I am so lonely. How do I make friendships and end the pain of being alone: listener question

I spent Christmas on my own because I have broken up with my partner am estranged from my family. I don’t have anywhere to go for New Year either. I do have some friends but they live on the other side of the country and I’m too embarrassed to ask them . I am just so lonely. So fed up of being on my own. It is a deep pain to me to see groups of people laughing together and having fun. How can I create close relationships and stop this feeling of being on my own all the time.