One in ten Brits will spend over 14 years in front of their tellies over the course of a lifetime and 13 per cent of us claim we can’t live without our favourite programme, according to research released today by Virgin Media’s TV on demand service.

The survey, conducted to gain an in-depth insight into the nation’s viewing habits, also reveals that despite almost one third (29 per cent) of Brits spending over 20 hours each week in front of the TV, it doesn’t seem to matter what we are watching. A staggering 71 per cent of telly-tastic Brits claim they often find themselves sitting in front of programmes for the sake of it.

It seems that even when we aren’t glued to our boxes we are still talking about them, as 52 per cent of us claim last night’s telly regularly forms the basis of conversation with friends and family. Furthermore, it seems we are also forming an emotional connection with our TVs; when asked which programmes are most likely to have us reaching for the tissues, it was Big Brother and other reality TV shows that finished ahead of the news amongst 18-44 year olds in the Virgin Media survey.

Even though it is apparent that as a nation we are getting our TV fix and spending a lot of time talking and thinking about TV, it appears some Brits still aren’t getting the most out of their telly viewing time. In an age where TV programmes are available on demand and there is more choice than ever before, we are not only watching programmes for the sake of it, but 86 per cent of us claim we often miss a show that everyone seems to be talking about. Despite the vast majority of Brits claiming to watch a wide variety of TV, the research found that a surprising 21 per cent of Brits feel they don’t watch a balanced array of TV programmes, meaning they only watch their favourite shows, or switch over to something else without even thinking about it.

Leading psychologist Honey Langcaster-James commented, "As a nation we are clearly more in love with our TV than ever before, but we seem to be less concerned with what we are actually watching - unless it’s our beloved favourite show. We don’t realise how much of what we watch affects us - even the survey demonstrates that TV forms the basis of much social interaction with friends - so it’s rather worrying that 71 per cent of us watch stuff for the sake of it! It's increasingly important that people think about spending their viewing time more wisely and consuming a more rounded selection of programmes."

Ashley Stockwell, Virgin Media’s spokesperson added, "There are currently more TV programmes than ever before, both on TV and on demand, but it seems some Brits still haven’t broken free from the TV schedule. Dipping in and out of live TV and TV on demand means that no one should be watching anything for the sake of it."