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"What was the price did Father Christmas's sled cost? Zero, it was on the house."

This quip is greeted with moans that resonate through a storage facility in the capital.

This describes a joke-testing session with a company that produces supplies for social events. Its catalogue features festive crackers.

The firm's owner grins, almost apologetically at the gag. But the joke has made the cut and will appear in future crackers.

"The success is gauged by the gag by the number of groans and the intensity of the groans around the table," she says.

The key to a good holiday cracker pun is not the same as a stand-up joke in itself. It is entirely about the setting - in this case, the shared amusement of the holiday meal with grandparents, kids and possibly friends.

"The goal is for the joke to be a thing that unites the eight-year-old in harmony with the grandparent," she adds.

The Science Of Communal Laughter

Coming together to enjoy shared amusement is not only nothing new, experts say, it is probably to be pre-human.

"So when you are laughing with people at the holiday dinner you are dropping into what's almost certainly a truly primordial mammalian social vocalisation," says a professor.

Shared amusement, she explains, aids in make and maintain social connections between people.

Scientists have discovered that a absence of such social exchanges can seriously harm both psychological and bodily well-being.

"Those you talk to, and laugh with, it results in enhanced amounts of endorphin release," the professor adds.

These natural chemicals are the body's "feel-good compounds" and are released both to reduce stress and pain and in response to pleasurable experiences, such as laughing with friends over a truly awful festive cracker gag.

"You're not just chuckling at a foolish joke with a Christmas cracker," she states. "You are in fact doing a lot of the really important task of building, preserving the social bonds you have with those you love."

What Happens Inside the Brain?

But what is actually taking place within the mind when we listen to a joke?

An awful lot occurs in response to humour, it turns out.

Using brain scanning technology, a type of brain scanner which indicates which areas of the brain are more active, researchers have been able to chart the regions that get more blood flow.

The research entails imaging the brains of volunteer subjects and then subjecting them to a collection of humorous words, accompanied by either a neutral sound, or recorded chuckles.

"During the study we got a really interesting pattern of activation," notes the neuroscientist.

A gag activates not just the areas of the brain responsible for auditory processing and interpreting language, but also neural regions associated with both preparation and starting movement and those linked to sight and memory.

Combine these elements as a whole, and individuals hearing a joke have a sophisticated set of neural reactions that underpin the laughter we hear.

The Infectious Nature of Chuckles

Scientists found that when a funny word is combined with chuckles there is a stronger response in the mind than the identical word when followed by a neutral sound.

"This was in areas of the mind that you would employ to move your expression into a grin or a laugh," the professor explains.

It means people are not just responding to humorous words, they are responding to the laughter that accompanies them.

Laughter, according to the expert, can be infectious.

So what does this imply for the laughter found at a holiday table?

"People laugh harder when you are familiar with others," she notes, "and laughter increases more when you like them or care for them."

When it comes to Christmas cracker puns, she explains, the feel-good factor is more likely to be caused not by the gag in itself, but from the response to it.

"The laughter is key. The gag is the terrible holiday cracker pun, and it's just a reason to chuckle as a group."

The Quest for the Perfect Festive Pun

Will we ever discover the ultimate joke?

Probably not, but that has not prevented researchers from attempting to.

Years ago, a professor set up a research search for the world's most humorous gag.

More than 40,000 jokes later, with ratings lodged by 350,000 participants globally, he has a better understanding than most as to what works and what fails.

The ideal Christmas cracker pun must be short, he explains.

"But they also need to be poor jokes, puns that make us moan," he continues.

The more "terrible" the joke, he states the more effective.

"The reason is that if nobody laughs – it's the joke's shortcoming, not your own.

"What's interesting about the Christmas cracker jokes is that not one person considers them humorous.

"That's a common moment around the gathering and I think it's wonderful."