In the Hertfordshire town of Ware we may spend more time watching porn than the rest of the UK – but you'd never know it
As I sit feeding my six-month-old mashed up carrot and a yoghurt it seems somewhat wrong to be formulating thoughts about porn. While I can qualify this by saying that I am doing it in the name of research, I can't guarantee the same of my neighbours. This week the town where I have lived for the last three years was named the "porn capital of Britain". Apparently a resident of Ware, in Hertfordshire, spends longer online viewing porn than anywhere else in the UK. According to PornHub, a Ware resident will last 10 minutes 37 seconds on its adult website, compared with the world average time of 8 minutes 56 seconds.
So what can you expect from a typical resident of this peaceful Hertfordshire town? Are the streets full of men in macs with one hand on their iPhone and the other in their pocket? Should you think twice before asking for a cream pie at Simmons the bakers? And are you likely to meet Madison Ivy signing her latest DVD at the Van Hage garden centre?
Of course not – but PornHub's findings will undoubtedly be the only association some people make with the town from now on. There are already jokes circulating about how the Great Bed of Ware will now be viewed in a whole different light. I am all too familiar with the effects of these sorts of headlines – it's not the first time I've been asked to write a piece defending where I live. I grew up in Hull, formerly the "crappest town in Britain", although more recently chosen as UK city of culture 2017.
In reality Ware is a quiet, historic market town where many people simply get their kicks from taking a leisurely stroll along the pretty river paths before catching up over a cappuccino or a glass of rioja at local hostelry Jacoby's Tavern & Kitchen. It really is that cliche of a small town where you can walk down the street and see people you know (and like) and where the market-stall holders know you by name. At worst, it can be a tad, well, boring (and that perhaps explains the findings), but then you're only 40 minutes away from the centre of London.
Of course, how you view PornHub's findings also depends on how you feel about porn. The mayor of Ware was quoted in the Mercury, the local paper, as saying she found the findings "too ridiculous to be true". Some of the residents of Ware quoted in the same paper, however, seemed to take a more positive view – although all were quick to deny they had in any way added to the data. Those I spoke to, closer to home, were even more impressed, seizing on the fact that clearly men (and women) in Ware can, erm, go for longer than your average person. Naturally, I couldn't possibly comment on whether or not that is true.
Personally I was amused to see that one of the most searched for terms on its website, according to PornHub, is "milf"– look it up if you need to. Clearly my maternity leave could be more racy than it is … but I think I'll stick to the river walks. Reported by guardian.co.uk 4 days ago.
As I sit feeding my six-month-old mashed up carrot and a yoghurt it seems somewhat wrong to be formulating thoughts about porn. While I can qualify this by saying that I am doing it in the name of research, I can't guarantee the same of my neighbours. This week the town where I have lived for the last three years was named the "porn capital of Britain". Apparently a resident of Ware, in Hertfordshire, spends longer online viewing porn than anywhere else in the UK. According to PornHub, a Ware resident will last 10 minutes 37 seconds on its adult website, compared with the world average time of 8 minutes 56 seconds.
So what can you expect from a typical resident of this peaceful Hertfordshire town? Are the streets full of men in macs with one hand on their iPhone and the other in their pocket? Should you think twice before asking for a cream pie at Simmons the bakers? And are you likely to meet Madison Ivy signing her latest DVD at the Van Hage garden centre?
Of course not – but PornHub's findings will undoubtedly be the only association some people make with the town from now on. There are already jokes circulating about how the Great Bed of Ware will now be viewed in a whole different light. I am all too familiar with the effects of these sorts of headlines – it's not the first time I've been asked to write a piece defending where I live. I grew up in Hull, formerly the "crappest town in Britain", although more recently chosen as UK city of culture 2017.
In reality Ware is a quiet, historic market town where many people simply get their kicks from taking a leisurely stroll along the pretty river paths before catching up over a cappuccino or a glass of rioja at local hostelry Jacoby's Tavern & Kitchen. It really is that cliche of a small town where you can walk down the street and see people you know (and like) and where the market-stall holders know you by name. At worst, it can be a tad, well, boring (and that perhaps explains the findings), but then you're only 40 minutes away from the centre of London.
Of course, how you view PornHub's findings also depends on how you feel about porn. The mayor of Ware was quoted in the Mercury, the local paper, as saying she found the findings "too ridiculous to be true". Some of the residents of Ware quoted in the same paper, however, seemed to take a more positive view – although all were quick to deny they had in any way added to the data. Those I spoke to, closer to home, were even more impressed, seizing on the fact that clearly men (and women) in Ware can, erm, go for longer than your average person. Naturally, I couldn't possibly comment on whether or not that is true.
Personally I was amused to see that one of the most searched for terms on its website, according to PornHub, is "milf"– look it up if you need to. Clearly my maternity leave could be more racy than it is … but I think I'll stick to the river walks. Reported by guardian.co.uk 4 days ago.