Get your news delivered straight to you by 7am - sign up to our new Morning Mail newsletter for FREE See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy PAT HAGAN - REPORTER Published: 22:00 BST, 27 June 2026 | Updated: 22:21 BST, 27 June 2026
Never mind romantic gestures, candlelit dinners or expensive perfumes. The real secret to a happy relationship is watching TV together and not talking while a programme is on, according to a study.Researchers tracked 84 couples and found that those who often sat down together to enjoy a favourite TV series or movie felt closer and reported stronger relationships than those who rarely did so.However, the study also found that while chatting about a show afterwards made couples even closer, talking during a programme undid all the romantic benefits.Previous studies have found that binge-watching box sets such as Game of Thrones together can strengthen couples' feelings for each other.The results, published in the journal Personal Relationships, showed roughly a third of the couples frequently enjoyed viewing TV together. The study also found that while chatting about a show afterwards made couples even closerThe researchers from Ben Gurion University in Israel said: 'Shared reality increases closeness and connection.'One way of increasing it is to watch TV, which can bolster intimate moments, such as shared laughter, crying and physical touch.'
