TV turns on family rows at Christmas

Despite Christmas traditionally being a time of cheer and goodwill, research released today by Holiday Inn has found that many people experience a festive season fraught with disagreements and rows.

Holiday Inn, part of the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) asked more than 2,000 people about family life over the festive period and discovered that rowing over what to watch on telly is the most common source of Christmas rows. Over a third of people stated that it regularly causes a family rift and with Coronation Street and Doctor Who set to go head to head on Christmas Day this statistic is certainly going to be put to the test.

Nearly 30 per cent of respondents also declared that deciding whose family to spend Christmas with is a catalyst for arguments. Once this is decided, a fifth of people feel that relatives overstaying their welcome lead to even more rifts during the holidays.

Cheating at board games also scored highly in the survey as being a key source of aggravation. Nearly a third of people admitted to doing this, but the key perpetrators are the 16-24 year olds who stated they regularly cheat at board games and are caught out by miffed relatives.

Furthermore, familiar Christmas mishaps were found to be a cause for dispute in many households. Undercooking the Christmas turkey came out on top as the most common, with 37 per cent of people admitting to muddling their cooking calculations. Men prove to be the domestic goddesses in the kitchen, with over a third of women admitting they end up with overcooked turkey and prefer to leave the task to a male relative.

Twenty nine per cent of men, perhaps unsurprisingly, admitted that their most common mishap is passing wind or belching after over indulging at the dinner table.

However, the credit crunch and money worries are not going to dampen spirits this festive season, with 44 per cent of respondents saying they will be spending just as much on Christmas dinner as they did last year. Interestingly, 65 per cent of people stated they will be spending £25+ per head on food.

Forty five per cent of people questioned thought that the best way to prevent the majority of rows would be to stay in a hotel during Christmas rather than staying with relatives.

Respondents felt that staying in a hotel would give them more time to enjoy the holidays as it would take away the need for cooking, washing up and preparing spare bedrooms. Over half of the people questioned would use the extra time to chat with family, whereas 60 per cent of 16-24 year olds would use the time to go through their presents.

Eleanor Conroy, spokesperson for IHG, said: “We recognise that hosting several members of the family at home over Christmas can be stressful and that this can lead to seasonal rows amongst relatives. Our research has found that whilst the festive season can be fraught with arguments, hotels can offer a viable alternative to entertaining relatives at home. There are a range of great deals to be taken advantage of at Holiday Inn hotels across the country at Christmas time and we hope that many people choose to spend a peaceful, argument-free Christmas with us.”