Daily Mail tests John Lewis Christmas advert rickshaw route in London

Reporters from the Daily Mail attempted to recreate the London pedal rickshaw journey featured in the new John Lewis Christmas television advertisement. The Daily Mail reported that reporters were charged £72 for a journey of 1.3 miles that lasted less than 15 minutes through the West End. The outlet described the fantasy depiction in the advert as vastly different from the reality of inflated fares and dangerously driven vehicles. [1]

The 2026 John Lewis Christmas advert stars actress Dame Kristin Scott Thomas as a grandmother named Gloria alongside a talking wooden toy dog named Pickles, voiced by Paul Whitehouse. Musician Sam Fender recorded a cover of the Rolling Stones song You Can't Always Get What You Want for the commercial. However, critics and broadcaster Vanessa Feltz accused the advertisement of promoting materialism, which John Lewis defended by stating the campaign conveys the true spirit of Christmas, as FTMQ News reported earlier. [6][7]

The release comes amid an annual Christmas advertising battle between major British retailers. The Guardian and FTMQ News both reported that rival retailer Marks and Spencer launched its own festive commercial starring actor James Norton as a topless Santa Claus. [2][6]

John Lewis launched its first Christmas advert in 2007, and the annual releases have since become a traditional signal for the countdown to Christmas in the United Kingdom. The commercial campaign marks 20 years of Christmas advertisements for the department store chain, as FTMQ News reported earlier. [4][7]