"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy", goes an English saying. Recreation and entertainment are important to people everywhere in the world. However, forms of popular entertainment are different in different countries.

In Britain, the most common leisure activities are home based. Watching television is by far the most popular pastime, and nearly all households have a television set. Over 51 percent of households have two or more television sets and average viewing time for the population aged four and over is 25 hours a week. Other pursuits include listening to music, reading, do-it-yourself home improvements, and gardening.

British people are also very interested in watching and taking part in sports. Walking and swimming are the two most popular sporting activities, being almost equally undertaken be men and women. Snookers, pool and darts are the next most popular sports among men. The most popular spectator sports are football and rugby in winter, and cricket and athletics in summer.

In the last few years in Britain, a new trend has been developing, i.e., taking weekend or holiday courses. There is a enormous range of courses on offer. The course can be as simple as bricklaying or as sophisticated as making your own stock market decisions. For people who are interested in art, there are courses in painting or drawing. People who like music can take a course in karaoke singing. Courses like shoemaking or glass engraving provide people with practical skills they can do with hands. Those who want to improve their minds can take a course of "Living with more meaning". Entry qualifications to weekend courses are generous, that is, generally no qualifications are necessary, apart from an ability to pay the fees, which may be quite high.