Asda, Havas Go Gnome for Christmas in Punny Campaign

Let Britain's holiday ad blizzard begin

Get lost, Christmas elves. Here come the gnomes!

The annual U.K. Christmas advertising blitz begins with a :90 from supermarket chain Asda. In the spot below, Havas London and Hungry Man director Bryan Buckley combine animation, live action … and a veritable army of gnomes.

During an icy storm, only two employees arrive at work, not nearly enough to prep the shop floor for the festive season. So, naturally—amid more silly wordplay than we’ve ever gnome—they summon hundreds of ceramic garden statues to help.

Cue The A-Team theme, and let the holiday happenings begin:

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The visuals are eye-catching and action-packed. It rocks an epic yuletide vibe.

But we felt tired by the end, as if we’d absorbed too much holiday revelry and needed an Xmas-Day nap. And they tossed in a version of Chris Rae’s seasonal mainstay “Driving Home for Christmas”—with one word changed.

Please, gnome more!

That said, kudos for trying something new. Asda made a point of not trading on too-familiar tropes, like Buddy the Elf or famished Michael Bublé.

“This year, we wanted to create something which felt completely unique to Asda,” Havas London CCO Vicki Maguire tells Muse. “We took inspiration from a much-loved existing Asda product—gnomes. Fans wait for the latest gnome characters to come into the store, and people proudly place them in their gardens and homes. Some even give them names.”

I’d call mine Gnomer. No I wouldn’t.

The five hero “gnomies” from the ad will soon grace Asda’s aisles. They are: Max, Grincky, Gnibbles, Gnarla and Gnorma. They’re a notably diverse lot, including a drag-artist fashionista.

The campaign breaks across Asda channels including online, OOH and in-store media. ITV will air the spot tonight during Coronation Street.