The average Brit laughs out loud 5,110 times every year, according to a new study. Researchers took an in-depth look into what makes the nation crack up – and discovered Sheffield is the banter capital of the UK, with people from the steel city chortling 16 times a day on average - that’s 5,840 times a year.

Bristol came second in the laughter stakes, chuckling on average 5,694 times every year and Leeds came third with 5,511 laughs.

In fact, 83 percent of those polled claim Britain has the best sense of humour in the world, with 58 percent saying being able to laugh at ourselves was a valued national trait.

According to the research of 2,000 Brits by Ronseal – which commissioned the study - 90 percent say that when the chips are down, they live by the saying “if you didn’t laugh, you’d cry.”

The poll revealed 73 percent of Brits say they use humour to make someone feel better, 52 percent say they laugh to diffuse an argument, while 46 percent deploy a well-timed wise crack to change the subject.

The data also revealed the majority of those polled (27 percent) say they have the most laughs and banter with their other half, while 15 percent said their children were a constant source of amusement.

When it comes to the people we take the mickey out of most - our best friends are most likely to be the butt of our gags, while 15 percent claimed a work colleague is the person they are most likely to verbally spar with.

A further 18 percent claimed that they are more likely to take the mickey out of themselves rather than anyone else.

According to the poll, we’re most likely to laugh at a friend’s DIY skills (38 percent) – or lack of them – with 16 percent admitting they have botched so many jobs their friends can’t resist a joke at their expense, while 19 percent have the mickey taken out of them because they put DIY jobs off for so long.

A spokesperson for Ronseal, which commissioned the study said: “Banter is a part of British culture and whether we are making fun of situations, our friends or our own predicaments no-one does it quite like we do. DIY featured highly in the research, with us self-deprecating Brits often using our own delays and disasters as fodder for friends looking for a laugh.”

Nearly half of the men polled (48 percent) insist they are funnier that their other half compared to 29 percent of women who think they are more humorous.

Almost four in ten (37 percent) said they joke with a friend or family member about how tight they are with money and 27 percent take the mickey out of friends’ dress sense.

Nearly two in ten (18 percent) joke about a mate’s haircut - while a brave 8 percent admitted they often banter about a friend’s partner.

People send on average four funny text or WhatsApp messages to their mates every day, while 73 percent said the rise of technology and social media platforms have led to more banter and laughs.

And almost nine in ten people felt that our national love of laughs brought us closer together with friends and family.