100 YEARS OLD AND STILL IMPRESSIVELY SPEEDING UP...

CONGRATULATE me! I have just shattered my personal best to set a new record time. As you probably know, each year I start a new list of percentages from surveys.

Usually around about the beginning of May, I find that I have at least one entry for everything from one to 99 per cent. This year, however, I have a complete set already and March is still not over. So without further ado, here is the start of my State of the Nation report as seen by 2017 surveys.

1 per cent of people think musicals are the best music to listen to while making love;

2 per cent of judges feel valued by ministers;

3 per cent of people in a relationship say politics is the biggest cause of tension between them;

4 per cent of people have broken up with a partner because of petty theft;

5 per cent of under-5s have eaten mussels;

6 per cent of people in a relationship say spending too much time online is the biggest cause of tension;

7 per cent of businesses cannot rely on their Internet connection; 8 per cent of men put clothes away; 9 per cent of people sort out their finances while watching TV;

10 per cent of men are capable of sewing on a button;

11 per cent of people expect to be totally or somewhat reliant on the state in old age;

12 per cent of people throw food out many times a week;

13 per cent of small business owners have taken business calls during a wedding;

14 per cent of people have been told off for using smartphones at work;

15 per cent of people with a mortgage have under £100 in savings;

16 per cent of people had their childhood best friend as their best man or bridesmaid at their wedding;

17 per cent of people like or share Winnie-the-Pooh’s life lessons and friendship advice on a social network;

18 per cent of people have had work calls at home disturbed by pets;

19 per cent of people have been reunited with long-lost childhood friends on Facebook;

20 per cent of people enjoy a roast every Sunday;

21 per cent of drivers don’t turn off their mobile phones before driving;

22 per cent of dog-owners prepare meals from scratch for their pets;

23 per cent of men say love-making is over too soon;

24 per cent of people who work at home work from their sofas;

25 per cent of 18-34-year-olds are relying on inheritance to get on to the property ladder; 26 per cent of people enjoy cycling; 27 per cent of people go swimming less than once a year;

28 per cent of people say their love life is lacklustre;

29 per cent of company directors are women;

30 per cent of teenagers are shortsighted;

31 per cent of people are unaware that turkey stuffing can be bought frozen.

[More percentages tomorrow.]