A Christmas ad in which things are going wrong. That has to hit the bull’s-eye. It’s so very real. In Argos’ Christmas ad by The&Partnership, a Christmas sprite – a mischievous, impish creature with bells on its long ears – is determined to muck up people’s Christmas preparations. His glee as he does so is infectious. He breaks fairy lights and steals Sellotape, unwraps presents and knocks the angel from the top of the Christmas tree. The ad is so much fun.

An Argos Fast Track delivery driver comes to the rescue by giving the pesky creature a boot into his van, where it lands among a collection of other sprites who have also been thwarted in their quest to ruin Christmas.

Yan Elliott, joint executive creative director at The&Partnership London, explained, “Every Christmas, something goes wrong in the run-up to the big day – it’s inevitable. Our cheeky Christmas fool personifies that. We hope this mischief-filled advert helps ease the stress for families this year – reminding them that, whatever curveballs Christmas throws at them, Argos is on hand to save the day.”

The ad launched in the UK on November 2 during Coronation Street on ITV and Gogglebox on Channel 4.

Gary Kibble, marketing director at Argos, commented, “Families across the UK work really hard to make their Christmas special, so when something doesn’t go to plan it feels as though there’s a mischievous force working against them. We created the fool as the cheeky embodiment of this frustration and the ad brings to life the tiny annoyances that can cause unnecessary festive chaos.

“Luckily for Brits faced with the fool, we have more than 1,000 stores and pick-up points and almost 1,000 delivery vans on the road so customers can get Christmas orders, such as fairy lights or the latest toy or tech gift, the same day whether they Click & Collect or get Fast Track delivery. We expect to deal with around 19 million orders in stores over Christmas, so we’re making Christmas truly fool-proof for British shoppers.”

Credits:  

Agency: The&Partnership

Executive Creative Directors: Yan Elliott, Micky Tudor

Creative Director: Laura Rogers

Creatives: Matt Deacon & Ben Fallows

Planners: Rebecca Munds & Claire Carmichael

Executive Producer: Charles Crisp

Producers: Alfie Glover-Short & Sid Daffarn

Chief Executive Officer: Sarah Golding

Business Director: Gary Simmons

Account Director: Stephanie Leonard

Account Managers: Imogen Blackburne & Hannah Gray

Social & digital agency: AllTogetherNow

Creative Director: Sam Willard

Strategic Lead: Mike Phillips

Managing Director: Steve Parker

Client Services Director: Jason Andrews

Account Director: Jessica Bailey

Production Company: Friend London

Director: Ian Pons Jewell

Executive Producer: Luke Jacobs

Producers: Jon Adams & Sid Daffarn

Photographer & Director of Photography: Ben Fordesman

Editing: Gaia Borretti @ Cut&Run

Audio: Will Cohen @ String&Tins

Music: Simon Nathan @ Auburn Jam

Post Production @ Animation: Time Based Arts

VFX Supervisors: Francois Roisin & Sheldon Gardner

Colour Grade: Simone Grattarola

Executive Producer: Tom Johnson

Brand: Argos

Campaign & Customer Value Management: Nicki Brown