Britain is a nation of morning people according to new research

The poll found almost three quarters (72 per cent) agreeing that they feel liveliest and happiest in the morning.

Although this wasn’t the case in Scotland with only one per cent of Scots considering themselves to be morning people.

The survey discovered that those who consider themselves to be ‘early birds’ are generally happier all-round than those who don’t. They also get more of a lie-in during the week and are most likely to live in the south of the UK.

The research was conducted by a team at window dressing company Hillarys.

2,976 Britons, all aged 18 and over, took part in the study and were quizzed about their daily habits.

Firstly, respondents were asked whether they would consider themselves to be ‘a morning person’, defined as somebody who is liveliest, happiest and most productive during the morning hours.

Almost three quarters (72 per cent) felt they were, while the remaining 28 per cent admitted they would not consider themselves morning people.

Of those who stated they were not morning people, two fifths (43 per cent) said they found people who fell into the other camp ‘annoying’ and a further 12 per cent confessed that they ‘actively avoid’ morning people.

Researchers also analysed the results by region.

The findings showed the area with the most ‘morning people’ is the South West, which accounts for 21 per cent of those from the entire survey who said they were morning people.

The region with the least number of ‘morning people’ was the North East. No one there considered themselves to be a morning person, with Scotland coming in just behind with only one per cent of Scots considering themselves to be morning people.

Both groups were then asked to share further details about their daily routines, revealing that the average morning person is an earlier riser at weekends, getting up at 8.15am (on average) compared to 10.30am for non-morning people, but later during the week (7.30am compared to 6.45am for non-morning people).

They were then asked: “How happy do you consider yourself to be, in general, on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the happiest?”

The average morning person considered themselves to be an eight out of 10 on the happiness scale, while the average non-morning person self-scored five out of 10.

Zoe Ashton, spokesperson for www.hillarys.co.uk, said: “There’s a bit of an ongoing joke about morning people being annoying and everyone being grumpy until they’ve had their cup of tea or coffee, but according to these results it seems that Britain is actually a nation of chirpy early-birds!

“And good news for those of us looking to take inspiration and become a morning person, as it seems the trick to becoming one is a few lie-ins before work!

“Looking at the results more seriously, there is an apparent correlation between people who consider themselves to be morning people and those who think they are generally happier. So it’s worth trying to figure out how you can make your mornings happier, from getting an earlier night through to being better prepared for the day ahead.”