Waitrose, John Lewis, Tesco... the Christmas ads are all out and it's time for them to start selling. But what do adland's creative leaders make of the campaigns?

Creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun hosts this extra Private View episode of The Campaign Podcast, reviewing the top festive ads with David Kolbusz, chief creative officer at Orchard, Chaka Sobhani, the newly appointed global chief creative officer at TBWA\Worldwide, Richard Brim, founder and chief creative officer of Ace of Hearts, and Campaign’s UK editor Maisie McCabe. 

Talking through the craft, creative and ideas behind the ads, they discuss the following campaigns:

John Lewis & Partners "Where love lives" by Saatchi & Saatchi

Waitrose "The perfect gift" by Wonderhood Studios

Tesco "That's what makes it Christmas" by BBH

Asda "A very merry Grinchmas" by Lucky Generals

Apple “A critter carol” by TBWA\Media Arts Lab

Peta "Happy Christmassacre" by Grey London

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Omnicom completed its acquisition of IPG on Wednesday 26 November after clearing EU regulation. On the Monday that followed (1 December) the new holding company revealed a huge restructure including 4000 job cuts to happen by the end of the year, agencies merging, new leadership announced and some networks ceasing to exist.

In this episode of The Campaign Podcast, Campaign's editorial team discuss the shape of the new holding company, which agencies are left and what chief executive John Wren is hoping will make it succeed against its competitors. 

Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, the episode features editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier, editor Maisie McCabe and news editor Will Green.

Further reading:

John Wren’s ‘defining moment’: can the last King of Madison Avenue make the new Omnicom work?

John Wren on how Omnicom ‘will succeed’: more collaboration, new bonuses, big job cuts

Omnicom consolidates global advertising agencies into TBWA, McCann and BBDO

Omnicom keeps six media networks but switches global CEOs to brand presidents

Adam & Eve/DDB to merge with TBWA\London and FCB to fold into AMV BBDO

Omnicom Media promotes Natalie Bell and Katrina Bozicevich following IPG deal

FCB's Tyler Turnbull set to be appointed CEO of McCann Worldgroup

Chaka Sobhani set for new role after Omnicom acquires IPG

Omnicom-IPG: How merger will reshape the competition

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At the start of the year, 2025 was predicted by some adland commentators to be the year for independent agencies. Omnicom was beginning to acquire IPG to make the largest holding company, redundancies occurred across some of the networks and WPP had a more-than-difficult year on top of a new chief executive.

2025 has seen the launch of many independent agencies including Ace of Hearts, Studio.One and Baby Teeth, while Ark Agency and Uncharted came into their second year. Plus, IPG sold R/GA and Huge separately to private equity, also becoming independent. 

So now the year is almost up, Campaign's editorial team discuss whether independent media and creative agencies have benefited from distraction caused by the holding companies. Tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley hosts the episode and is joined by creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun, media editor Beau Jackson and editor Maisie McCabe.

Further reading:

Omnicom reveals huge agency shake-up, unveils new leadership, cuts 4000 jobs

Ace of Hearts: dealing adland a new hand

Troy Ruhanen: 'I wouldn't have taken OAG job if it was all about efficiency and smashing things'

Group M tells staff about redundancies as restructure hits UK

Omnicom cut 3000 roles during 2024 ahead of IPG takeover move

Mega merger adds to existing questions for Interpublic

Global agency groups 2024 report card: Performances and staff numbers decline as restructures continue

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Christmas ads keep snowing down across TV, social, live experiences and digital channels. With the multiplicity of formats and audiences fragmenting, does TV still reign as the top channel for festive films?

In this episode of The Campaign Podcast, Campaign's editorial team gather to discuss the next round of Christmas ads, including Waitrose's "The perfect gift" by Wonderhood Studios, Tesco's "That's what makes it Christmas" by BBH and Disney's holiday short by Adam&Eve/DDB. Tesco and M&S Fashion, Home and Beauty replaced their longer TV ad with a series of shorter videos, while Waitrose produced a four minute rom-com style short film.

Campaign's creativity team, creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun and deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings, join editor Maisie McCabe to discuss why brands have altered the ‘typical’ Christmas ad format and it's role in the wider channel mix alongside social. Tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley hosted the episode.

Further reading:

Waitrose’s festive film the most watched 8pm slot on TV on 12 November

Why Waitrose's 'The perfect gift' went rom-com for Christmas cut-through

Waitrose & Partners turns BFI Imax into 'Piemax'

Give the people what they want: the strategy behind Waitrose & Partners' Christmas campaign

M&S celebrates beauty of hosting in next phase of festive campaign

White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood will no longer appear in M&S Christmas ad

How are the LHF restrictions affecting Christmas ads and beyond?

What trends are shaping this year's Christmas ads season?

Christmas 2025 round-up: watch all the festive ads

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Where are all the mince pies? Still in Christmas advertising it seems, despite the Less Healthy Food and drink (LHF) restrictions.

The voluntary period banning foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) began on 1 October this year for paid online ads and TV with a 9pm watershed, just in time for a snowstorm of Christmas advertising. As of 5 January 2026, the voluntary period ends and it will be compulsory for brands.

In this episode, Campaign's editorial team discuss the festive ads from big brands like Waitrose, Tesco and M&S Food, and how the restrictions have impacted their creative campaigns and media plans. Are the ads devoid of Christmas food, or have brands found loopholes to feature their less healthy food products?

Hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun, deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings and media editor Beau Jackson.

Further reading:

‘Selling more than what’s on the kitchen table’: Adland predicts how the LHF ban will impact Christmas

Christmas 2025 round-up: watch all the festive ads

Is adland ready for the less healthy food ad restrictions?

How to avoid detention over less healthy food ad rules

ISBA warns NHS' 10 Year Health Plan could mean more products may be covered by LHF rules

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Christmas has hit adland like a snowball in the face, with the festive ads coming in thick and fast, so what can be gleaned from the first phase of holiday advertising?

In this episode of The Campaign Podcast, the editorial team break down the themes that emerged in the first batch of Christmas ads and the industry’s reaction to the campaigns so far. Tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley is joined in the studio by creativity and culture editor Gurjit Degun, deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings and editor Maisie McCabe.

This episode was recorded last week, and discusses the following ads:

John Lewis & Partners “Where love lives” by Saatchi & Saatchi

Sainsbury’s “The unexpected guest” by New Commercial Arts

Marks & Spencer Food “Traffic jamming” (in-house)

M&S Fashion, Home and Beauty "Give the gift" by Mother

TK Maxx "Festive Farm" by Wieden & Kennedy London (2023)

Amazon "Joy ride" (in-house) (2023)

Asda “A very merry Grinchmas” by Lucky Generals

Boots “Gift happily ever after” by VML/The Pharm

Further reading:

Christmas 2025 round-up: watch all the festive ads

John Lewis Christmas ad reaction: 'Soft nostalgia', 'middle of the pack', 'copy magic'

‘We made the music the gift’: Saatchis and John Lewis on nostalgia, emotion and 1990s bangers

'Brilliant brand fit' BFG stars in Sainsbury’s Christmas ad

What do you think of the first wave of Christmas ads?

What are your hopes for this year’s crop of Christmas ads?

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Advertisers have been pulling investment from newsbrands and trusted journalism for years. The latest AA/Warc figures show that national and regional newsbrands, along with magazines, have suffered the steepest declines in adspend across all channels, while tech platforms continue to claim a growing share of the market.

However, the figures suggest this decline will slow in 2026, and this year's Media Week Awards was a successful night for many newsbrands, including The Telegraph, which took home the coveted Sales Team of the Year.

This episode of The Campaign Podcast asks whether advertisers are moving away from trusted journalism or alternatively whether newsbrands are fighting back and seeing a resurgence. James Bailey, UK chief executive of Dentsu’s iProspect, joins the episode alongside Adam Foley, chief executive of independent agency Bountiful Cow and former director of UK advertising for the Guardian as well as founder of the News Alliance, a cross-industry coalition to encourage advertisers to support trusted news and journalism.

Hosted by Campaign's tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley, this episode includes UK editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis.

Further reading:

'Utterly ruinous': media agency boss on the impact of ad blocking on news brands

Media 360: Media industry is ‘sentencing news to death’ and ignoring its effectiveness

Majority of execs believe brand safety in news harms advertisers

Ahead of Trump's second term, Meta to scrap fact-checking on Facebook and Instagram

News needs you

Mars and Unilever on 'moral and business responsibility' to improve online safety

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WPP, Publicis Groupe, Omnicom, Interpublic, Havas and Dentsu have hitherto been known to adland as the "big six". However, the past year has brought the announcement of a proposed merger between Omnicom and IPG, while Havas and Dentsu have become comparatively smaller.

So, the "big six" become the "big three", but is there another challenger? Accenture Song's latest results reported revenues of $20bn (£15bn) in the 12 months to August, putting it on par with Omnicom’s $16bn, Publicis’ €16bn ($19bn) and WPP’s £15bn ($20bn). The business has picked up the $42m media account for Optus in Australia and remains in the running for Jaguar Land Rover’s global integrated marketing account.

With significant changes among the biggest holding companies continuing to shift the advertising landscape, some have questioned whether it is the end of the "big six", heralding the start of a new "big four". In this week's episode of The Campaign Podcast, Campaign's editor-in-chief Gideon Spanier, UK editor Maisie McCabe and media editor Beau Jackson, examine the potential outcomes. The episode is hosted by tech and multimedia editor Lucy Shelley.

Further reading:

Accenture is at a crossroads for its global agency ambitions

What's next for Accenture Song? CEO Ndidi Oteh at Campaign Live

‘Song is changing Accenture’: CEO Ndidi Oteh on media, M&A and ‘Big Four’ agency rivalry

Omnicom now ‘confident’ IPG deal will close in November as EU approval nears

Yannick Bolloré on Havas’ Q3 ‘acceleration’, Dentsu’s assets and being ‘open’ to M&A

Havas ‘could be interested’ to buy or partner with some of Dentsu’s international assets

Arthur Sadoun on why Publicis is ‘winning’ and how ‘struggling’ rivals have dragged down agency valuations

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This episode of The Campaign Podcast explores whether marketers are using AI to do work traditionally done by their agencies and examines what clients are – and aren’t – doing with AI.

It comes as Campaign launches the Power 100, the list of the most powerful marketers in the UK. This year they were asked questions designed to tease out where they are on their AI journeys.

Presented by deputy editor Gemma Charles, guests on the podcast were premium content editor Nicola Merrifield, acting commissioning editor Louise Ridley and Will Hanschell, the co-founder and chief executive of generative AI platform Pencil that was acquired by The Brandtech Group in 2023.

Further reading:

• Power 100 2025: AI – giving marketers 'superpowers'
• Power 100 2025: the full list
• Campaign Power 100 2025 Hall of Fame revealed
• An inside job: when and how Power 100 marketers are going in-house

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Campaign published its Faces to Watch list for 2025 last month and also canvassed the cohort on a range of topics both on and off-the-record. From hybrid-working and salary through to the rise of AI and diversity, the Faces – all of whom have worked in adland for eight years or less – gave their views freely.

This episode not only dissects their thoughts but also offers the perspectives of adland leaders on the lot of their junior staff. Hosted by Campaign’s deputy editor Gemma Charles, this episode features deputy media editor Shauna Lewis, acting commissioning editor Louise Ridley and reporter Ezster Gurbicz.

Among other issues, they discuss why juniors may have missed out by not starting their careers in the office due to Covid, the younger generation’s embrace of AI and the demise of hierarchical structures from yesteryear.

• Faces to Watch 2025: the full list
• Faces to Watch 2025: the AI adopters with a focus on diversity
• Faces to Watch 2025: Proportion 'very worried' about financial situation doubles
• Faces to Watch 2025: proportion in-office at least three days a week rises to over 80%
• Faces to Watch 2025: Drop in people experiencing bullying or harassment at work
• Faces to Watch 2025: Almost half think increasing use of AI in adland is positive
• What would be your advice for this year’s Faces to Watch?

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Neurodiversity exists in between 15 and 20% of UK adults, but recent All In data counts over half of adland’s UK workforce as neurodiverse, at 55%.

This week is dyslexia awareness week, and to mark the occasion this episode looks into neurodiversity in adland, and how the industry supports people with different ways of thinking, both internally and in the ads it produces. 

Hosted by Campaign's tech and multimedia editor, this episode welcomes guest Wayne Deakin, former global executive creative director at Wolff Olins, as well as media editor Beau Jackson and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis from the Campaign.

They discuss why advertising attracts people with different ways of thinking, how it impacts the work and the barriers and taboos that still exist making agency life challenging for those with neurodiversity.

Further reading:

‘More than just clothes’: Vanish builds on autism awareness work

How leaders can build a neurodiversity-friendly workplace

How I got diagnosed with ADHD at age 38

Great minds don’t think alike: How to tap the neurodivergent talent pool

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