You've probably had your Christmas party already. Firms - if they're having parties at all - seem to push them earlier and earlier every year. Presumably in the faint hope that if they hold the party in mid-November, people won't get too drunk and vomit on their shoes and dry-hump under dirty fairy lights because they'll have to see the same colleagues for the next month before they finally vanish for the merciful respite of a three-day break from the office.

I was upset to learn last week that Jones Day has cancelled its annual pantomime, a bread-and-circuses enforced-fun-fest in which trainees (and, as I recall, vacation scheme students) were required to act the goat on stage for the general edification of the rest of the firm. Cancelled, no doubt, because prevailing wise heads in Cleveland (a post-industrial wasteland of a city hardly known for festive cheer) saw that the whole thing was a complete recipe for disaster. Especially as the event was actually recorded for posterity - handy evidence for any employment tribunals to come.

But what now for the thirsty employees of Jones Day? It turns out that they all gleefully troop out for an evening of "rockaoke" - live action karaoke - staff taking it in turns to gurn their way through "Livin' on a Prayer". Oh, to be a fly on that wall.






A Christmas party (c.2006)








In these austere times, parties (at least in my experience) have gradual slid from black tie dinners  (taxis home provided) to a meal in a chain restaurant to two hours of reserved square footage of floor space in All Bar One, some cheesy puffs and some lukewarm white wine. Well, something like that. But it seems that some firms are still pumping money into festive son et lumière. In fact, we already know about the extravagent yet rather-too-racy goings on at one major City firm thanks to a mole who tipped us off (you'll be able to read about it this Friday).

But we also know there's loads more gossip out there. So tell us what your firm's been up to this advent - all about the penny-pinching, the inappropriate touching, the drinking games, the lawyers "sharing taxis" home, and the awkward mornings after - using this anonymous form (or emailing [email protected]).

No-one will ever know (unless your firm gets a court order, and everyone's probably still too drunk for that).