Netflixing On The Move Makes Brits Laugh And Cry In Public

Netflixing On The Move Makes Brits Laugh And Cry In Public

March 1, 2018

Netflix reveals Britain’s bingeing in public habits 

Watching your favourite shows was once confined to the privacy of your own home, but today Netflix shines a light on the new norm of bingeing on the go… and the perils that accompany this new behaviour.

Have you ever experienced the hot breeze of a stranger’s breath on your neck whilst you try to focus on Stranger Things? The craning of an additional head over your shoulder? Don’t worry you are not alone. With this crazy Beast from the East weather, everyone’s talking about commuting and getting from A to B… (typical Brits!). With this in mind Netflix has been looking into the new norm: bingeing on the go.

Netflix has found that members watching fan favourites, such as Stranger Things, in public is turning traditional viewing habits Upside Down. With nearly half of Brits bingeing in public, Netflix has found that in a break from British protocol, commuters and the likes, are trading their stiff upper lips for public displays of emotion.

We’ve all had that moment when one scene gets a little too steamy, or even too gorey, for our public viewing. Members consider the most inappropriate scenes to be those which involve: drugs, torture and sex; unfortunate for Narcos fans! There is no doubt that nudity makes some nervy, with women blushing more than men, as 56% consider a sex scene the least appropriate to watch in public, compared to 41% of males.

When watching in public, we Brits aren’t as stoic as our traditional reputation suggests:

With almost half (45%) of UK viewers laughing out loud when watching our favourite series and films, while 10% of our members let go and allow themselves to have a good cry al fresco.

In the West Midlands, Yorkshire and the South West, on-the-go watchers are more likely to laugh over any other region.

On the other hand, nearly a quarter (21%) of Londoners emotionally invest in their characters by shedding a tear in public.

However, social awkwardness hasn’t totally disappeared, as over a million of Londoners (12%) have felt embarrassed by public viewing, and 11% have stopped a rather risqué show.

As average commuting time in England has risen from 48 minutes to an hour and one in seven spend as much as two hours travelling to work each day, it’s no surprise that 26% of train travellers and 16% of bus travellers use the journey as the perfect opportunity to seamlessly slip back into their shows whilst on the go. However, if your commute is a little further, 48% of people watch their favourite content on a plane, taking bingeing to new heights…

Charlotte is the founder and editor-in-chief at Your Coffee Break magazine. She studied English Literature at Fairfield University in Connecticut whilst taking evening classes in journalism at MediaBistro in NYC. She then pursued a BA degree in Public Relations at Bournemouth University in the UK. With a background working in the PR industry in Los Angeles, Barcelona and London, Charlotte then moved on to launching Your Coffee Break from the YCB HQ in London’s Covent Garden and has been running the online magazine for the past 10 years. She is a mother, an avid reader, runner and puts a bit too much effort into perfecting her morning brew.