A new study has revealed an intriguing snapshot of Brits attitudes to life, death and the here-after, with a clear shift emerging in the traditional beliefs of people in Britain. The majority of us consider ourselves to be spiritual (26%), outweighing those who’d class themselves as ‘religious’ (18%) or atheists (17%). What happens when we die remains a serious debate amongst Brits with half of us believing we go on to another existence.

The study found concepts like reincarnation, karma and the afterlife are growing more popular amongst Brits as a new trend of picking and mixing belief systems is spreading across the nation. More than a third of Brits believe in karma (36%), which strongly impacts on the way we live our lives. 1 in 10 believe in reincarnation and, interestingly, two thirds of believers would rather come back as a normal person, yet a mere 18% of us would choose to be famous in the next life. Given the choice, the majority of us would rather come back as Audrey Hepburn than Albert Einstein or Winston Churchill.

Belief in spirituality extends as far as the supernatural world, with over a third of us experiencing something of an unexplained nature. A quarter had seen or felt the presence of a ghost or spirit and 1 in 20 of us believe we become ghosts when we die. Nearly 1 in ten of us has encountered a guardian angel and 1 in 20 claimed to have spoken to someone beyond the grave.