John Lewis Monty the Penguin: Britain's Most Beloved Christmas Ad

Tue, 23 Jun 2026 18:00:00 +0000

In Britain, the release of the John Lewis Christmas advertisement has become something close to a national event. Schools discuss it. Newspapers carry front-page stories about it. Social media stops for an hour. And in 2014, when John Lewis and agency Adam&EveDDB released “Monty’s Christmas,” the reaction was one of the most extraordinary responses any British advertisement had ever generated.

“Monty’s Christmas” is a story about a boy and his penguin companion — the penguin’s desire for love and connection mirroring the boy’s own emotional growth. Directed by Dougal Wilson with a cover of “Real Love” by Tom Odell on the soundtrack, the two-minute film was watched by over 23 million people online in its first week and generated £132 million in earned media coverage, according to Thinkbox.

Penguin on Inside That Ad

John Lewis Monty the Penguin: Britain's Most Beloved Christmas Ad