domestic shoppers, Claire’s Accessories is closing down en masse across the UK and Ireland after entering into administration once again.
Falling into an unfortunate financial status for the second time in less than a year, Claire’s will be shutting down all of their standalone stores across Britain, along with their IE branches.
A total of 154 stores will soon disappear, with more than a thousand people set to be put out of work.
Once a mainstay of British high streets up and down the country, the accessory shop known for all things jewellery, piercings and more has ceased trading effective immediately.
Announced at the start of the week and the end of the first full month of Q2, it was confirmed that Claire’s closed their final locations on Monday, 27 April.
With administrators, Kroll, appointed to wrap up business proceedings, an estimated 1,300 English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh workers have now lost their jobs.
Founded way back in 1961 over in the United States, Claire’s has operated across the Atlantic for more than three decades.
However, with various other contemporaries and cheaper online options having appeared over the years, they’ve struggled not just to remain profitable but to compete full stop.
They most recently filed for bankruptcy in the US this past August (2025), with their Belgian, Spanish, and Dutch divisions having already called it quits.
Manchester location(s) have changed a lot over time, but now they’re on the way out (Credit: Arndale)
For many, the outcome isn’t all that surprising, but it will nevertheless be a sad loss for many who have seen multiple generations visit these venues over the years.
All-girl K-pop powerhouse aespa book MASSIVE Manchester arena show
Danny Jones
All-girl K-pop group, ‘aespa’, are coming to Manchester for some of their largest performances to date as part of a new global tour.
If you know anything about the K-pop scene, you’ll know that most acts are even bigger than you could ever imagine.
Manchester has gained a steady supply of gigs from artists within the genre over the past year or so, and now aespa are the latest to book the AO Arena for a headline show.
Rest assured, these tickets will fly…
aespa SYNK : COMPLæXITY
Catch the LIVE TOUR in Manchester at @AOArena on Thu 14th January 2027!
Register by [Wed 29 Apr at 6AM PT / 8PM CT / 9AM ET] for access to the artist presale: https://t.co/JuWFFMCE8Q
Dubbed the ‘SYNK : Complæxity World Tour’, this follows on from their last live iteration, ‘æXIS LINE’ shows, which began back in August 2025 and, technically, have only just ended this April.
As per an official press release, “Produced by Live Nation, the tour will bring aespa’s acclaimed live production and immersive performance experience to arenas across Asia, North America, Latin America, the UK, and Europe.”
There are actually just two shows in the entirety of Britain (the other being down in the capital), and Manchester has the good fortune of kicking off not only being the first of both, but the inaugural date of the entire European leg.
Consider us honoured.
Made up of a talented quartet – Karina, Giselle, Winter, and Ningning, the rising South Korean stars – this female-led phenomenon is arguably one of the fastest rising acts in the world of K-pop.
Having now been to a couple of these shows for ourselves, we’re starting to understand that these artists might have some of the most passionate followings on the planet.
Kicking off the latest run of performances back in their home country’s capital of Seoul, they’ll hit multiple continents before wrapping things up in Paris.
aespa EU tour dates 2027
14 January – AO Arena, Manchester
16 Jan – London
19 Jan – Amsterdam
22 Jan – Stockholm
24 Jan – Copenhagen
26 Jan – Berlin
29 Jan – Milan
31 Jan – Barcelona
2 February – Paris
If you’re a fan or are interested in throwing your hat in the ring for a first K-pop gig experience, you can register by signing up for their exclusive pre-sale window.
As for general admission, tickets to see aespa at the AO Arena in Manchester will go live at 3pm on Wednesday, 6 May; you can get ready to grab yours HERE.
Emily Sergeant -
10th November 2022 
