Breaking Bad is the most binge-worthy TV boxset of all-time, according to new research.
The average ‘binge’ is almost FIVE HOURS hours and the gripping drama, starring Bryan Cranston as a mild-mannered teacher turned drugs kingpin, is the most addictive.
Fantasy epic Game of Thrones was second in the list followed by geeky American sitcom Big Bang Theory.
Over a quarter of Brits regularly stay up into the early hours to continue their boxset marathons.
More than a fifth don’t bother to get dressed in the morning at weekends and amazingly one in 10 will FORGET to eat while they are engrossed in a series.
A spokesman for OnePoll, market researchers who conducted a survey of 2,000 viewers, said: “Watching a boxset is a relatively new phenomenon which has really taken off – perhaps due to the availability of catch-up TV and internet streaming sites.
“And the quality of shows like Breaking Bad, House of Cards and Broadchurch is such that viewers find themselves absolutely gripped.
“In years gone by we would have had to wait for the next episode but now thanks to boxsets that’s becoming a thing of the past.”
Even when not actively watching, respondents said they spent over an hour every day thinking about characters or plots in their favourite shows.
When it comes to movie series, the magical world of Hogwarts is number one amongst those polled, with Harry Potter being the most binge-watched film franchise.
Middle-Earth is a big draw too, with Lord of the Rings taking second place ahead of the Star Wars franchise.
Drama is the TV genre that grips people the most, and perhaps keen for some light relief, comedy is the second most popular genre, followed by action/adventure.
Over a third of respondents said they binge-watch because they get so involved in the storyline and over a quarter said they have to carry on watching if an episode ends on a cliffhanger.
And even knowing what happens next doesn’t appear to stop us watching selected series again and again – over half of respondents said they happily re-watch their favourites.
One in five said having a boxset session is a form of escapism and watch their cherished programmes as a means of stress relief.
And a third of people said binge-watching their favourite shows is one of their main hobbies.
Rather than have several boxsets on the go at any given time, the typical Brit sticks to one series at a time and has an average of four binge-watch sessions every month.
The most popular way to watch season after season of TV is by recording it or by accessing catch-up shows through their set-top box.
This is followed by DVD boxsets and streaming websites such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.
On average Brits spend #7.80 every month on watching their favourite programmes – that’s #93.60 a year.
There appears to be no end in sight to boxset binges with people having an average of three shows on their watch lists.
The OnePoll spokesman added: “There is an endless supply of fantastic TV – new and old – so the popularity of the boxset certainly shows no signs of abating.”
Top 20 binge-worthy TV boxsets
1. Breaking Bad
2. Game of Thrones
3. Big Bang Theory
4. Walking Dead
5. Downtown Abbey
6. Friends
7. Broadchurch
8. Sherlock
9. Doctor Who
10. Dexter
11. Family Guy
12. The Simpsons
13. Orange is the New Black
14. American Horror Story
15. Lost
16. The Office
17. Supernatural
18. Grey’s Anatomy
19. The Sopranos
20. Gotham
Top 20 most binge-watched movie series
1. Harry Potter
2. Lord of the Rings
3. Star Wars
4. Die Hard
5. Indiana Jones
6. James Bond
7. Back to the Future
8. Pirates of the Caribbean
9. Hunger Games
10. Batman
11. Fast and Furious
12. Alien
13. The Matrix
14. Star Trek
15. X-Men
16. Shrek
17. Avengers/Marvel
18. Twilight
19. Godfather
20. Rocky
