A recent survey, by lifestyle website Wanobe.com, revealed that people over 50 are more likely to have sex on a first date than those who are under 40. In addition, 50 percent of the over 50 group rated lust and passion as more important than marriage.

Nearly 40 percent of the over-50s would sleep with a partner on a first meeting – compared with just 18 percent of under-40s.

Wanobe managing director David Noble, 60, said: "Being over 50 doesn't mean you give up on love. The under-30s may feel they invented sexual liberation, but it was the baby-boomer generation that staged the first summer of love – more than 40 years ago."