It's been seven years in planning, 180 women have been involved across three separate clinical trials (plus another 2,600 volunteers in consumer trials), but later this week No7 will unveil its new and improved Protect & Perfect Advanced serums to the skincare wearing masses and just like the last time, our expectations are HUGE.

If you're reading this from the comfort of your sleeping bag on the pavement outside your local Boots, chances are you got a tip off (fyi, they land on Wednesday). For the rest of you, here's the lowdown on why these new No7 serums (NB. there are two this time) are likely to make major tremors on your high street. 

If you're feeling de ja vu it's because we've, sort of, been here before. Back in 2008, No7 launched the original Protect & Perfect franchise to an almighty cavalcade of praise from both researchers and real women who were quite simply bowled over with the very tangible results of an anti-ageing line that a) worked and b) didn't cost the earth. Of course it helped that the BBC's Horizon decided to test the so-called wonder serum and reported back that it did, indeed, visibly lessen the depth of wrinkles. Now it's back with two brand new suped up 'advanced' serums, the fruits of a collaboration with dermatology experts at the University of Manchester, which we're predicting will make the biggest splash in the high street skincare market since the original launch seven years ago.

As previously mentioned, there are two serums. Protect & Perfect Advanced Serum, £23.95 - for those concerned with the first signs of ageing (roughly speaking the 25-35 year old age group) and Protect & Perfect Advanced Serum Intense, £24.95  -  a more concentrated 'Intense' version which No7 cite as suitable for those 35 and up. Of course, it really all depends on the current condition of your skin. There's no hard and fast rule on which you should be using.

"No7 launched Protect & Perfect seven years ago to an almighty cavalcade of praise from both researchers and real women"

So, apart from the name and packaging, what else is new about these 'advanced' serums? Well, really it comes down to the inclusion of a new type of Matrixyl, Matrixyl 3000 which helps to repair the broken down fibres in skin that cause wrinkles. There's also another type of peptide, acetyl-di-peptide, which works in synergy with this new type of Matrixyl as well as salicylic acid to smooth, antioxidants to neutralise free-radicals and an alfalfa complex which inhibits the break down of collagen in the skin.

But we don't have to take No7's word for it. So convinced are the creators on the efficacy of these new super serums they conducted an experiment with eight women over one month where they actually removed all the mirrors from participants' houses and workplaces so they couldn't see the changes in their skin as they used it, until the end of the one month trial that is. Needless to say, the response, though purely qualitative, was hugely positive and will form the basis of their brand new ad campaign. As No7 would say, it really is a bit of a Ta Dah moment.