CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Christmas isn't Christmas without a blazing row over the turkey, as our testers' festive lunch always proves. This year, a twist: bring a car you want to champion. VICKY PARROTT ducks the flying sprouts

- VICKY PARROTT

Christmas is a time of comforting traditions, isn’t it? In our household, Christmas begins in early December with a showing of The Muppet Christmas Carol while we wrestle the Christmas tree into place, before sitting down for baked Camembert and garlic bread. It’s my favourite day of the season.

There is, however, another tradition that heralds the true beginning of the Christmas period for us here at Autocar Towers and that is - of course - the road testers’ Christmas lunch. In previous years, we've gifted a surprise car to fellow lunch attendees, with mixed levels of gratitude. I’m not sure that road test editor Matt Saunders has yet forgiven me for giving him a brown Volvo estate a few years back.

This year, we've decided to keep it simple. We just have to turn up with a car from the past 12 months that we want to champion - either because it appeals to us the most personally, or because we think it is genuinely the most outstanding car of the year, for whatever reason. Staff writer Sam Phillips will be the judge for the event and decide whose car is the winner.

I mean, this is the kind of remit that Christmas dreams are made of, isn’t it? Here you are, with the ability to contact any car manufacturer in the land and ask for a car to show off to your mates while having lunch on expenses. I know... You could argue that Christmas really does come every day at Autocar, and we wouldn't disagree with you if you did, but nonetheless this is definitely one of the best days ‘in the office’.