WITH the new year always comes a sense of wanting to do or try something new.
Whether it is to reach a goal, bring some joy or just put yourself out of your comfort zone, there are plenty of hobbies and past-times you could take up.
To get an idea of the kind of things which could be taken up, we looked at the top leisure activities across the UK.
You will probably not be surprised to see that – according to top pollsters YouGov – the top five are: listening to music, using the Internet, reading, travelling and going to restaurants.
And, while most of us probably do these regularly, you could vary them – maybe try listening to different bands or genres of music, set yourself a target to read so many books in a certain amount of time or travel to some places you have never visited – either in the UK or abroad.
FYI, the rest of the top 10 consists of watching movies on TV, spending time with family, walking, spending time at home and visiting historical sites.
Traditional
Among the traditional leisure activities we think about, baking is 15th, doing puzzles is in 17th (jigsaw puzzles is 36th), going to the cinema is 19th and gardening is 20th. Maybe you could start a gardening project to create a new plot or area. Quizzes and pub quizzes are 24th and 25th respectively, tenpin bowling is 30th and DIY is 43rd – undertaken by 53 per cent of the population. Brits are notoriously renowned for not being able to speak the lingo when they go abroad but learning foreign languages is 46th in the list – done by 52 per cent (over half) of us.
Wine making is 59th and wine tasting is 66th. Collecting things is 73rd and playing chess is 76th.
Arts and crafts
When it comes to creative past-times, the most popular one is photography which, according to the figures, 72 per cent of us do. In 32nd place is playing a musical instrument (the guitar is the most popular of those), in 37th is writing and 41st is drawing. Telling jokes is 44th but watching stand-up comedy is 35th (enjoyed by 57 per cent of the population) so maybe you could give that a go. Painting is the 61st most popular past-time and acting is 62nd. Knitting is 95th.
Health and wellbeing
We all need a bit of relaxation and in this category, meditation is 68th and yoga is 69th – both done regularly by 45 per cent of the population. Pilates (which could equally go in the category below) is 93rd.
Fitness
After walking, the next most popular fitness activity is swimming in 18th – 68 per cent of us do that regularly. Following that is trekking or hiking in 26th, playing sport is 50th and running or jogging is 53rd. Playing the nation’s most-loved sport and beautiful game – football – is 57th and cycling is 58th. Weight-training is 77th, Zumba is 102nd and going to the gym 105th. Of course, all of these are a great way to meet new people and get fit at the same time and there will be plenty of clubs and groups in your local area you could seek out.
Out and about
Visiting museums is 16th, going to the theatre is 29th, watching live music is 31st, birdwatching is 78th, going to festivals is 83rd and going to the ballet or dance is 136th.
Wild cards
If you want to have a go at something, not done by many people, here are our pick of the ‘wild cards’ – at the very least it will probably make a good conversation starter. Puppetry, in 148th, is undertaken by just 17 per cent of the population, as is Tarot. Even less popular is Quilling art – delicately rolling, shaping and gluing thin strips of paper to create decorative designs for cards and pictures and ‘Cardistry’ – performing and manipulating playing cards to create visually stunning flourishes, cuts, fans, and patterns. So there you go.
Whatever you choose to do, give it your all, enjoy yourself and take pride at the end of 2026 that you tried something new.
