The great British pastime: the nation’s great love for hobbies continues to flourish

95% of British adults say that they have a hobby which they spend nearly one working day a week on, research from AXA Insurance reveals. From baking and gardening, to adrenaline sports and gaming, the UK is a nation of keen hobbyists.

The study, which aims to inspire the nation to take up new and interesting pastimes, found a quarter (26%) of us give more time to our hobbies than we do our social lives, whilst 1 in 12 (8%) spend more time with our pastimes than we do with our partners.

Inspiration

From Strictly Come Dancing to The Great British Bake Off, TV programmes have inspired almost a quarter (23%) of people to take up a hobby, with Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood responsible for encouraging 3.7 million people to try baking since the show began. In a similar vein, a fifth (20%) of people have been motivated by a sporting event, with 12% being inspired by the marathon, 10% by Wimbledon and 10% by the FIFA World Cup.

Time and money

It’s not just time that Brits invest in their hobbies, it’s money too. On average, each person spends £44.42 a month on their activities, with skiing/snowboarding (£81), martial arts (£77) and rugby (£77) being the most expensive hobbies. However, the real cost of hobbies often comes from the equipment. From paint brushes to bike tyres, the average hobbyist owns £302 worth of equipment, but this varies significantly, with those who enjoy activities such as cycling owning £485 worth of gear.

Saturday afternoon/evening is peak time for pastimes with a quarter (24%) practicing their hobbies during this time. This is followed by a mid-week rush on Wednesday nights (22%), although 43% prefer to be spontaneous and admit that they have no specific routine.

Reading/book clubs and cooking/baking are the nation’s favourite pursuits, with running, gardening and board games/puzzles completing the top five. Interestingly, gaming and coding are now more popular than football (15% vs. 13%), highlighting just how much traditional activities are being taken over by modern alternatives.

Lost hobbies

Despite being a nation of enthusiastic hobbyists, two thirds (66%) of us admit that we’ve given up at least one of our hobbies, with musical instruments taking the top spot (10%). Our love affair with hobbies might last over a year (14 months) on average, but it appears that lifestyle changes (35%) such as having a child or changing jobs and short attention spans (32%) are the two most common reasons behind British people deciding to abandon their favourite pursuits.

Hobbies provide a great opportunity to get away from the day to day and enjoy something that we really love. With work life being ‘always on’ it’s important to take time out and experience fun, stimulating activities that help us feel less stressed and more energised. Also, the social element of a hobby introduces us to likeminded others. This sharing of interests helps create a sense of connection that is helpful psychologically, emotionally and socially.

Allowing ourselves the enjoyment of a hobby suggests we deserve 'self' time. By making time for ourselves, we are enhancing our self-value and reminding ourselves that we are entitled to such activities. Hobbies make us interesting people who are more likely to take positive risks and potentially experience greater success in general.

People take inspiration from all sorts of places when it comes to their hobbies, which highlights just how passionate we are as a nation at trying new things. From the Tour de France to The Great British Bake Off, watching experts and celebs clearly inspires us to try something new and expand our horizons. Most interesting is how diverse we are when it comes to our hobbies, as even though traditional hobbies like football and golf are still popular, pastimes such as gaming and coding are really making their mark.

We know that no matter who you are, you can benefit hugely from dedicating even a small amount of time to doing the things that you enjoy, which is why we’re encouraging people to live boldly and take up new and interesting activities safe in the knowledge that AXA can help protect them. In fact, we’re giving people a helping hand to get into cycling by hosting an event at cult cycling café Look mum no hands! on Old Street, London, on 9th July, with Olympic gold medallist Philip Hindes.

Hobby motivations

While the majority (70%) of people practice hobbies for fun, the benefits stretch far beyond just enjoyment. Almost a third (30%) keep hobbies for health and fitness benefits, whereas a quarter (25%) do so to switch off from work. 17% use hobbies to meet new people, in fact one in 10 admit they practice a hobby to give them something to talk about.

Notes to editors

All figures in this press release are obtained from research commissioned by AXA of 2002 UK residents. The research was carried out by Opinium in May 2016.