A joke about Theresa May has topped a national competition to find the best contemporary Christmas cracker gag.

The winning line was: "Why was Theresa May sacked as nativity manager? She couldn't run a stable government."

The quip was authored by Samuel Williams, 35, from Kent.

Other entries in the UKTV channel Gold competition included jokes about Donald Trump, Brexit, Southern Rail and Ryanair UKTV channel Gold.

The second placed line was: "Why don't Southern Rail train guards share advent calendars? They want to open the doors themselves."

Third place was: "What's the difference between Ryanair and Santa? Santa flies at least once a year."

Entries were submitted via Twitter and judged by a panel that included comedy critic Bruce Dessau.

"In a world that seems to have turned upside down in recent years, there is something wonderfully reassuring about the fact that people have still retained their sense of humour and come up with some inspired gags for this year's Gold Christmas Crackers competition," Dessau said.

"The subjects of the jokes that were entered reflects the issues that concern the country today: from Brexit and Donald Trump to Bruce Forsyth and Southern Rail, people have still been able to find the funny side."

Williams banked a prize of £1,500 towards a holiday and a box of crackers, boasting his own gag.

The top 10 jokes were: