A third of Brits have admitted to lying about their personal life – by exaggerating their salary, sporting ability, and knowledge of current affairs.
A study of 2,000 adults found 59 per cent of these have done so at a dinner party, while 38 per cent have exaggerated funny stories for full comic effect – with 66 per cent most likely to embellish to their friends and 44 per cent to colleagues.
And childhood tales aren’t safe from a little creative rewriting at the table (27 per cent) according to the poll.
While 13 per cent even inflate the facts to their in-laws.
But the deception doesn’t end at small talk - when it comes to hosting themselves, the study also found 14 per cent of all respondents would lie about how they prepared food.
Additionally, 24 per cent of hosts have served food cooked in an air fryer but present it to others as having been cooked via another method.
The research was commissioned by Bosch, which has teamed up with TV duo Harry Clark and Mollie Pearce – to help quash myths around the quality of air fryer food following the release of its new air fryer.
The two reality stars invited sceptical members of the public into their studio kitchen to try two identical-looking dishes: one cooked traditionally, and one using the air fryer.
Harry Clark said: “It’s funny to see how many people will lie at the dinner table to make themselves look good.
“But it’s not just embellishing their tales to others – clearly, some people feel the need to be a little deceptive when it comes to how they’re preparing their food.”
“I’ve got a decent nose for spotting when something’s not quite what it seems - and food’s no exception.
“When we watched people try to guess which dish was cooked in the air fryer, it was hilarious as most of them got it wrong”.
It also emerged 28 per cent of those who fib have been caught out telling a lie – with friends most likely to be the ones playing Sherlock (42 per cent).
Despite bending the truth, 24 per cent worry others will find out the reality if they inflate their stories too much.
However, when attending a dinner party, 19 per cent would be willing to lie and tell the host they enjoyed the food, even if they didn’t.
Just under half (45 per cent) of Brits don’t trust their air fryer to cook their food as much as traditional cooking methods.
However, 37 per cent have proudly shown off something made in an air fryer to their dinner party guests.
A Bosch spokesperson said: “When it comes to new cooking tech, people are divided - some are devoted fans of the air fryer, while others just don’t trust it yet.
“That’s why we created Air Fryer or Air Liar - to prove you don’t need to fake it.”
THE TOP 10 THINGS BRITS ARE MOST LIKELY TO LIE ABOUT AT DINNER PARTIES:
1. Funny stories
2. Job
3. Salary
4. Holidays
5. Childhood
6. Experiences (spa massages, wine tasting, etc)
7. Sporting ability
8. Knowledge of current affairs
9. Connections
10. DIY skills
