There’s really no excuse. Despite the build-up to Christmas getting earlier and earlier every year, it appears this early-warning sign continues to be ignored by guys the country over. Come Christmas Eve, the result is both ugly and predictable, as an endless flood of testosterone piles into shops like Argos and Debenhams.
Desperate to find anything that could pass as an acceptable Christmas gift for her, epilators fly off the shelves, Jamie’s latest cook book does a disappearing act and, most incredibly of all, Elizabeth Duke does a roaring trade. Less than 24 hours later, girls from all walks of life are presented with gifts that suggest she’s either too hairy, inadequate in the kitchen or worthy of little more than a silver-plated pair of bangles. The disappointment is as palpable and as inevitable as the last-minute rush that caused it.