Costa Coffee has decided that coffee shops have now ‘officially’ overtaken pubs as the UK's favourite social hang-outs. 

It seems that three-quarters of those questioned (and we think it was about a thousand people) prefer coffee shops to pubs for simple socialising. 

One-third of respondents report striking up conversations with complete strangers in coffee shops, and 42% have held job interviews in a coffee shop, by preference over an office venue.

Rather more entertainingly, the figures show that 47% of respondents think coffee shops are the perfect venue for a first date, and that 24% find the ambience of a coffee shop makes them inclined to flirt with strangers, or even staff.  

Another 24% say a coffee house is the ideal location for meeting your secret lover.

Which, of course, may account for another finding - which is that 49% say they have used coffee shops as the venue for trying to repair relationships… !

By Ian Boughton