The great Christmas party comeback.

With budgets tight and the public mood against any kind of corporate excess, workplace Christmas parti es fell out of vogue last year. Mike Fletcher reports on the revival of the festive way to motivate staff.

What a difference a year makes. Just 12 months ago, UK employees were facing up to a holiday period without the annual Christmas party, cancelled as a recessionary measure. Brands that were going ahead with a festive thank-you to staff, were even booking venues under aliases to avoid media detection amid an economic climate that frowned upon anything that could be perceived as vaguely extravagant.

This year, though, brands such as Tesco and Yahoo! are happy to confirm the Christmas party is firmly back on the company calendar, with venues reporting strong seasonal demand.

Tesco is entertaining 350 of its staff at Knebworth House in Hertfordshire, while Yahoo! will be enjoying a Bavarian-themed evening in the Moet et Chandon Champagne suite on the eighth floor of The Penthouse in London, overlooking Leicester Square.

'It's going to be a great night, with a log cabin, the smell of roasted chestnuts, two-pint steins and Bavarian food,' says Lord Jason Scott, event co-ordinator at The Penthouse. 'Our run of sell-out …