Sleighing it!

Think you have your work cut out hosting festivities? Meet the women who organise Christmas on a grand scale

- GEORGIA GREEN

Festive hosting is a massive undertaking. Whether you're providing lunch for the family (plus vegan friends, overbearing in-laws and tantrumming toddlers) or simply throwing a Christmas drinks party for the neighbours, it's a challenge. From nailing your timings to ensuring everyone has a full glass and a glad heart, the labour required can be Herculean. Now imagine catering for hundreds, or even thousands, of people - the hostess with the mostest responsibilities!

Every year, Hélène Darroze, chef patron at London's The Connaught hotel, and Liz Taylor, a professional party planner, bring Christmas to life for the masses. From planning menus in July to flying in Diana Ross (yes, really!), they reveal how they pull off a cracker of a Christmas - and how you can do it too.

'Caviar, lobster and champagne for hundreds!'

Hélène Darroze, 58, is chef patron of her three Michelin-starred restaurant at The Connaught in London, and serves the finest food to her guests on Christmas Day. She lives with her daughters Charlotte, 18, and Quiterie, 16.

Our guests make their Christmas Day bookings very early and naturally they want to know what will be on the menu - so Christmas preparations start in July. At a fine-dining restaurant, nobody expects the traditional festive meal with all the trimmings, so you won't find a Christmas turkey here. Guests come to us because they love our philosophy of food, so I work with the produce of the season, and we usually do some poultry, oysters, caviar, scallops and lobster.

I opened Hélène Darroze at The Connaught in 2008 - it wasn't something I had planned but when I visited the hotel I fell in love with it. I shared many of its values - elegance, a focus on the details and always looking to reach the best for our guests. Now, I get to cook in one of the most beautiful places in London.