On Saturday night I dolled myself up and went into the West End for my friend Sharon’s hen night. I usually avoid hen nights like the plague because, frankly, the archetypal hen night has me running for the hills. I come out in hives at the slightest hint of fake veils, L-plates, matching T-shirts and the obligatory ‘novelty items’ (If you know what I mean).

But thankfully Sharon had banned all such items and what ensued was a very lovely and very lively girl’s night out, with our bride of course being the centre of attention.

When I got married in 1998 I had a similar night out, but in those long-ago days, one night out was pretty much all that everyone did. Nowadays, a holiday to Spain, a weekend in Prague or a day of preening in a country spa are all very regular (and rather expensive) events for a hen and her friends.

So when did the hen and stag practice start? Apparently the tradition of the stag night (which started long before the hen) definitely dates back as far as Henry VIII. And judging by his string of successful marriages, it looks like the stag party didn’t exactly give him much luck.

But you can just imagine that his stags must have been pretty wild affairs and apparently if the King requested your presence, you had to attend or you’d be heading straight for the gallows. Do you think his court ever had the nerve to tie him naked to a lamp post or put him drunk on a train to Scotland? (OK, I know there weren’t lamp posts or trains in the 16th century, but please indulge my artistic licence).

Anyway, back to the history. Some historians think the tradition of the stag night started much earlier than Henry’s time and possibly as early as 5th century BC.

It’s believed that the ancient Spartans would hold a dinner in the groom’s honour and make toasts on his behalf to celebrate his last night as a single man. The hen night however started centuries later but didn’t really become popular until the 1960s during the sexual revolution when women decided they should have a celebration equal to the men. And quite right too.

But when did things start to change with hen and stag nights?

I suppose like in so many areas of modern society, people started to get competitive. Who could have a bigger celebration? Who could get drunker? Who could get wilder and more badly behaved?

In fact, the behaviour of many hen nights has got so bad that there’s even a new TV programme launching next week called Hens Behaving Badly. Car crash telly for sure, and from the clips I’ve seen, I think it will be a shocking example of the way women can behave on one of these nights out.

But as I said, it’s not only the bad behaviour, it’s the size of the celebrations that seem to have got a little out of control. Asking your friends to lay out for

a long weekend in a European city seems really rather excessive regardless of how much they love you and want to celebrate your nuptials.

Please don’t think I’m a party pooper and am against these celebrations, I’m definitely not.

As anyone who knows me will attest, I love any excuse for a party and as I said, we had a great night out on Saturday. I just think that hen and stag parties have got too big, too excessive and too competitive.

Maybe the stags and hens themselves need to go back to basics, because surely it’s just about your family and friends bonding ahead of the wedding and feeling special because they’ve been invited.

If I ever get married again, it’ll definitely just be a few drinks and a curry for me.

NOTE TO SELF: Maybe I should chicken out of my next hen night.