Wellness
If you could experience a day all over again, what would it be? Brits reveal all...

If you could experience a day all over again, what would it be? Brits reveal all...

When it comes to our memories, some cherished days or moments stick in our minds for years, while others we can seldom remember and only get transported back with photographs. And of course, there are some we’d rather forget.

Regardless of whether you carry a million moments with you, or replay one day gone by, one thing most of us would like to do is relive some of these memories to ensure they last a lifetime. But of course, they’re not the same for everyone. So here at Ryman, we wanted to find out what moment us Brits would most like to capture. And it’s not as obvious as you may think.

 

Of those polled, most respondents said they would like to relive the day they had their child or children. Just under one third1 of respondents agreed this moment topped the list for them. This was true across all age groups, except 16-24s, as you’d expect. Those under 25 would rather be transported back to a family holiday from childhood2.

Re-experiencing the holiday of a lifetime came in second place overall, with 24.19% of the vote, while it seems that romance isn’t dead; over one fifth3 of those polled said they’d most like to experience the first time they met their partner once again.

How about other members of our family? Well, it seems that our pets are called our fur babies for a reason; more people said they would rather relive the day they got their pet (14.46%) over the day they found out they were having a baby, with just over one in ten agreeing to the latter statement4.

A fluffy dog has their head stuffed into a dog treats boxA fluffy dog has their head stuffed into a dog treats box
Photo Credit: @houseofamae on Instagram
Which moment would you most like to relive?  
The birth of my child/children 32.74%
The holiday of a lifetime 24.19%
The time I first met my partner 22.16%
A family holiday from childhood 18.73%
My wedding day 18.68%
The day I got a pet (dog, cat, etc.) 14.46%
The day I found out I was having a baby 12.47%
There is no moment or day that I would like to relive 10.03%
The day I bought my first house 9.84%
Achieving a lifelong ambition or skill (winning an award, graduating, etc.) 9.59%

Does this change through the years?

Age does make a difference, but perhaps not in the way you may expect; those aged 55 and over are the least likely to want to relive a day or moment, while 25-34s are the most likely to want to re-experience the past.

Which moment would you like to relive? 16-24 25-34 35-44 44-55 55+
There is no moment or day that I would like to relive 9.59% 5.26% 6.83% 9.23% 14.1%

Coming up for one in ten5, of those aged 55 and over, want to once again live through the day their team won a coveted trophy, the highest out of all polled. Remarkably, those aged between 45 and 54 polled the lowest with this answer, at just 2.98%.

Achieving a lifelong ambition, such as graduating or winning an award, or eating the best meal they’ve ever had is more sentimental to younger generations. 30.26% of 16-24s selected those options, 25.15% of 25-24s selected the same. And this trend continues as we move up the ages.

Three rows of multiple black and white photos are hung up with some pegs on rope.Three rows of multiple black and white photos are hung up with some pegs on rope.

Does gender make a difference?

Females look to be slightly more sentimental on the whole than males; 90%6 agreed they would want to relive a moment, while this fell slightly to 87.77% of men. There are also higher percentages of women stating they would like to re-experience precious moments, such as having a child (40.41% compared to 24.67%), their wedding day (19.48 compared to 17.84%), and the day they found out they were expecting a child (18.62% compared to 6.42%).

In a not so surprising turn of events, more than one in 107 of men said they want to relive the moment their favourite team won a coveted trophy. This is higher than the day they proposed or were proposed to8, achieving a lifelong ambition, or the day they bought their first property. Unsurprisingly, just 1.55% of women would relive the moment their favourite team won a coveted trophy.

A box of old black and white photos sits on a desk.A box of old black and white photos sits on a desk.
Which moment would you like to relive? Male responses Female responses
The birth of my child/children 24.67% 40.41%
The holiday of a lifetime 23.14% 25.19%
The time I first met my partner 22.94% 21.41%
My wedding day 17.84% 19.48%
A family holiday from childhood 14.58% 22.67%
There is no moment or day that I would like to relive 12.23% 7.95%
The day I got a pet (dog, cat, etc.) 11.11% 17.64%
The day my team won a coveted trophy 11.11% 1.55%
Achieving a lifelong ambition or skill (winning an award, graduating, etc.) 10.91% 8.33%
Eating the best meal I've ever had 10.40% 7.95%
The day I bought my first house 9.38% 10.27%
The day I left a job I didn't like 7.24% 8.04%
The day I was proposed to/proposed 6.83% 8.33%
The moment I got my dream job 6.83% 5.23%
Ticking an activity off my bucket list (skydiving, charity work, etc.) 6.73% 6.20%
The day I found out I was having a baby 6.42% 18.22%
My divorce day 3.98% 3.39%

Our wedding day might be a popular choice, but some of us might be channelling our inner Nicole Kidman; 7.37% of people selected their divorce day as a day they would most like to relive.

Despite having the choice of any moment in their life, more than one in ten said there is no moment or day they would like to relive.

If you’re wanting to relive key moments from your life, why not make memories that last forever by printing off your photos? As printer specialists, we offer printing services across more than 200 stores nationwide.

Methodology

We commissioned Censuswide to conduct a survey of 2,013 nationally representative adults to ask them which moment they would like to relive out of a number of options, as well as a free text box. The survey was conducted between 26th January and 31st January 2022.

1 32.74%

2 22.51%

3 22.16%

4 12.47%

5 8.63%

90.05%

11.11%

6.83%