British pensioners regret not having more sex, says poll

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Seven out of 10 people aged 65 and over said they would make more time to make love if they could have their days again.

They are in good company. The poet Sir John Betjeman is reputed to have once replied "not enough sex" when asked what the biggest single regret of his life was.

Sex was followed by travelling the world (57 per cent) and changing professions (43 per cent) as the most popular wishes pensioners had if they could go back in time.

Other regrets included saving for a pension (40 per cent), standing up to their boss (33 per cent), marry someone else (21 per cent), spending more cash on luxuries (19 per cent) and setting up a business (16 per cent).

Researchers also spoke to young adults aged between 20 and 30 to compare what they would change from the early years of their life.

They found twenty-somethings were surprisingly conservative, with financial security and politics among the top three - and little sign of sex.

Top among their regrets was property fears, with almost four out of five (77 per cent) wishing they had joined the property ladder earlier.

This was followed by more than half (56 per cent) regretting they had wasted money and 45 per cent wishing they had voted differently in the last election.

Other regrets included to be famous (44 per cent), travelling more widely (34 per cent), losing their virginity to the wrong person (32 per cent), studying harder at school (30 per cent) and drinking less (29 cent).

Researchers spoke to 1,500 pensioners and 1,500 people aged 20 to 30 earlier this month for the study, which was commissioned by UKTV Gold.

James Newton, of UKTV Gold said: "This research into what people would do if they could travel back in time gives us a fascinating insight into the preoccupations of different generations of Brits.

"Who would have thought that pensioners would be so fixated on having missed their opportunity to have more sex and travel the world, while twenty-somethings are more concerned about property."