John Lewis face backlash from women after mother gets a FRYING PAN for Christmas in firm’s latest festive ad
John Lewis has sparked a heated debate online after sharing an ad on its social media channels showing a mum receiving a frying pan for Christmas.
In the short video posted on Instagram, a father can be seen lovingly telling his child that he should buy his mother a holiday gift because she is “so kind”.
Showing the loving mother lighting candles and frying eggs with the toddler, father and son discuss buying her a ‘secret’ Christmas present.
Moments later, the duo writes a message to his mother on the toddler’s bedroom floor, while the father gently guides his son through spelling.
But advertising It looks like the toddler got a bad rap with some after he showed up dragging a frying pan to hug his dad.
In the clip titled ‘Carefully wrapped, wholeheartedly given’, children are seen delivering gifts of soap and kitchenware to their mothers.
While thanking the children for the gifts, he cheerfully opens the gifts by saying, “You know, we needed a frying pan.”
However, the promotional video fell flat with many criticizing the chain, with one writing: ‘Frying pan?!! ‘My mother wants a divorce.’
The ad was created by Will Warr, who filmed The Princess of Wales.A touching video released in September last year telling the public about her focus on cancer prevention.
While the mother (pictured) opens the gifts with joy, she thanks the children for the gifts by saying, “You know, we needed a frying pan.”
In the short video posted on Instagram, a father can be seen lovingly telling his child that he should buy his mother a holiday gift because she is “so kind”.
Self-described ‘Professional feminist’ Nicky Denson Elliott wrote: ‘Dear John Lewis. No mother wants her dependents to give her a frying pan for Christmas. Love, all women. ‘
While many agreed with her message, others backed the retailer, arguing that some mums wanted a frying pan for Christmas and the gift was ‘symbolic’.
Meanwhile, another viewer said the ad was ‘too close’ and added: ‘But you lost me in the pan!’
Someone suggested to John Lewis: ‘Next time, put in a female creative team who understand what we really want.’
‘Oh dear John Lewis. I definitely can’t read the room. “Do better next time,” joked one angry viewer.
“If my parents are watching, I don’t want a frying pan for Christmas,” one joked, while another branded the clip “symbolic of female stereotypes”.
‘Dad helps his sons buy kitchenware as gifts for the women in their lives,’ said one viewer.
‘I hope my mother bought my father a toilet brush so he can do his job,’ while another lamented: ‘A pan and some soap. Good grief.’
The Daily Mail has approached John Lewis for comment.
Meanwhile, women attacked John Lewis after the retailer’s latest festive clip, shot by the Princess of Wales’s cameraman, showed the mother being gifted a kitchen gadget.
John Lewis’ highly anticipated Christmas advert for 2025 (pictured) was revealed in November
This year, John Lewis’ official Christmas advert told the heartwarming story of an old-school raver dad being gifted a vinyl single that reminds him of his glory days.
This year, John Lewis’ official Christmas advert told the heartwarming story of an old-school raver dad being gifted a vinyl single that reminds him of his glory days.
The ad, released in early November, focused on the relationship Between a father and his teenage son – a first for one of the shopkeepers Christmas campaigns.
The film opened with the teenager nervously waiting for his father to find his gift hidden under the Christmas tree: a vinyl record featuring Alison Limerick’s 1990 club anthem Where Love Lives.
Surprised by the thoughtful gift, his father goes to his record player to try the gift, while his son has his headphones wrapped around his neck, timidly watching for a reaction.
As soon as the first beat of the song fills the room, his father is ushered from the living room into a sweaty, overcrowded nightclub full of party-goers.
The ad soon moves on from the father dancing at the club to his son’s toddler and baby days.
The scene then flashes back to the present day, as the modern version of the track echoes softly in the background; where the embarrassed teenager is embraced by his emotional father.
The official ad has divided fans. HEOne viewer writes on X that the store ‘won’ this year’s holiday ad war.
Other fans noted how the retailer relied on a white family with both a mother and father to tell its story at a time when many ads featured diverse casts.
“I swear John Lewis’ Christmas adverts get worse every year, it’s not very Christmasy anyway,” one viewer told I was expecting something cuter.’
The official ad has divided fans. HEOne viewer writes on X that the store ‘won’ this year’s holiday ad war.
Other fans noted how the retailer relied on a white family with both a mother and father to tell its story at a time when many ads featured diverse casts.
One viewer told I was expecting something cuter.’
