Went to the Neal St Restaurant for Google’s annual Christmas press lunch, graciously hosted by their UK ad sales MD Kate Burns. Antonio Carluccio, the owner, walks in before we start lunch and tells a joke he says he tells each Christmas to his customers:

“There’s a little boy, the son of a Mafia boss. His father tells him that to get any presents from Father Christmas he must write to Jesus first. The little boy starts off writing ‘Dear Jesus, if I get lots of presents, I’ll be a good boy for a whole month.’ But he thinks better of that and throws it away. He gets another piece of paper and writes ‘Dear Jesus, if I get lots of presents, I’ll be a good boy for a whole week.’ He decides that’s too long as well. ‘I’m a good boy already!’ he says to himself. He gets another piece of paper and looks at the statue of the Virgin Mary his mother keeps on the sideboard. ‘Dear Jesus’ he writes ‘you better bring me some presents or your mother gets it.’