Families will spend almost five hours in front of the telly on Christmas Day and a fifth (20%) will keep the box on while eating their turkey
More people will watch TV (86%) than play board games (42%), sing carols (11%) and go to church (15%) – and 24% describe watching TV as a ‘Christmas tradition’
More than a quarter (27%) will switch the telly on before breakfast, 22% before opening presents and 9% before saying good morning to their families
Almost a third (32%) will leave the box on while catching up with relatives and 25% while opening presents
A third (33%) will avoid fights over the remote by watching TV on multiple devices or recording programmes to watch later.
Brits will spend an average of 4.6 hours in front of the box this Christmas Day, as watching TV overtakes traditional Christmas pastimes such as attending church, playing board games and singing carols, according to new research by Uswitch.com, the price comparison and switching service.
Almost a quarter (24%) say telly has become a Christmas Day tradition in their household, with over four in five (86%) of us watching TV on Christmas Day. More than one in five (21%) tune in for more than six hours, while only 1% enjoy an hour or less of their favourite festive TV.
People are choosing television and turkey, with one in five (20%) enjoying their favourite programmes while eating their Christmas meal and nearly a third (32%) while catching up with relatives. A quarter (25%) will even keep the TV on while ripping through wrapping paper and opening their presents.
Of those surveyed, the most popular time to switch on the TV is 10am (18%), but over a quarter (27%) will be watching telly before having a festive breakfast or even saying good morning to family (9%). Almost one in three (31%) settle down at 3pm for an evening of Christmas specials and family films, while a dedicated 41% won’t turn the TV off until after 11pm.
Telly fans are more likely to watch Christmas films (42%) and TV specials such as Downton Abbey and Doctor Who (51%) than the Queen’s speech (23%). A third (33%) plan to resolve any inevitable fights for the remote by recording shows to watch later or by viewing TV content on multiple devices.
Top Christmas Day Activities
Eat a Christmas meal
Open presents
Spend time with friends and family
Watch TV
Call friends and family
Eat too much
Go for a walk
Play board games
Listen to the Queen’s speech
Get drunk
Source: Uswitch.com
Ewan Taylor-Gibson, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, says: “Never mind the perfect turkey, the perfect television schedule will feature highly on our Christmas Day festivities list this year. TV has overtaken traditional parlour games, as well as attending church and carol singing, largely enabled by the rise in portable TVs – aka tablets and smartphones.
“If you’re among the two thirds of Brits splashing out on paid TV and spending around a third more on your monthly TV package than your Christmas turkey, know that shopping around could save you money just in time for Christmas. Consider a monthly streaming service if you want cheaper access to classic festive films or look at switching your landline, broadband and TV package to one supplier to make some of the biggest savings.”
Find out how you could save over £1,000 a year with Uswitch here.
Ailene Barr
Phone: 020 3872 5610
Email: ailene.barr@uswitch.com
Twitter: @uswitchPR
Research carried out online with the Uswitch.com Consumer Opinion Panel in November 2015 amongst a sample of 2,382 GB adults, unless otherwise stated.
When asked ‘How many hours of TV will you and your family watch on Christmas day?’ The average amount was 4.6 hours. 1% answered ‘Less than one hour’, 30% answered ‘1-3 hours’, 47% answered ‘3-6 hours’ 15% answered ‘6-9 hours’, 4% answered ‘9-12 hours’, 1% answered ‘12-15 hours’ 1% answered ‘15+ hours’, 2% answered ‘Don’t know’.
When asked ‘Will you keep the TV ON during any of the below activities?’ 20.4% answered ‘Eating our Christmas meal’, 25.3% answered ‘Opening presents’, 31.9% answered ‘Having conversations/catching up with relatives’.
Research carried out online with the Uswitch.com Consumer Opinion Panel in November 2015 amongst a sample of 3,234 GB adults: When asked ‘Which of the following will you do on Christmas Day? Tick all that apply.’ 86.5% answered ‘Watch TV’, 42.1% answered ‘Play board games’, 93.8% answered ‘Eat a Christmas meal’, 91.6% answered ‘Open presents’, 89.2% answered ‘Spend time with family’, 17.4% answered ‘Get drunk’, 10.8% answered ‘Sing carols’, 3.9% answered ‘Online gaming’, 2.4% answered ‘Volunteering’, 48.5% answered ‘Go for a walk’, 15.0% answered ‘Go to church’, 11.1% answered ‘Go to the pub’, 28.0% answered ‘Listen to the Queen’s Speech’, 59.8% answered ‘Eat too much’, 62.2% answered ‘Call family and friends’, 6.3% answered ‘Go online shopping’, 19.3% answered ‘Have a lie in’.
When asked ‘Why do you watch TV on Christmas day?’ 23.7% answered ‘Tradition’, 51% answered ‘Because I like the Christmas specials’, 42.1% answered ‘Because there are usually good films to watch’, 23.3% answered ‘So I can watch the Queen's speech’.
When asked ‘Will you turn the TV on before doing any of these activities? Please tick all that apply.’ 27.2% answered ‘Having breakfast’, 22.4% answered ‘Opening presents’, 9.1% answered ‘Saying good morning to my family’.
When asked ‘How will you resolve fights over the remote?’ 7.6% answered ‘We will watch TV on different devices’ and 25.2% answered ‘I will record shows to watch later’. 7.6 + 25.2 = 32.8%
When asked ‘At what time will you turn the TV ON on Christmas day?’ 9am-11am was the most popular answer with 18% of respondents checking it. 14% answered ‘3pm – 5pm’, 8% answered ‘5pm – 7pm’, 7% answered ‘7pm – 9pm’, 2% answered ‘9pm – 11pm’, total after 3pm is 31%.
When asked ‘At what time will you turn the TV OFF for the last time on Christmas day?’ 36% answered, ‘11pm – 1am Boxing Day’, 4% answered, ‘1am - 3am Boxing Day’, 1% answered, ‘After 3am on Boxing Day % answered’, total after 11pm is 41%.
When asked ‘What does your household pay per month for your TV package? This is for your TV package only, do NOT include landline rental, calls or broadband.’ 65% answered with a monetary value, 26% answered ‘£0’ and 10% answered, ‘Don’t know’. The average amount, of people who pay for TV is £33.82. When asked ‘How much are you willing to spend on a turkey for your Christmas meal?’ Of those who would spend something, the average amount was £25.91. Compared to £33.82 for TV, people are willing to spend 30.5% more on their TV package than their turkey.
It’s all about “U”!
Thank you for indulging us over the last 20 years by using a small ‘u’ and a big ‘S’ when writing about our brand in your articles.
We are delighted to let you know that you are now off the hook - it’s big U’s all the way (and small s’s) as we undertake our biggest ever rebrand - so let your autocorrect go wild!
Uswitch is the UK’s top comparison website for home services switching. Launched in September 2000, we help consumers save money on their gas, electricity, broadband, mobile, TV, and financial services products and get more of what matters to them. Last year we saved consumers over £373 million on their energy bills alone.
Uswitch is part of RVU, a new business that also owns Money.co.uk and Bankrate.
If you would no longer like to receive our press releases please email prteam@uswitch.com with 'unsubscribe'.