He might not be Santa, but Punchline-Gloucester.com editor Mark Owen has been struggling with a sack of 2023 news that's so heavy he may well find himself nursing a slipped disc come Christmas Day.

Thankfully, he has a brilliant team of little helpers to enlist! Otherwise known as our key business experts from across the county, they have stepped in today to lighten the load by helping to sift through our review of the year.

Now live, 2023's Punchline Talks! The Xmas Special - features a bumper guest list of Business Breakfast Briefers who got together on the show to discuss which Punchline-Gloucester.com stories really resonated with them, business-wise and personally.

Clearly 2023 has been no shy year for news: we've seen the coronation of King Charles, ongoing misery in Ukraine and new upheaval with Israel's conflict in Gaza. Climate issues have become more focal and vocal, with ongoing headlines over Just Stop Oil (despite legal moves to curtail protest), as well as broad disappointment over this month's perceived failure of COP28. In international banking, meanwhile, we have seen tremors through the EU with the collapse of Credit Suisse and its last-minute rescue by UBS. In terms of political leadership, 2023 may end with some claim to continuity: we still have the same prime minister as we did on January 1st.

Meanwhile, back at the centre of the universe, aka Gloucestershire, the Punchline-Gloucester.com newsdesk has been flat out with coverage of news of all sizes and shapes. So what was the best story of the year, the top topic that resonated most strongly with our festive panel?

The show today will reveal all... but that's not all. As ever, we also asked our panel to chose their top three BUSINESSES OF THE YEAR.

And that's where things get fascinating, because any wander into Gloucestershire's wonderland of business, trade, commerce and industry reveals a glittering array of achievement and talent. 

Were your ears burning? If you work in our county, here in alphabetical (and strictly objective!) order is a list of key brands and businesses that we discuss.

Which one will emerge to be Punchline's ultimate BUSINESS OF THE YEAR? Click on the festive show to find out!

THE BENEFACT GROUP, which handed £1m to five county charities this summer.

CLARKSON EVANS – literally a live-wire Gloucester team.

CELLAR SUPPLIES, who celebratd a new taproom for their fine beverages.

CINDERHILL FARM – Sausage roll producers who are putting the Forest on the UK banger map.

COTSWOLD DISTILLERY, who have changed the UK's whisky map.

DEEP – the Forest of Dean's £100m trailblazing subsea project.

EMILY'S GIFT, for their tireless campaigning to fight cancer in children.

FREEMAN'S EVENT PARTNERS, Quadrant Way's headlining events experts.

FOREST GREEN ROVERS – Disrupting football with every business step.

GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL, a world-class venue and the lofty pride of our regerating city.

GLOUCESTER FOOD DOCK, a smorgasbord of business talent and initiative.

HARTPURY UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGE – Going further and higher, as ever, in academic ambition.

HERCULES SITE SERVICES, South Cerney's crack team working to build a better future.

HAZLEWOODS – Masters of SME accountancy and our show sponsors!

MAYFLOWER RESTAURANT, Chun Kong's 41-year vision for Cheltenham diners.

MOOG – Tewkesbury's experts in advance aerospace, defence and space tech.

MUSIC WORKS/JOLTS – The hub that's transforming young people's lives through music.

ONTIC, aerospace wizards – and the leading OEM for aircraft parts.

PUNCHLINE – Your touchstone for all the daily business news across the county.

RENISHAW – Global leaders in metrology and additive manufacturing.

SPP PUMPS – Plumbing per excellence, Coleford's domestic, commercial and industrial experts.

STAGECOACH WEST – Keeping the buses rolling across the county and beyond.

ZEROAVIA – The hotshot Kemble-based business that promises to change air transport for a greener future.

In addition to these finalists, the panel also discussed some of the key players in 2023's narrative – and not least all of the small businesses who make up the vital cogs of our county's business – people who, as Neill Ricketts pointed out – are "out there, grafting away" for the good of our economy. 

We also pay tribute here to GFirst LEP for bringing £120m worth of investment to the county, to Gloucester's Forum, the University of Gloucestershire, Raging Bull, Superdry, GCHQ and Gloucester Services Farmshop and Kithen... all powerhouses of different shapes and sizes who all did so much in local business in 2023.

Punchline-Gloucester.com editor Mark Owen said: "Thank you to the panel for their nominations, it was generous of Sam Holliday to nominate us, but we decided to remove ourselves from the final decision."