The Festive Social was well organised with plenty of instructions and information in advance. Unlike me, who was still was wrapping the present for Secret Santa and finishing off my cake for the Bake-off with minutes to spare before I had to dash for my train.

At least I got there in plenty of time and could help Chloe and Dot set up.

We had a room booked at the Oppidan on Edge Street, but we seemed to have the whole place to ourselves.

Soon the other guests started to arrive. We were 18 in total.

We started with chatting and mingling, enjoyed mulled wine and sampled the goodies prepared for the Bake-off.

There were vegan mince pies; butter biscuits, dyed green and in the shape of Christmas trees and holly leaves; chocolate macaroons, decorated like Rudolf the Reindeer; Rollitos de Naranja, complete with a list of ingredients; plus, my chocolate and nut gateau. Of course, I had to try them all. And we had to vote for our favourite – a difficult decision!

Then it was time for the Quiz. We got together in teams of 4. There was one round all about numbers and one round where you had to recognise a carol by a rhyming couplet. That was hard! For the final round, somebody from each team had to hum a Christmas tune and the others guess. I think we all got full points for that one.

The winning team was Kate Lo, Helen Jones, Kirsty Olivant, Marta Cisa and Kat Slater (editor’s note: I can’t remember the team name!).

After that, we had the Secret Santa, with Dot handing out the presents. There was a full variety, from socks to a vase. Thank you, Santa, for my beautiful writing pad and colourful pens.

Photos next. The lady at reception was very obliging and also agreed to act as the judge for the best outfit. The title went to Katell, for her very creative Sugar Cane. She even took on the correct pose!

And then the winner of the Bake-Off was revealed. It was Dot and her mince pies. They got my vote too, especially as some of them had jam in them – much preferable to mince, in my opinion.

After top-ups of mulled wine, tea and coffee, we were ready for the Karaoke. Unfortunately, the sound system was a bit low, but that didn’t stop us, and we were all jiggling along to Wham and Slade.

We all helped to clean up afterwards, and a smaller contingent went on to the Christmas markets to sample some more mulled or other drinks.

I don’t know how long the festivities continued, as I had to leave a bit before 6.

All in all, a very enjoyable day – I certainly felt the next day that I may have enjoyed it too much…