Britain has more online and console gamers than anywhere else in Europe, according to a new study.

The new ‘National Gamers’ survey, commissioned by TNS and Gamesindustry.com, looked at the gaming habits of Brits aged eight and over with access to the internet, and found that a staggering 73% of those questioned regularly played games – the highest proportion in Europe, no less.

Mining into the detail we find that males aged 13 to 19 spend an average of 11 hours a week playing games, while their little brothers can happily while away seven and a half hours doing the same. No huge surprises there, we guess. But that’s just the start of the impressive stats.

For instance 86% of girls questioned say they play games, while 42% of people aged 50 or over claim to spend more time playing games than reading magazines. Who knew about that!

Aside from all the above it transpires that we’re more honest than their European counterparts, at least where games are concerned. In the grip of the credit crunch only 4% of UK gamers admitted to making illegal copies of games; a figure that rises to 10% in Holland.

Elsewhere the study notes the rising prominence of social networking sites and mobile phones as viable gaming platforms. 11% of UK gamers using sites like Facebook and Myspace said they these were their primary gaming destinations, meanwhile the usage of the iPhone/smartphones as portable gaming devices has increased to 20% over the last year – and that’s double the level of other Euro nations.

All told, Brits of all ages and genders are consuming more games on a more frequent basis and are helping to smash the traditional stereotype along the way, as TNS director Stephen Palmer explains:

“Gaming has rapidly expanded in popularity and now appeals to as wide an audience as TV and the internet. In several cases, young and old are even moving away from traditional media and spend their free time playing games instead.”

“The variety of games on offer has drawn in segments of the population that would not ordinarily be associated with gaming, which has turned the traditional view of the ‘gamer’ on its head.”

Well, Rule flipping Britannia, or what!