There is a long and not always happy history of new chief executives “kitchen-sinking” poor results and write-offs in their first official appearance. Usually, however, the new boss brings the sink and decides what to put into it, rather than having it thrown at him.

Happy new year, then, to John Browett, new head of DSG International, better known in the UK for its Dixons, Currys and PC World brands. The British electronics retailer – earmarked as a potential casualty of the holidays since a gloomy interim results announcement in late November – had to bring forward its bleak seasonal trading statement. The unpleasant surprise partly explains why a fifth of the value of the group was wiped out in morning trading.