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"What was the price did Santa's sleigh cost? Nothing, it was on the house."

This joke is greeted with moans that echo through a warehouse in the capital.

We're at a joke-testing meeting with a firm that produces products for social events. Its catalogue includes Christmas crackers.

The company's founder grins, almost sheepishly at the gag. But the joke has been selected and will feature in upcoming crackers.

"The success is gauged by the gag by the number of groans and the intensity of the groans at the table," the founder explains.

The secret to a great holiday cracker joke is not the identical as a stand-up gag per se. It is entirely about the setting - in this instance, the communal amusement of the holiday meal with elders, kids and possibly neighbours.

"The goal is for the joke to be a thing that brings the eight-year-old in harmony with the 80-year-old," she states.

The Neuroscience Of Shared Laughter

Coming together to enjoy communal amusement is not only nothing new, scientists say, it is likely to be older than humanity.

"So when you are chuckling with people around the holiday table you are dropping into what's almost certainly a really primordial mammalian play sound," says a neuroscience expert.

Communal laughter, she explains, helps forge and strengthen social bonds between people.

Scientists have found that a absence of these social exchanges can significantly harm mental and physical health.

"Those you converse with, and share laughter with, it leads to increased amounts of 'happy chemical' release," the professor continues.

These natural chemicals are the body's "happy chemicals" and are produced both to reduce tension and discomfort and in response to enjoyable experiences, such as chuckling with loved ones over a truly terrible Christmas cracker joke.

"It's not simply chuckling at a silly joke with a holiday cracker," the expert states. "You are actually doing a lot of the truly important work of building, preserving the social bonds you have with those you care about."

Which Happens In the Brain?

But what is actually taking place inside the brain when we listen to a gag?

A tremendous amount happens in reaction to humour, it transpires.

Employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), a type of neural imager which shows which areas of the brain are more active, scientists have been able to map the regions that get more blood flow.

The research involves imaging the brains of volunteer participants and then subjecting them to a database of funny phrases, paired with either a non-emotional sound, or pre-recorded chuckles.

"During the study we observed a very interesting activation pattern of activation," notes the professor.

A gag activates not just the parts of the brain responsible for auditory processing and interpreting speech, but also neural regions associated with both preparation and starting movement and those involved in vision and memory.

Combine all of this as a whole, and people hearing a pun have a complex series of neural reactions that support the laughter we hear.

The Contagious Nature of Laughter

Scientists found that when a humorous phrase is combined with chuckles there is a stronger response in the brain than the same word when followed by a neutral sound.

"This was in areas of the mind that you would use to contort your face into a smile or a chuckle," she says.

It means people are not just reacting to humorous jokes, they are responding to the amusement that follows them.

Laughter, says the professor, can be infectious.

So what does this imply for the chuckles found around a holiday table?

"People laugh harder when you are familiar with others," she says, "and you laugh more when you like them or love them."

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

"It's the laughter. The joke is the terrible holiday cracker joke, and it's just a reason to chuckle together."

The Search for the Perfect Festive Pun

Is it possible to find the perfect gag?

Likely not, but that has not stopped researchers from trying to.

In 2001, a psychologist established a scientific search for the planet's most humorous joke.

Over tens of thousands of jokes submitted, with scores lodged by 350,000 participants globally, he has a better understanding than many as to what succeeds and what fails.

The perfect Christmas cracker pun must be short, he says.

"They must also need to be poor jokes, puns that cause us to groan," he adds.

The more "awful" the joke, he says the more effective.

"The reason is that if no-one finds it funny – it's the joke's shortcoming, not yours.

"The fascinating part about the Christmas cracker jokes is that not one person considers them humorous.

"It creates a shared moment around the gathering and I think it's lovely."