Middle-aged people watch Grease, listen to David Bowie and want to see Northern Lights, study suggests
Worryingly, the top concern of those aged 50-59 is their health followed by finances
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Your support makes all the difference.Is seeing the Northern Lights or learning a new language on your bucket list? Do you like Fleetwood Mac, the film Grease and drive a Ford Fiesta? If so, new research suggests you are in the middle-age bracket.
A recent survey by Nationwide building society looked into the finances, lifestyle habits, concerns and aspirations of 2,000 50 to 59 year olds.
According to the results, one in five average 50-something wants to travel the world and one in eight (12 per cent) wishes to learn a new language. Other travel-based adventures feature high on the bucket list including a third vying to see the Northern Lights (39 per cent), 13 per cent wishing to swim with dolphins and five per cent wanting to travel out of space.
The average 50-something also has a number of regrets mainly tied to finance and adventure. More than a third (34 per cent) wish they had saved more money while 31 per cent wish they had travelled more. More than a quarter (26 per cent) wish they had saved more money into their pension, a quarter regretted not doing enough exercise and just under a fifth (19 per cent) wished they hadn’t lost touch with family and friends.
A quarter of those surveyed were divorced or single but almost three quarters were in relationships, the average length being 24 years.
The nine things 50-59 year olds are partial to are divided into music, film and TV. Favourite music of those in the age range is Fleetwood Mac, Queen and David Bowie while the favourite films are the John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John featuring musical Grease, ET and Indiana Jones. Iconic British comedies like Blackadder, Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers top the list of favourite programmes to watch on television.
The survey found that health fears top the list of worries for people in the age range with more than half (58 per cent) saying their health is a concern and more than a third (38 per cent) worried about their partner’s health.
The next line of worries largely revolves around financial concerns including 46 per cent concerned about money saving and more than a third (35 per cent) worried about the strength of their pension.
The average annual income for a 50-something in the UK is £19,165 and amount of debt is £4,641 with an overdraft of £330. They tend to have savings of £4,511 and a monthly disposable income of £297.
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