the journey john lewis

John Lewis Christmas adverts over the years, from Sir Elton John to an excitable dragon

This year the annual John Lewis Christmas advert – now a highly anticipated staple of the festive season – is all about kindness. 

The John Lewis Partnership has said its latest Christmas advert highlights the kindness of the British public during the pandemic after it questioned whether it would be appropriate to make the ad at all this year.

The retail giant said it had considered shelving the production of its highly-anticipated annual marketing campaign but said charity partners persuaded it to go ahead.

The partnership said it is aiming to raise £4 million for two charities – FareShare, which helps those facing food poverty and Home-Start, which works with parents who need support – through the campaign. It has pledged to match all customer donations up to £2 million.

In previous years the firm’s ads have starred everyone from Elton John to an excitable dragon.

Here is a rundown of the ads and their soundtrack s since the first one screened in 2007.

2007: Shadows

The ad shows a group of people stacking a pile of gifts including a desktop lamp, a computer and a leather satchel in an empty room. The finished product ends up creating a shadow that looks like a woman walking her dog through the snow, accompanied by the tagline: “Whoever you’re looking for this Christmas.”

2008: From Me To You

Culminating in the tagline: “If you know the person, you’ll find the present”, it shows a succession of characters followed by a matching gift.

The soundtrack is a cover of The Beatles’ From Me To You recorded for the campaign, with vocals by Matt Spinner, a member of the John Lewis IT department, and its music society.

2009: Sweet Child O’ Mine

This was the first of the store’s Christmas campaigns created by advertising agency Adam & Eve, now adam&eveDDB, and the first to feature a musical cover by a current artist, on this occasion a Taken By Trees version of Sweet Child O’ Mine by Guns N’ Roses.

The ad shows children opening gifts for adults including a laptop, coffee machine and handbag, followed by the tagline: “Remember how Christmas used to feel? Give someone that feeling.”

2010: A Tribute To Givers

Raye reveals she made McDonald’s trip at 6am after record-breaking win at Brits

The £2 million revamp of the Gallagher brother's favourite Savile Row tailor

Dua Lipa and Becky Hill sport racy black gowns on Brit Awards red carpet

What you need to know when buying a pre-loved electric car

Ellie Goulding’s cover of Sir Elton John’s Your Song was the soundtrack to this ad, which showed parents sneaking a rocking horse upstairs while their children watched television, a man struggling to wrap a pair of candlesticks, a mechanic attempting to wrap a teapot at work and a young boy hanging a stocking on his dog’s kennel.

2011: The Long Wait

Set to Slow Moving Millie’s cover of Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths, the ad shows a young boy impatiently counting down to Christmas, only to show that his real motivation was to give presents to his parents.

2012: The Journey

A snowman traverses mountains and motorways to get to a shop to buy his snow girlfriend a scarf to keep her warm.

The soundtrack is Gabrielle Aplin’s cover of The Power Of Love by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and the tagline is: “Give a little more love this Christmas.”

2013: The Bear And The Hare

Lily Allen’s cover of Keane’s Somewhere Only We Know accompanies an animated tale that opens with the line: “There was once an animal who had never seen Christmas.” It goes on to show the friendship between a bear and a hare until the bear departs to hibernate when snow starts to fall. The hare thinks of the perfect Christmas present for the bear, an alarm clock to allow him to wake up and experience Christmas.

2014: Monty The Penguin

Monty, who hopes for love at Christmas time, is the imaginary character created by a boy whose favourite toy is a stuffed penguin. A female penguin toy happily arrives under the tree for Monty on Christmas Day.

The ad features a Tom Odell cover of John Lennon’s Real Love.

2015: Man On The Moon

The biggest tearjerker of them all shows a young girl who spots a lonely old man on the moon and decides to send him a telescope to give him a connection to Earth. The partnership with Age UK had the tagline: “Show someone they’re loved this Christmas.”

Norwegian artist Aurora provided the soundtrack with a cover of Half The World Away by Oasis.

2016: Buster The Boxer

The story of Buster, who makes a break for the new Christmas trampoline after having to suffer watching foxes, a badger, squirrels and a hedgehog trying it out first, was accompanied by a cover of Randy Crawford’s One Day I’ll Fly Away by electronic trio Vaults.

2017: Moz The Monster

A friendship develops between seven-year-old Joe and his imaginary monster under the bed, Moz, based on a mutual love of late-night Scalextric and piggyback games. Moz eventually realises that their late nights must end when he sees the toll they are taking on Joe. Joe wakes on Christmas morning to find a clumsily wrapped present of a nightlight under the tree.

The ad was set to a cover of Beatles song Golden Slumbers by Manchester band Elbow.

2018: The Boy And The Piano

The Christmas campaign took its first celebrity turn by making Sir Elton John the star of this ad, with his performance of Your Song the soundtrack to a festive-tinged retrospective of his life and career.

The ad opens with the superstar tapping out the opening notes to Your Song, his first major hit, and ends with the four-year-old Elton running down the stairs on Christmas morning and unwrapping his grandmother’s gift of her piano.

2019: Excitable Edgar

An exuberant young dragon called Edgar who almost derails festivities in a medieval village with his fire-breathing excitement; accidentally melting the ice-rink, reducing a snowman to a puddle and setting fire to a Christmas tree as his anxious friend Ava looks on.

The advert, the first in partnership with Waitrose , was set to a recording of REO Speedwagon’s Can’t Fight This Feeling by Dan Smith from the band Bastille and was filmed over two weeks in Budapest with a live extras cast of around 100 people.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Sign up you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy notice .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

John Lewis Spent $10 Million On This Epic Viral Christmas Ad

Every year since 2007, British department store John Lewis has kicked off the Christmas shopping season with a gigantic, big-budget, over-the-top Christmas ad. This year is no exception, as The Daily Telegraph's Harry Wallop reports.

The ad features a snowman, who goes on a journey, trekking across fields, rivers and mountains before before finding himself in a big, bad city. Only in the last frame of the advert does it become apparent that the snowman has been on a mission to John Lewis to do his Christmas shopping for his snow woman.

Though the company and its advertising agency, AdamAndEveDDB, ensures that the John Lewis brand does not actually feature anywhere in the 90-second advert, except in a final frame.

The advert was filmed during the summer in New Zealand, one of the few places guaranteed to be snowy in July, according John Lewis’s marketing director, Craig Inglis. The city scenes were filmed in Auckland, and the snow-covered country scenes near Queenstown. Part of the lavish budget was involved in shipping out British road signs and a red telephone box to New Zealand to ensure the city scenes looked authentically British.

Related stories

The retailer, which did not advertise on the television until 2007, has won a reputation for creating memorable Christmas adverts, which have avoided the traditional fare of either celebrities or scenes of happy families gathered around the tree, which most of the high street chains favour.

Last year its tale of a boy desperately waiting for the big day so he could give a present to his parents was both widely praised and as well as parodied. On YouTube it garnered 4.32 million views.

Mr Inglis said that he was confident that people would not be disappointed that snowmen had replaced humans in this year’s advert.

“When you watch it again and again you grow to love the snowman and start to look him as a human, and you look him in the same way you did the kid last year. The snowman becomes a metaphor for that child.

“The fact is we have to keep it interesting.”

The snowman’s dauntless journey is accompanied by John Lewis’s now trademark soundtrack of a breathy, young, female covering a classic pop song. Last year it was Slow Moving Millie's cover of The Smiths' ‘Please, Please, Let me Get What I Want’. This year it is Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s ‘The Power of Love’, sung by Gabrielle Aplin, a folk singer from Bath.

The advert, which has been trailed all week on Channel 4, will first be shown at 9.10pm on Friday during an advert break in Derren Brown's new show.

• Main content

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

John Lewis uses Power of Love for its Christmas campaign

Covers of old favourites recorded for John Lewis TV commercials since 2009 have already sold more than 1 million units. If previous Christmas ads for the retailer are anything to go by, then 20-year-old Gabrielle Aplin could shift as many 80,000 copies of her rendition of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's The Power of Love, which accompanies this year's snowman-centric offering .

The Journey, the title of John Lewis's ad, was released online at 9.30am on Friday and breaks on TV, on Channel 4, at 9.10pm. However, Aplin, the singer, tweeted just after 6pm that her song was already No 24 in the iTunes chart.

Since matching a cover of Guns N' Roses' Sweet Child O' Mine to its 2009 Christmas TV campaign, resulting in a hit song that landed just outside the top 20, John Lewis commercials have become more talked about than the programmes they interrupt.

This year, John Lewis chose the relatively unknown singer Aplin with her version of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's 1984 No 1 hit for its Christmas TV ad.

Aplin's version was chosen over as many eight submitted to John Lewis, some from well-known acts such as electropop duo La Roux, and will be played in almost every household in the run up to Christmas thanks to a £6m marketing blitz by the retailer.

This despite the fact that John Lewis's marketing director, Craig Inglis, the man behind the transformation of the company's advertising in recent years, admitted that he does not like Frankie's original version of The Power of Love.

"I wasn't a huge fan of the original song, but it is not about that," he said. "It was about listening to [Aplin's] demo, her interpretation, listening to what it was like and if it had that sparkle. It was clear from the first few seconds, it is not about my personal choice on the music, it is about what works for the ad."

Songs from John Lewis's three Christmas ads since 2009, plus other commercials from the retailer including the 2010 ad featuring Fyfe Dangerfield's cover of She's Always A Woman, have sold a total of 1,070,000 units.

By far the biggest seller was Ellie Goulding's cover of Elton John's Your Song, which accompanied the 2010 Christmas commercial, shifting 725,000 units and staying in the charts for 26 weeks, reaching No 2.

Dangerfield's cover of She's Always A Woman, a song from Billy Joel's 1977 album Stranger, was in the charts for 14 weeks reaching No 7.

In 2009, the Taken by Trees cover of Sweet Child O'Mine sold 71,000 copies and hit No 23 in the chart; last year, Slow Moving Millie's version of The Smith's Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want shifted 83,000 and reached No 31.

If the public take to the ad and song then Aplin, who described being chosen to for the ad as "like winning X Factor", could hope to hit sales of this level.

"The sales are in no small part a reflection of the success and credibility of the ads," said Inglis. "Artists want to do it, it feel credible being involved, it is a reflection of a change of dynamics in the industry. We have record labels and artists approaching us which I never would have believed would have happened a few years ago."

According to music industry body the British Phonographic Industry, licensing tie-ups between record companies and film, TV and advertising companies, referred to as "sync" deals, is still small but rapidly growing. Revenues from UK music synchronisation – the use of recordings in films, TV programmes, advertising and games – grew 12% year-on-year to £18m in 2011.

This recent run of successful commercials has borne fruit from the partnership between Inglis and the advertising agency adam&eveDDB.

"Music plays a powerful part in these ads because music is shorthand for feeling and emotion," said James Murphy, adam&eveDDB's chief executive. "And it is also increasingly important for the music business as so many people are dual screening, using laptops and tablets and smartphones while watching TV, that if they hear something they like they instantly look to buy it. That dynamic is becoming increasingly important to the music industry."

The John Lewis ad campaign, which was filmed in New Zealand ("the only place we could find reliable snow in July"), will appear in shows including The X Factor and Derren Brown's Fear and Faith.

Inglis, who said John Lewis punches well above its weight despite spending about half as much as its big rivals on advertising, added that the strategy is to target "premium programmes, programmes that drive conversations and allows the ad to become part of that".

The John Lewis ads that fuelled 1m-plus in music sales

Christmas 2011

Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want

Slow Moving Millie's cover of The Smith's

Peak position : 31

Weeks in chart : 7

Sales : 83,000

Christmas 2010

Ellie Goulding cover of Elton John

Peak position : 2

Weeks in chart : 26

Sales : 725,000

Christmas 2009

Sweet Child O'Mine

Taken by Trees cover of Guns N' Roses

Peak position : 23

Weeks in chart : 6

Sales : 71,000

Summer 2010

She's Always a Woman

Fyfe Dangerfield cover of Billy Joel

Peak position : 7

Weeks in chart : 14

Sales : Unknown but almost certainly close to 200,000 given length of time and peak in chart.

To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email [email protected] or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".

• Advertising
• Advert review
• Retail industry

Comments (…)

Most viewed.

From Selma to two capitols: Photos of John Lewis' final journey

Rep. John Lewis, a civil rights icon and fierce advocate of voting rights for African Americans, died on July 17 at the age of 80.

Military pallbearers carry the casket of Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., into Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church for a private service on Saturday, July 25, 2020 in Selma, Alabama.

Ceremonies honoring the life of the civil rights icon will trace his journey from his childhood in Troy, Alabama, to his historic return to Selma following the Montgomery voting rights trail, to his distinguished career as a member of Congress in Washington. Finally, his funeral will be held at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.

Audience members stand and clap after Gospel recording artist Dottie Peoples sang "On Time God" during "The Boy from Troy" service celebrating the life of Rep. John Lewis in Troy, Ala.

Mourners attend the memorial service for Lewis at Troy University's Trojan Arena. 

Mourners pay their respects as Lewis lies in repose in Troy. 

People sign an oversized card for the family of Lewis in Troy. 

Men from the Willie Watkins Funeral Home scatter rose petals, representing the blood spilled on "Bloody Sunday," on the Edmund Pettus Bridge before the start of the procession in Selma, Alabama, on Sunday.

On March 7, 1965 Lewis and other civil rights leaders were attacked by Alabama State Police while marching across the bridge in support of voting rights for African Americans. The day would come to be known as "Bloody Sunday."

A horse-drawn carriage carries Lewis' coffin across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. 

An Alabama State Trooper salutes the casket after it was carried across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. 

Calls have grown to rename the bridge after Lewis. 

The casket is carried by a joint services military honor guard to a hearse at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Monday.

The hearse moves along a section of 16th Street that's been renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington.

Construction workers watch as a hearse with the flag-draped casket passes by in Washington.

A U.S. military honor guard carries the casket up the Capitol steps prior to a memorial service in the Capitol Rotunda.

The flag-draped casket of Rep. John Lewis lies in state at the Capitol.

Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden pause at the flag-draped casket of Rep. John Lewis as he lies in state at the Capitol.

Members of Congress sit around the casket of Rep. John Lewis at the center of the Capitol Rotunda.

Lewis' casket is carried by a joint services military honor guard from Capitol Hill on July 29.

Michael Collins, Rep. John Lewis' long-time chief of staff, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi embrace after Lewis' casket was carried from the Capitol.

A military honor guard brings Rep. John Lewis' casket into the Georgia Capitol to lie in state in Atlanta.

Members of Congress wait for the program to start at the funeral service for Lewis at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta on Thursday.

Mourners gather outside Ebenezer Baptist Church during Lewis' funeral service in Atlanta on Thursday.

Former President Barack Obama speak s during Lewis' funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta on Thursday.

The Week in Pictures:  John Lewis' journey home and launch of a Mars rover

• Cast & crew

John Lewis: The Journey

Add a plot in your language

• Dougal Wilson

Did you know

• Soundtracks Frankie Goes to Hollywood (uncredited) Performed by Gabrielle Aplin

User reviews

• November 2012 (United Kingdom)
• United Kingdom
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 minutes

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• IMDb Answers: Help fill gaps in our data
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed

• Breaking News
• University Guide
• Meghan Markle
• Prince Harry
• King Charles III

A snowman's secret journey and The Power of Love: How John Lewis hopes to melt our hearts this Christmas

By Sean Poulter for the Daily Mail

Published: 19:42 EDT, 7 November 2012 | Updated: 03:38 EDT, 8 November 2012

View comments

Last year it was a little boy with a big heart who left viewers misty-eyed in the John Lewis Christmas commercial.

This year the department store is banking on a lovestruck snowman to do the same.

Its Christmas ad, called The  Journey, shows the extraordinary lengths to which some will go in their search for a gift for someone they love.

Winter wonderland: The snowman gazes up into the sky in the new John Lewis Christmas advert

Epic journey: He's on the quest to find the perfect present

The 90-second commercial opens in a family’s snow-covered garden, with children happily making a snowman and snowwoman.

When the snowman mysteriously disappears the next morning, the viewer is transported to a magical world, following him on an epic journey across river, mountain, road and city.

RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

The motive for the snowman’s secret journey isn’t revealed until the last scene, when he returns  on Christmas morning with gifts for his wife.

Newcomer Gabrielle Aplin sings The Power Of Love, the 1984 hit from Frankie Goes To Hollywood, as the soundtrack.

The 20-year-old singer from Bath has been signed to Parlophone records and her version of The Power Of Love will be released as a single to be followed by an album of her own songs.

Bleating the crowds: The snowman faces a flock of sheep as he leaves his love behind

He must be in love! The snowman braces himself for the high street as part of his long journey

Your heart's desire: The snowman and his love in the new John Lewis Christmas commercial, which has boosted sales for the company

The new commercial was directed by Dougal Wilson, who was also behind last year’s hit Christmas ad about a little boy impatiently waiting for Christmas so he could give his parents a present.

He was also responsible for the spring 2010 ‘Always A Woman’ commercial showing a woman’s life from infancy to old age. Both generated enormous reaction on social websites, with Facebook and Twitter users telling how they were moved to tears.

The ads were also viewed tens of millions of times on YouTube.

Last week the John Lewis campaign, launched in 2009 by agencies Adam and Eve and Manning Gottleib OMD, won top prize at advertising industry awards, acknowledging the part it had played in boosting the store’s sales.

Asked about the pressure John Lewis was under to match the success of previous commercials, marketing director Craig Inglis said:  ‘The eyes are on us and it is great that our advertisements have caused so many conversations and people are so engaged with them. We relish that.’

This year’s Christmas commercial will be shown for the first time tomorrow at 9.10pm on Channel 4.

John Lewis is also putting it on its website and YouTube channel.

Share or comment on this article: John Lewis Christmas advert 2012: A snowman's secret journey and The Power of Love

Most watched news videos.

• Moment British tourists scatter loved-one's ashes into sea in Turkey
• Pastor husband seen lying on ground and moaning during 'breakdown'
• Wild moment would-be mugger gets stabbed by victims
• King Charles unveils first official portrait since Coronation
• Terrifying moment people take cover in bus during prison van attack
• 'I wish I could take it home': Public reacts to King Charles' portrait
• Youths shout abuse at local after warnings to avoid crumbling dunes
• Incoming Dutch government promises 'strictest asylum rules ever'
• Amazon security guard engages in dramatic shootout with police
• Horrifying moment Amazon employee tries to kill supervisor
• Family comes face-to-face with cougar after it chased their pets
• Rishi Sunak claims he 'can't remember' his own sex education

• Follow DailyMail
• Subscribe Daily Mail
• Follow @dailymail
• Follow MailOnline
• Follow Daily Mail

From the Makers of Candy Crush

• Back to top

Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd

Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group

• the Work The best new work, curated by shots.
• the Craft Q&As and behind-the-scenes.
• the Talent The people who make the spots you love.
• the Inspiration Inspiration for creative minds.
• the News Industry moves and breaking campaigns.
• the Insight Thought-pieces and opinions.
• the Showcase Showreels and monthly round-ups.
• the Focus Our monthly digital magazine.
• shots Awards
• shots Unsigned
• Source Membership
• About shots
• Submit Your Work
• Terms & Conditions
• Privacy Policy

John Lewis: The Journey

It isn't Christmas without a John Lewis ad, and this year Dougal Wilson takes us on a magical journey for gifts.

Nescafe shows why a watched pot should never boil

Skrillex: Breakin' a Sweat

John lewis – john lewis: the journey.

• Production Company Blink Productions

Unlock full credits and more with a Source + shots membership.

• Post Production MPC London
• Editing Company Final Cut
• Editor Joe Guest
• Director of Photography Eduard Grau
• Art Director Andy Kelly
• Agency Producer Lucie Georgeson
• Executive Producer James Bland
• Creative Shay Reading
• Creative Frank Ginger
• Director Dougal Wilson
• Producer Ben Link
• Creative Director Ben Priest

It isn't Christmas without a John Lewis ad, and this year Blink 's Dougal Wilson takes us on a magical journey for gifts. adam&eveDDB create the scene in a snow-covered garden before a snowman comes to life and departs for the high street rush. Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Power of Love is the music of choice, covered by Gabrielle Aplin, a 20-year-old singer signed to Parlophone Records and has a debut album scheduled for release in 2013.

Connections

• Agency adam&eveDDB
• Production Blink Productions

Unlock this information and more with a Source membership.

Kasbo’s troubled waters

Jessie McCall’s emotive directorial debut sees the Swedish electronic artist swirling in stormy seas.

Women in Tech Global breaks the glass ceiling

The worldwide organisation for diversity in STEM launches a cleverly-crafted campaign portraying the barriers that limit women's ambitions.

AICP's artistic expedition

Every journey starts with the first step, and in this funny short film from David Shane, promoting AICP Week 2024, the first step is navigating some awkward news.

Vabysmo’s child’s eye view

The ophthalmic product from pharma giant Genentech launches a touching animated film from the POV of a son becoming a retina specialist and helping his mother's failing eyesight.

See full credits for all work featured and have instant access to the world's most powerful and comprehensive advertising database.

Stay up-to-date with the latest news, insight and inspiration for the creative community.

Access the world's largest advertising database. With an intuitive toolset that helps you explore, present and collaborate more effectively.

Custom-built for the advertising industry, with extensive showreel options and powerful streaming software.

Upgrade your showreels today.

To access full credit, contact, company and people information, you'll need a Source membership. Click below to find out how to super-charge your shots experience with the world's most comprehensive advertising database.

John Lewis - The Journey

Brought onboard by adam&eveDDB to find the perfect song and reinterpret it for another wonderfully executed John Lewis Christmas ad, we managed to achieve the brand's first UK No.1 hit with over 400,000 sales of Gabrielle Aplin's "The Power Of Love". We covered all aspects of music research, licensing and re-record supervision, capitalising on the opportunity to explore additional tie-ins between artist and brand, such as in-store performances and artist focused PR.

John Lewis reported their best ever Christmas sales in 2012.

D&AD Awards:

Use of Music for Film Advertising (In Book)

Music + Sound Awards:

Best Re-Record or Adaptation

We are a renowned team specialising in music curation, development, and licensing, offering comprehensive music supervision services for filmmakers and brands. 

Our award-winning team has spearheaded iconic advertising campaigns for Nike, Paralympics, The Super Bowl, Google and Samsung, as well as the beloved John Lewis Christmas advertisements. 

In Film & TV, we've collaborated on projects including Netflix's 'Top Boy', Steve McQueen’s 'Small Axe', Kevin Macdonald's 'The Mauritanian', and Nicôle Lecky's 'Mood'. 

Our agency division represents a select roster of sought-after Film & TV composers, each celebrated for their distinctive styles and skill.

Discover more at: https://leland.co/  

Get in the Way: The Journey of John Lewis

Sponsored project.

• Kathleen Dowdey , Director/Producer
• Charles Floyd Johnson , Producer
• Donna Brown Guillaume , Producer
• Jim Carr , Producer
• Karen Elizabeth Price , Producer

About the Project

When Congressman John Lewis advocates “get in the way,” he stands behind his words, whether advancing civil rights in the 1960s or leading a 26-hour sit-in for gun control in the House this past June following the Orlando shootings. Former chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), an original Freedom Rider and a leader of the Selma march on Bloody Sunday, Lewis has always advocated nonviolence. ‘Non-violence is love in action,’ and Lewis still has plenty to spread around... (Ben F. Fischer, Woodstock Film Festival)

The first major documentary biography of Lewis, Get in the Way is a riveting, highly personalized narrative of an epic chapter in U.S. history that touches audiences deeply. Showing no sign of stopping soon, this U.S. Congressman and human rights champion demonstrates an unflagging insistence on standing up to injustice wherever he finds it using strategy, legislation and direct action.

Get in the Way has enjoyed standing ovations at film festivals (St. Louis International Film Festival; Woodstock Film Festival and Best Documentary at the International Family Film Festival) and at non-theatrical screenings (Directors Guild of America, Los Angeles; Newseum, Washington DC and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston). We are currently preparing for a PBS broadcast and educational release in 2017. Please support this film and help us reach and inspire audiences to get in the way.

Each role in the Partnership is unique. So each recruitment journey will be a little different. We want to make sure you’re the right fit, so everyone’s journey is specifically designed to make sure we get to know each other properly.

We encourage everyone who works for us to think about their potential to do better, do more or do something different in their working life. We want you to be the best you can be, whether that’s when you apply for a role with us or throughout your Partnership journey. Take time to consider what drives you and what will give you a happy and fulfilling career with us and we will do the same for you.  

Here are some of the more common questionnaires/tests and stages of the recruitment process to give you a good idea of what to expect. We have also included some hints and tips to help you along the way.

Please be aware that not every stage will be applicable to every role.

The Partnership is unlike anywhere else. And that means it might not be right for everyone. We’ve put together a series of questions (and videos for some roles) designed to show you what it’s like to work here so you can decide whether we’re the right fit for each other before you apply. These can be found on the appropriate job information pages on this site.

Our application form asks you a series of questions so that we can assess your suitability for the Partnership. As well as detailing your experience and qualifications, you’ll have an opportunity to tell us why you are right for the role and the Partnership. For some roles you will be required to upload a CV.

Please be aware that when you are invited to complete any of our online tests as part of the selection process we recommend completing these tests as soon as possible as some vacancies may close early due to high numbers of applications.

Being a Partner is a unique experience, sharing the responsibility of ownership as well as its rewards. In recognition of this, we’ve developed a questionnaire for candidates to find out if they’re aligned with this unique way of working. We sought insight into the day-to-day activities of Partners to truly understand what it means to be a Partner and the difference of working in a co-owned business. For some roles, questions will also include specific scenarios that you’d experience in the role you’re applying for. They help us to understand how you’ll respond to a variety of challenges which you may encounter on a day-to-day basis and assess your potential for the role.

Depending on the role you have applied for, you may have further questions to answer at this stage relating to the skills and experience required.

At this stage, you will also be asked to provide information on the hours you are available to work.

We are a people-focused business so, for most of our roles, you’ll need to come to one of our branches or to our offices where you’ll meet with team members to complete an interview and assessment exercise. This could be a group exercise or one that you’ll complete on your own. You will be assessed against the  Partnershi p Capability framework  and you may be asked role specific questions. Tip; familiarise yourself with the Partnership Capabilities and consider your experience, either in work or studies/hobbies, where you have demonstrated the capabilities.

Be yourself! We want to know the real you.

Read our Partnership Capabilities and the job outline beforehand as this is what you will be measured against. Contribute during the assessment exercises – it sounds obvious but you can only be assessed on what you say and do, so try to participate as much as possible.

Make sure you answer the question! It sounds really simple and obvious but so often when asked a question candidates start explaining a situation but don’t answer the question. Keep the question clearly in your mind and keep referring back to it while you answer, don’t be afraid to note it down using pen and paper, or ask the interviewer to repeat, an interview isn’t a memory test.

When using examples of what you’ve achieved with teams, think about the part you’ve played and what was your individual contribution.

Use the job outline to help you prepare. Think about what you have done in the past which demonstrates why you would be good in the role.

If the role you are applying for is in a local branch, pop in before your interview to get a feel for the atmosphere and to check you know how to get there and how long the journey will take!

For some roles, your assessment may take place virtually. You will be sent clear instructions on how the assessment will take place, including the technology required.

Tip; Ensure you are in a controlled environment where you will not be disturbed by phones ringing, someone knocking on the door, dogs barking etc etc!

For some of our roles a telephone interview may be used as part of the early stages of the selection process. This is conducted on a one-to-one basis – you’ll be asked questions based on the Partnership Capabilities and skills and experience required for the role.

The Partnership must make sure that anyone we’re looking to employ is legally allowed to work in the UK before their employment begins.

You must give the right documents showing you can work in the UK which will be checked when you have an assessment or interview. If the right documents aren’t provided your application won’t progress any further.

For more information on what documents you can bring to show you’ve the right to work, go to the Check if a document allows someone to work in the UK of the gov.uk website.

Check what you need to show

You automatically have the right to work in the UK if:

• you’re a British or Irish citizen
• you have pre-settled or settled status from the EU Settlement Scheme – or you’ve applied and you’re waiting for a decision
• you have a family permit from the EU Settlement Scheme
• you have indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK
• you have right of abode in the UK

You might have a right to work in the UK if you’ve got a visa with a time limit. This is called having ‘limited leave to enter or remain’. If your leave has ended, you don’t have the right to work in the UK.

Check if you’re a British citizen

You should check if you’re a British citizen if you’re not sure – for example, you might be a British citizen if you:

• have a British parent
• were born in the UK or a British overseas territory
• were born in a British colony before 1983

To check go to the Check if you’re a British citizen on the gov.uk website.

If you’ve got limited leave to enter or remain 

You’ll have limited leave to enter or remain if you’ve got a visa with a time limit. 

You’ll usually have a document which says if you’ve got the right to work – for example, a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP). 

You might have restrictions on the type of job or work you can do, or the number of hours you can work.

For more information on what documents you can bring to show you have the right to work, go to the Check if a document allows someone to work in the UK of the gov.uk website.

If you’ve got a student visa

You’re only allowed to work a certain number of hours. If you’re not sure how many hours you can work, you should check your immigration documents or talk to your education provider. More information on the rules about working with a student visa can be found on the Student work page of the UKCISA website.

You will be informed during the final stage selection, the timescales of when you should expect to receive an outcome, as these will vary from role to role. Please check the candidate home link and your emails regularly. If you are successful in being offered a position with us you will be notified and be able to formally accept the Employment Agreement online. We would encourage you to read the details and make a decision on whether to accept as quickly as possible. Any offer will have a built-in expiry date, so it is very important that you respond to any offer as soon as you can otherwise the offer will be withdrawn on the expiry date given.

At various points in the recruitment process, all candidates will have been asked to provide documents to show they have the legal right to work in the UK. Please use the links below to find out which documents we accept and what you will be asked to do.

Accepted Documents  – this will take you to the Government Website for the most up to date information

Should we make an offer of employment, you will be able to formally accept the position online as well as completing any pre-employment checks and your health questionnaire.

Once we’ve agreed a start date with you, you will have access to Workday where you’ll find out more information about what to expect from being a Partner and the business. You will also be able to input your bank details which must be done prior to your start date to ensure you are paid correctly and on time.

We believe that becoming a Partner is something to be proud of. Earning Membership is a simple framework for new starters to our business. It is in place to ensure that new Partners share our values and that the Partnership is the right for them as well. Find out more  here .

Realistic Job Preview

Making Your Application

Online Assessment

“Make sure you really tailor your application to the role you are applying for and consider each of the questions asked on the application form carefully.”

“Regularly check your communication centre once you have applied, so that you know exactly how your application is progressing. You will only have two days to complete online tests so make sure you don’t miss key deadlines.”

Stand out from the crowd and differentiate yourself – use your application to demonstrate why what you’ve got to offer is unique.

If attaching a CV, make sure it’s up-to-date and well-presented. Keep it concise and ensure the recruiters can quickly and clearly see evidence that you’re suitable.

We may need to know whether you have the skills and capabilities to do the role you’re applying for so we may also ask you to complete some tests specific to your industry knowledge, e.g. coding exercise, accountancy skills or Excel.

Additional Questions

Right to Work

We are a people-focused business so, for most of our roles, you’ll need to come to one of our branches or to our offices where you’ll meet with team members to complete an interview and assessment exercise. This could be a group exercise or one that you’ll complete on your own. You will be assessed against the  Partnership Capability framework  and you may be asked role specific questions. Tip; familiarise yourself with the Partnership Capabilities and consider your experience, either in work or studies/hobbies, where you have demonstrated the capabilities.

Things to do before you join us

Earning membership