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Barry From EastEnders Is Lidl’s Christmas Hook, With a Slade Remix
Lidl’s Christmas Everybody pairs Shaun Williamson and Chris Kamara with a reworked Merry Xmas Everybody. What a borrowed song does for a brand.
Lidl has borrowed one of the most famous Christmas songs in Britain. “Lidl Christmas Everybody” reworks Slade’s “Merry Xmas Everybody” with Shaun Williamson, best known as Barry from EastEnders, and Chris Kamara.
What happened
Ad Ranking’s 2026 Christmas ads tracker says the campaign launched on 3 November. The full music video runs three minutes 25 seconds. Williamson goes door to door with Lidl food.
Ad Ranking’s view is that a song this familiar could carry any brand.
Why it matters
A borrowed song does half the job before a word is sung: people recognise it, hum it and remember it. That makes it cheap to recognise, and it leaves room for a price claim, which is what a discounter needs to say.
The risk is the flip side. If any brand could use the song, the song is not yours. What makes it Lidl is the casting and the food, not the tune.
What it means for your brand
- Borrow familiarity, then add your own twist. A known tune, a known face and your product is a quick way to be remembered. Our guide to brand story examples shows how brands do it.
- Make sure the brand is what people remember. If a competitor could swap in their logo, the idea is not distinctive enough. Start from your brand strategy.
- Keep the price message clear. Familiarity buys attention; clarity closes the sale. See brand positioning examples.
Cover photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash.
