'Mad Friday' fallout: Emergency services inundated as drinkers descend on towns and cities on last weekend before Christmas

The Friday before Christmas typically one of the busiest nights of the year

Emergency services around the country brace themselves for disturbances

Twas the Friday before Christmas and all through the country...

Flying high on Christmas spirit, revellers got the most out of festive drinks deals on what has been dubbed 'Mad Friday' by stretched emergency services.

In Manchester a man can be seen jumping in a fountain, while scantly clad women leave little to the imagination as they lay on the freezing pavement.

New Labour's 24-hour drinking laws, introduced in 2005, has left Britain 'awash' with cheap alcohol

Ouch: It was a similar scene in Liverpool where a group of men where pictured helping a woman back up after she took a tumble on the pavement

Spreading some Christmas cheer: Revellers dressed up as Santa hit the Big Market in Newcastle upon Tyne to enjoy a festive 'Mad Friday'

A group of friends chat outside a bar in Liverpool as they enjoyed pre-Christmas drinks on Friday

Night on the town: One reveller in Cardiff appears to try and take a picture of himself and a blow-up doll

Romance is in the air: A woman's skirt is pulled up to her waist as she shares a passionate kiss with another reveller in Cardiff

In York mounted policeman are seen trying to usher one reveler away from a horse, while others get into a bit of rough and tumble, or public displays of nudity.

One of the images shows emergency services tending to a man's injuries, while another shows a policeman helping a party-goer with an injured arm.



The Yorkshire scenes are echoed up and down the country on a night which for many marks the start of their Christmas break.

But on Saturday no doubt some of the party-goers picture had a rather sore head to contend with.



The scale of Britain's drinking culture is laid bare by the Home Office's annual report on alcohol and late night refreshment licensing, slipped out shortly before Christmas

Going, going, gone: A reveller struggles to stay on his feet as he fools around in a fountain in Cathedral Gardens, Manchester Despite the freezing temperatures this man has no problem whipping off his top and taking a dip in this Manchester fountain Ouch: A man collapsed in Cathedral Gardens, Manchester, on Mad Friday

A man lies in the road while another injured man looks on in Manchester's Cathedral Street

The friends, and a passing Police van help the injured man on what is typically one of the busiest nights of the year for the emergency services

A policeman puts on gloves to help a man with an injured arm in Manchester's Cathedral Street Unhappy ending: Two injured men are led away by police and paramedics following a fight on Charlotte Street in Manchester A Christmas reveller calls a friend while out in Manchester on 'Mad Friday' - one of the busiest nights of the year for police and ambulance crews A reveller attends a man passed out on a street in Liverpool next to what appears to be a puddle of vomit

A woman falls over a taxi barrier in Manchester city centre, while her friends stop to help

In York a man gets a little too close to a Police horse as a good humored night out turns sour

The horse looks spooked as the officer holds on to the man's shirt in the city-centre scenes

A group of revelers look dwarfed by the giant Police horses on their 'Mad Friday' night out in York