Yule be merry! Brits plan to leave out 27million mince pies and 75,000 sherry snifters for Santa

A gut-busting 26.9 million mince pies will be left out for Santa on Christmas Eve - and he may not be fit to drive as 75,000 households also plan to leave booze out for him too.

Spare a thought for Rudolph, as 50% of Brits are expected to leave mince pies out for Father Christmas - and with 28.4million households in the UK, Santa will be scoffing at half of them.

One-fifth of generous Brits (19%) are expected to leave out a single mince pie, a further 19% will leave out two and one in 10 (11%) will leave out three or more sweet treats for the big man.

According to the study, conducted by Iceland Foods, some householders are going one step further to ensure Father Christmas has the energy to get through the night.

Bizarrely, 2% claimed they will leave a ready meal or pizza out for him, while one in ten said they'll satisfy his sweet tooth by laying out biscuits, chocolates and sweets.

A considerate 2.3million UK households will leave out a glass of milk to help wash down the mince pies, while 75,000 households plan to leave out a sherry tipple.

The research comes as Iceland revealed their mince pies 'sleighed' the competition as the only ones approved by Father Christmas himself this year.

After extensive testing from more than 30 Santas, Iceland's were the only ones to gain the Christmas seal of approval.

The 'secret' testing was unveiled in a video released by Iceland Foods showing 30 Santas testing 'hundreds' of mince pies.

In the clip four Santas are shown discussing this year's offerings overall claiming 'it isn’t a good year for them' and 'the big man won't be happy'.

But on mince pie test number 365, one from Iceland Foods, the Santas appear to hit the pastry jackpot and start rejoicing in collective 'ho ho hos' as they realise they have found the chosen one this year.

Richard Walker, Executive Chairman of Iceland Foods, said: "We're absolutely delighted that our mince pies are the only ones to be given Santa’s approval this year - it's truly momentous.”

One of the Santas who took part in the testing said: "We judge these mince pies on everything from pastry perfection to Christmas magic.

"Some pies, like Iceland's, absolutely sleighed it, and others would make better reindeer treats."

The testing was conducted by the helpers with five categories in mind including pastry perfection, taste, filling ratio, moisture and overall 'Christmas magic'.

For more information on Iceland's offerings, please visit www.iceland.co.uk