Tag Archives: Money

A Nation Of Pinocchio Daters?

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Brits are lying their way through the virtual world of

online dating to find a partner

 

·       Almost two thirds (57%) of online daters lie on their profiles

·       Almost half of Brits (47%) tell porkies about their body shape in their profiles

·       Nearly a third (28%) of us use profile pictures that are three years old or more

·       17% of supposed singletons on dating websites are actually in relationships

·       Nearly 1 in 4 (24%) lie about their profession and seniority at work to impress potential partners

·       13% of online daters don’t write their own profiles

·       For 64% of people, their biggest concern is that the actual dating sites themselves lie – using fake profiles,good looking people who aren’t actually signed up to the site.

 

Research today reveals that almost two thirds (57%) of online daters lie in their quest to find a partner. Commissioned by new dating website Would Like To Meet, the report reveals that a quarter (25%) of Brits lie at least four times on their dating profiles and nearly a third (28%) of us use profile pictures that are three years old or more. Even more alarming is that almost one in ten (9%) use profile pictures which are at least ten years out of date, with men being the worst culprits.

 

Mirror Mirror…

 

Even though pictures say a thousand words, over a fifth (21%) of Brits also lie about their age to go alongside their youthful photos, with men being twice as likely to subtract a few years.

 

When it comes to size, our computer screens really do shed a few pounds with almost half (47%) of Brits revealing that they lie about their dress size on their profile. Women are the biggest culprits with 10% also treating themselves to a virtual breast job by exaggerating the size of their bust by two cup sizes. Men take a different tact and prefer to add a few inches with a third (32%) lying about their height.

 

I Am A Millionaire…sort of….

 

It isn’t just physical attributes that Brits lie about; we also bend the truth when it comes to their professional status. Nearly 1 in 4 (24%) admit to lying about their job and seniority at work to impress potential partners. Surprising given the current economic climate, almost a quarter (24%) of online daters say they work in finance when they don’t.  The second most popular wish-list profession is in TV and music (18%), followed closely by a respectable career in law (17%).  Nearly 10% of us also give ourselves an imaginary PA in the hope of impressing the opposite sex. But why do so many online daters succumb to lying when there is such a high risk of getting caught out in the end?

 

 “Many people regard online dating as if it were a fishing expedition, and they want to cast their line into the pool with the best ‘bait’”explains psychologist Donna Dawson.“The bait is the qualities that they think will attract best potential partners – and if this means adding inches to their height, reducing a dress size, or pretending to be more senior at work, then they will do just that.Their hope is to make such a strong impression on the first meeting that any lies, will be overlooked. The trouble is that they rarely succeed, as the very first, ‘first impression’ will reveal them to be dishonest.”

 

Donna also suggests that the 13% of online daters who don’t write their own profiles, should start – or at least think carefully before choosing their ghost writer.

 

 

Marital Status Unknown

 

Although you’d imagine that all members on dating sites are single, an outstanding 17% of supposed singletons are actually in relationships. Furthermore, nearly a quarter (25%) lie about their marital status to cover up being separated or divorced – a habit which men are 10% more likely to adopt.

 

With all this lying at the touch of a keypad, the study reveals that rightly so, we are a nation of suspicious minds with over a quarter of online daters (26%) having suspected that a potential suitor was actually married or in a relationship.

 

 

You Only Want Me For My Money

 

Beyond the world of white lies – nearly two fifths (39%) of online daters have also been subjected to a financial scam or know someone who has. These scams are often carried out by other ‘members’ who trick fellow daters into giving them or ‘lending’ them money that they will never see again.

 

Although meeting Pinnochio partners is a worry, our biggest concern (for 64% of people) is that the actual dating sites themselves lie – using fake profiles, good looking people who aren’t actually signed up to the site, to boost numbers and entice people in.

 

“From experience, it is clear that honesty and belief is the most important ingredient when it comes to online dating and this research confirms that most people feel the same,” says founder of Would Like To Meet, Eden Blackman. “With this in mind, I wanted to create a site without fake profiles, only real verified pictures allowed where members know the people they see are the people behind the profile. I have always worked on the ethic that if you hide behind a fake profile picture what else are you hiding.”

 

Financial Support Experts Raise Concern For Festive Financial Struggles As Average Household Debt Stands At £9,000.

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As it’s revealed that the average household debt in the UK has reached £9,000, one financial support network has raised their concerns as we enter the festive season.

Typically the most financially demanding month of the year and with outstanding personal debt set at £1.451 trillion at the end of December last year, a correlation is expected between Christmas spending and financial concerns.

However with the average family spending between £530 and £682 on gifts, decorations, food and drink,  advisors in the finance industry have acknowledged this increased, short term demand for extra money at this time of year.

Financial advisor Kristjan Novitski from Peachy says, “At the end of the year spending is bound to rise a lot and people are in a need of extra cash.

“Although it is not sensible to borrow huge amounts of money with long term obligations or roll-overs, we acknowledge that for some, seeking support may seem like the only option.

“Whilst we would advise anyone taking out any loan to consider it carefully, choosing options where you decide at the beginning when exactly you pay the money back and in how many installments are always favourable. Peachy strives to implement this approach, and work alongside people to help them manage their finances flexibly and plan their future costs.”

So with almost a quarter of parents admitting they are planning to spend more on children’s presents this year than they did last, it is clear that tough economic times are not deterring British Christmas spirit.

And with this in mind, Peachy is encouraging people to follow suit and manage their finances over Christmas so as to avoid the headache of consolidating in the New Year.

 

The Fitzroy – The Final Week on Kickstarter

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A post-apocalyptic comedy about the last
refuge for a seaside holiday
www.thefitzroy.com/ks

The final week of the Kickstarter Campaign

The Fitzroy, is black-comedy live action feature film set in a post-apocalyptic 1950’s, on board The
Fitzroy hotel, a leaky submarine beached just off Margate – the last refuge for a traditional summer
holiday

Written and Directed by Andrew Harmer and Produced by Liam Garvo & James Heath, the team
behind Dresden Pictures.

Short Synopsis:
Set in an alternative post-apocalyptic 1950’s, The Fitzroy hotel, a derelict submarine beached just
off Margate, is the last place for a traditional summer holiday.

Bernard, the hotel’s bellboy, cook, maintenance man and general dogsbody faces a constant battle to
keep the decaying hotel airtight and afloat.

But when he falls in love with Sonya, a murderous guest, he is thrown into a world of lies,
backstabbing and chaos. As Bernard struggles to hide her murders from the other guests and
suspicious authorities, the hotel literally begins to sink around him.

As his world implodes, Bernard must choose between the woman he thinks he loves and the hotel
submarine that is keeping them all alive.

THE FITZROY: ONE WEEK TO GO

The Fitzroy, Kickstarter campaign really caught alight in the last week. On Tuesday 11th December
we were delighted to be announced by Kickstarter as their ‘Project of the Day’ and featured on the
home page spotlight for the whole day, this led to over a £7,000 increase in pledges. Kickstarter
followed this up on Thursday 13th December by naming The Fitzroy as ‘Projects we Love’ in their
weekly newsletter, with the subject line ‘Hotel Submarine’. This went to everyone registered on
Kickstarter, and over the next 24 hours resulted in 200+ new backers.

To create The Fitzroy, Dresden Pictures are looking to raise £60,000 through Kickstarter. We’ve
had some incredible support and at the time of writing have raised 83% of the target, an incredible
£50,000. We really couldn’t be happier and now we are looking for one big final push to get us over
our goal.

The campaign finishes Sunday 23rd December at 6pm GMT. For The Fitzroy to happen we need
to reach 100% of our target by this time or we don’t get any of the money and none of our generous
backers will be charge and lastly the film simply won’t get made.

THE STORY SO FAR
One of the key reasons why we believe Kickstarter have got behind the campaign is due to our
eagerness to engage the audience throughout the campaign in new and original ways.
In the first weekend, The Fitzroy team was out in full force at the Sci-Fi London Post Apocolympic
event on Nov 9th & 10th chatting to the patrons about the project, its rewards and raising
awareness. This was followed by an open invite shindig, in Hoxton, London at the Underbelly on
Nov 19th and had the film’s soundtrack producers, the Green Rock River Band (GRRB) playing
their mean doom-folk sound.

On the weekend of 8/9th December we were brave (maybe foolish) enough to take on making a
short film in 48 hours based on ideas provided and voted for by our followers on Twitter and our
friends on Facebook – we called it the Mini-Fitz Challenge!
Still from the ‘Choke Mate’ shoot.

We wanted to give something back, so asked our fans for their favourite idea, prop, location and title
as well as calling them out to help out as cast and crew. The end result was a five minute film ‘Choke
Mate’ that premiered online on 10th December. It’s a much darker piece than the feature film but
one we are all very proud of achieving with no budget and very little time – check it out for yourself:
https://vimeo.com/55276148

On Sunday 16th December we went street busking, with the fantastic GRRB on the London South
Bank. We tapped into a new audience as the crowds gathered round and GRRB soon sold out of
albums. The band got a brilliant reaction from fans. The video of highlights from the day will be going
live in the last week of the campaign.
‘GRRB’ busking on South Bank

We really want The Fitzroy to be a film made by people who like us, at heart, are film fans. We want
them to be part of it and share the experience with us. For example, one of the cool rewards is an
animated cartoon version of you or your loved one, which will inhabit the opening title sequence.
We’ve really tried to tailor the Kickstarter rewards to be as exciting as possible. Our rule was if we
wouldn’t pledge for it, then how can we ask others to. So we feel there are some great rewards in the
form of posters, DVD box sets out of a Beach Survival kit and gas mask props from the finished film!
The full list is viewable on our Kickstarter page, as well all other details on The Fitzroy.
View the Kickstarter video for The Fitzroy

The DIRECTOR AND PRODUCERS
Writer & Director Andrew Harmer
James Heath (Producer), Andrew Harmer, Liam Garvo (Producer)

Household spending edges higher, while spending patterns differ by income

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The ONS recently revealed their latest report and Frost Magazine found it very interesting. As the seemingly never ending recession kicks our butts, the facts are that we are spending more and more. Check out the survey below.

 

Family Spending, the annual report from ONS on household expenditure in the
UK, found that in 2011, average UK weekly expenditure rose to £483.60, an
increase of £10.00 on the level recorded for 2010. The 2011 average
expenditure is the highest recorded by Family Spending.

Spending was highest on the transport costs category at £65.70 per week, up
80p from the previous year. Over half of all transport (£36.40) was on
running costs, which rose by £3.10 (an increase of nine per cent, following
last year’s 14 per cent increase). Most of the increase in running costs
was due to spending on fuel, as petrol, diesel and other motor oils
increased by £3.30. Higher expenditure on personal transport was also
reflected in vehicle insurance (£9.40 in 2011 compared with £8.00 in 2010).
On average, household expenditure was more than twice as much on
second-hand cars (£12.90) as new cars (£5.50). Unlike most types of
transport expenditure, spending on new cars decreased in 2011, from £6.50
per week in 2010.

The second highest expenditure category was recreation and culture (£63.90
per week). There was a small decrease in expenditure on audio-visual
equipment (including computers) averaging £6.30 per week in 2011 compared
with £7.20 in 2010. Spending on many recreation items remained fairly
constant, including games and toys (£2.20) and garden equipment (£2.60).
Spending on newspapers, books and stationery was similar in 2011 at £5.70
per week. However, there was a small increase in spending on recreational
services, including cinema tickets, leisure classes and admission to
sporting events, from £17.80 to £19.80. A weekly average of £4.00 was also
spent on pets and pet food. Average expenditure levels in the third highest
category: housing, fuel and power increased to £63.30 in 2011 from £60.40
in 2010. This was partly due to an increase in maintenance and repair of
dwellings, which rose by £1.00 to £7.70. Gross rent rose by 70p in 2011, to
£40.60. Average expenditure on electricity, gas and other fuels was £22.10
per week, an increase of 70p.

Weekly household expenditure on food and non-alcoholic drinks increased
from £53.20 in 2010 to £54.80 in 2011. However, the amounts spent on fresh
fruit (£3.10) and vegetables (£4.00) were unchanged.

Some types of expenditure decreased in 2011. This was notable for household
goods and services, which saw a drop of £4.10 to £27.30. This was mainly
due to a decrease of £2.80 in spending on furniture, to £13.80. Expenditure
on clothing and footwear was also lower in 2011 than in 2010, decreasing by
£1.70 to reach an average weekly expenditure of £21.70; of this decrease,
£1.00 was in clothing, which fell to £17.60. Spending on men’s outer
garments decreased by 60p to £4.20, while spending on women’s outer
garments fell by 70p but remained much higher than men’s at £7.70 per week.
Footwear for adults decreased by 40p in 2011, men’s footwear fell by 10p to
£1.30 and women’s fell by 30p to £2.10.

There were notable differences in expenditure patterns by income, seen by
comparing the ten per cent of households with the lowest incomes and the
ten per cent of households with the highest incomes. The lowest-income
group spent a larger proportion of their total average weekly expenditure
on housing, fuel and power (23 per cent), and food and non-alcoholic drinks
(16 per cent), than those in the highest income group (8 per cent in both
expenditure categories). Households in the highest income group spent a
greater proportion on transport (16 per cent) and recreation and culture
(14 per cent) than those in the lowest income group (7 and 10 per cent
respectively). Differences by income were also evident for internet access,
with 41 per cent of households in the lowest income group having access to
the internet at home, compared with 99 per cent of the highest income
households.

Overall, average household expenditure in the UK was £470.70 per week for
the years 2009–11 combined. There were five regions in which expenditure
over this period was higher than the UK average: expenditure was highest in
London (£574.90 per week), followed by the South East (£539.30), the East
(£497.10), Northern Ireland (£489.40) and the South West (£479.90).
Spending was lowest among households in the North East (£384.20 per week),
Wales (£398.20) and Yorkshire and the Humber (£410.10).

The high spending of London households of £574.90 was partly due to the
housing, fuel and power category, £91.30 per week, compared with the UK
national average of £60.30 per week. Households in rural areas had higher
overall expenditure (£510.50 per week) than those in urban areas (£458.30
per week). This was reflected in expenditure on transport, where spending
was highest (£77.40 in rural areas and £58.80 in urban areas), and
recreation and culture (£68.80 in rural areas and £57.20 in urban areas).
However, expenditure on the housing, fuel and power category was higher in
urban areas (£61.30 per week) than in rural areas (£58.30 per week).

Read the full report at
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/family-spending/family-spending/family-spending-2012-edition/index.html

Equal Education Unequal Pay

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It’s 2012 and close to four years after the Lilly ledbetter Fair Pay Act was signed into law. Surely, the gender wage gap has been closed, right? Wrong.

Even with moves toward equalizing pay between men and women, men still make almost 20% more than women in nearly all industries. This is despite the fact that women receive the same education, with the same tuition price tags and levels of debt upon graduation. The only major differences are that there are more ladies in college and they have better average GPAs to boot. The benefits of paying women their fair share include increasing the GDP while reducing the poverty rates for families.

Check out the infographic below to see what else the gender wage gap affects.

Equal_Education_Unequal_Pay

Equal Education Unequal Pay by LearnStuff.com

Price Comparison: Now & Then…

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We’ve all been there; as we’re doing our weekly shop, or treating ourselves to a little luxury item, we often find ourselves gasping: “How much!?”

It doesn’t take a genius to work out that life can be expensive – it seems that the prices of items we use in our everyday lives, continue to creep up each time we go to buy them.

I’m sure I’m not alone in finding that as I mutter, “How much?” at an item I regularly buy, it’s often followed by the phrase: “I remember when they used to be such-and-such price!”

Well, you’re right. Because, those lower such-and-such prices we seem to remember paying have somehow become sky high now we’re in the 21st century.

And, just to show you how expensive things have become, here’s a little run-down of how much normal everyday items cost us now, in comparison to 50 years ago, in the 1960’s:

Food & Household Groceries

Although plenty of our favourite supermarkets today claim that they offer the cheapest day-to-day products in comparison to their rivals, their prices still don’t come close to the prices that were around in the 1960’s.

Take a small pint of milk for example. In the 1960’s, one of these would have cost you a mere 3.3p. Hard to believe, isn’t it? And you thought that milk was cheap anyway, right? Well, compared to that price, milk now costs an average of 51p – which totals to a staggering rise of 1545% in the last 50 years!

Bread is also another everyday item that’s rocketed in price. Back in the day, a standard loaf of bread would have cost you 5p. Yes, that’s right…5p! With a 2000% increase, the same loaf now costs us a whole £1.

Lifestyle

Aside from the weekly food shop, a lot of us may have already noticed that other items that we purchase for our regular lifestyles, have also increased.

Starting with your very own bricks and mortar. The average price for a standard family home currently stands at a staggering £226,887. However, if you’d bought the same home 50 years ago, it would have cost you an unbelievably £2,530. That’s an amazing 8967% increase between 50 years ago and now. It’s no wonder so many people are desperately searching for the best payday loan in order to help them keep up with such payments.

A price that I always seem to notice is a little high, is stamps. Just a little first class stamp to send off your little letter, costs an unbelievable 60p today. Wouldn’t it be great if we could travel back to the days when this tiny item only cost you 1.2p?

Entertainment has risen significantly too: One cinema ticket would have cost you 60p 50 years ago, whereas today one costs an average of £8.00.

If you’re an avid Manchester United Fan, you also won’t be pleased to hear that the price of your beloved season ticket has risen a staggering 6258% in the same amount of years. what now costs you around £532 to see Alex Ferguson’s team play, would have cost you only £8.50.

A pack of 20 cigarettes used to cost 25p, and at an average of £6.57 today, that really is a saving that you could do with today!

A pint of beer has been on the up too. What would have cost you 5p for a standard pint has now risen 1545% to £3.00. So, you’ve popped to the pub for that after-work-Friday-night drink and now you’re off to the chippie to get the Friday night fish and chips. Well, if you’d done that 50 years ago, a regular portion would have cost you 6p – extremely cheap compared to the price of £3.30 today!

Cars

We all know cars are money drainers. From buying the car, they then need their MOT’s, their servicing, their tax and the petrol to run them. A little mini that’d set you back around £12,000 today, would have only cost you an average £470 back in the 1960’s!

And to run it? Well, with a litre of petrol now costing £1.30, that’s seen a staggering rise of 3939% in comparison to 50 years ago, where the same volume would have cost you only 3.3p.

However, it has to be said that although we’ve seen an incredible rise in everyday items since the 1960’s, the average income per annum has also risen dramatically. With an average increase of 2679% from £948 a year back then, to around £25k today, which would you prefer?

Found! The most tight-fisted male daters in the UK

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Frost exposes the most tight-fisted male daters in the UK

Male daters from Bolton are less willing to splash the cash in the search for love, according to FlirtFinder

Mobile dating service FlirtFinder.mobi, has revealed that Bolton boys are the most stingy when it comes to romance. According to the results, they are only happy to pay to respond to one in four messages implying that they would rather keep their wallets tightly sealed.

Based on the 1.2 million conversations that have been initiated by the female members of FlirtFinder, the results revealed that the lads of Llandridnod in Wales reply to over half of the messages that they receive from women, suggesting that they are happy to invest a few pennies in the search for their perfect partner.

 

Tightest daters in UK Most generous daters in UK
1)    Bolton 1)    Llandrindod Wells
2)    Ilford 2)    Telford
3)    Torquay 3)    Halifax
4)    Twickenham 4)    Carisle
5)    Sutton 5)    Dumfries
6)    Harrow 6)    Inverness
7)    Truro 7)    Worcester
8)    Huddersfield 8)    Gloucester
9)    Durham 9)    Taunton
10) Portsmouth 10) Reading

 

Justin Battell, managing director of FlirtFinder says, “When we looked at the differences in how our members use FlirtFinder, we found the areas where the men are most receptive bears no relationship to how affluent that region is.”

“There also doesn’t appear to be any evidence of a north and south divide, or any truth in commonly cited regional stereotypes, as the tightest and most generous areas include towns from all over the UK.”

The results are based on the probability of male members buying a message credit and replying to a woman who has contacted them directly.

FlirtFinder is a pay as you go mobile dating service where members buy credits only when they need them, rather than charging a recurring monthly subscription fee.

For more information on FlirtFinder, or to become a member, please visit: http://www.flirtfinder.mobi/

All about the money

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We are in the middle of a recession that seems never-ending. If it is not double dipping it is hoovering a few decimals points above oblivion. For those lucky enough to have jobs, wages are staying the same but the price of living keeps going up above inflation. If there is a light at the end of the tunnel most of us will probably think it’s another train. But, hey, at least you can have a hot pasty again without paying extra tax on it.

On the high street shops have been replaced by pawn brokers and shops buying your gold at a below market price. It is not so much as tightening the belt as it is selling a kidney and all of your possessions as taxes and prices rise. It would seem even a job will be a luxury soon. So, what can you do? Well you can get amazon offers coupons that save you time and money, you can take a part time job or do surveys online to earn some extra cash.

Cutting back is easier said than done. Especially when the television is full of adverts for ‘pay day loans’, another sign of the times. It seems that having a job is just not enough. Or even a luxury that some people just cannot afford because of the rise in petrol and public transport fares.

Something that you can do is never pay full price for anything. Search online for deals and coupons, shop for clothes in the sales. There are a lot of online shops that can beat shop prices. Get coupons. Coupons are hugely popular now. They used to be something your grandmother did but they have a new image and some (smart and thrifty) people never shop without them. If you have a job then try and bag a promotion, or do an easy job on the side, like dog walking. There are ways to make money online legitimately. Moneymagpie.com usually has good suggestions and you could always make money selling old stuff on Ebay too.