Marcus Rashford stars as radish in Aldi Christmas ad

Marcus Rashford is the star of a new Aldi Christmas TV advert styled on Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, as the company pledged to donate 1.8m meals to families over the festive period.

The England footballer lends his voice to an anthropomorphic root vegetable Marcus Radishford in the animated video, which tells the story of Ebanana Scrooge, a miserable banana who is not a fan of Christmas.

Long-term Aldi Christmas mascot Kevin the Carrot returns to remind the banana of the spirit of Christmas. During their tour of the joys of Christmas, the pair encounter Radishford, and by the end of the ad, the changed banana is spreading his own positive goodwill. It ends with the narrator, actor Jim Broadbent, saying: “The moral of the story? The answer you’ll find … for you to be happy, you need to be kind.”

Aldi works with Neighbourly, which links businesses to charitable organisations in local communities, to donate its surplus food to local causes.

Rashford was awarded an MBE by the Duke of Cambridge this week for his campaign to support vulnerable children. The 24-year-old footballer was recognised for his efforts last summer to ensure no child in need went hungry, which resulted in the government changing policy over its free school meals vouchers during lockdown.

He said: “As a family, we relied on the local food bank to get our Christmas dinner. To this day, I remember queueing outside that building with mum, mum feeling embarrassed that she might be recognised … For many children in situations like mine growing up, there is very little expectation around this time of year; add the impact of the pandemic and the very least they deserve is a Christmas dinner.”

Sharing the ad on his Twitter page, Rashford wrote: “Well done @AldiUK. This is much bigger than a Christmas ad ( …) might not be Oscar-worthy but glad I could play my part.”

Aldi UK’s marketing director, Sean McGinty, said: “Christmas is a time for hope, and we’re privileged to be working with Marcus, who is one of the most inspirational young people in the UK, having done so much in the past 18 months to help provide free school meals for children.

“At the same time, it wouldn’t be the festive season without Kevin the Carrot on our TV screens, and we’re thrilled to be bringing him back for the sixth year for his many fans, in what we think is his best Yuletide performance yet.”