Cert 12A Stars 2

This rarely funny romcom inspired by the chart topping George Michael song is a load of old baubles, being painfully patronising, phoney, smug and wacky.

Having played the Queen of dragons in TV’s Game of Thrones, Emilia Clarke stars as Kate, a struggling shop assistant forced to wear an elf costume, but things start looking up when the hunky yet mysterious Tom appears from nowhere to romance her.

He’s played by Henry Golding who had a romcom hit with 2018’s Crazy Rich Asians, and for all the film’s fault’s there’s no denying the pair have enough charm to power London’s Oxford Street Christmas decorations.

Co-writer Emma Thompson also stars as Kate’s mum, and uses the 1990’s war in former Yugoslavia as an excuse to indulge in a foreign accent and some anti-Brexit posturing.

Just like Kate’s shop, this is selling you a load of plastic festive tat, so skip the film and just listen to the songs instead.