John Lewis... Check here and here as examples.
Yes, they could go no wrong in their Christmas ads. Except this year, no just to me but to someone else as well, it was all too predictable. Why would a middle aged man want to start learning to skate suddenly and not very well one must be reminded? Obviously there is a child involved - this much is clear.
Sure sure the ad is well-executed, manages to give the aura of a beginner who is trying hard. The enthusiasm and lack of patience are obvious and nicely translated as his wife tries to be the one with the rational head. In case you are wondering who the child in question is? No, not his own kid living with a divorced ex as I had assumed, but rather - a foster child. "Over 108,000 children in the UK are in the care system. We’re making a long-term commitment to support the futures of young people in care” - the ad stresses the point in the end.
No marks for guessing that the foster child in question is a keen skateboarder.
Do watch the ad on this link here.
Well, this is not "man on the moon for sure", The Guardian labeled it "the most unapologetically depressing thing in human history" (here) which of course is an exaggeration. But perhaps not by much.