A survey of British men has found that one in ten men admit to secretly using make-up, with men from Newcastle being the most likely to wear make-up; closely followed by men from Essex.

More than 1,800 men were surveyed by designer secret sales website HushHush.com to investigate men’s attitudes towards make-up and toiletries, as well as the number of British males who admit to wearing make-up.

When asked ‘Do you ever secretly wear make-up?’ 11% of respondents admitted that they did. When asked how often they did so, the majority, 52%, of these respondents said they did so ‘regularly’; while 21% admitted that they wore it ‘every day’.

These respondents were then asked to highlight which make-up products they used. The top five products used by those who said they secretly wore make-up were:

1. Concealer – 71% (of make-up-wearing respondents stating they used it)
2. Lip gloss – 64%
3. Eyeliner – 49%
4. Mascara – 31%
5. Bronzer – 18%

More than a third of the men taking part (37%), said they used fake tanning products; with the majority of these, (68%) preferring to use at-home products. The remainder said they preferred to go to spray-tanning salons and 14% of men also said that they regularly used tanning beds.

The survey then asked respondents who secretly wore make-up which town or city in the UK they lived in, revealing that Northerners are more likely to wear make-up than their Southern counterparts; with just three of the top ten towns and cities being located in the south.

The towns or cities in which men were most likely to secretly wear make-up were revealed as:

1. Newcastle
2. Essex
3. Liverpool
4. Leeds
5. Edinburgh
6. Manchester
7. Exeter
8. Nottingham
9. Cardiff
10. Middlesbrough

Mark Pearson, founder of HushHush.com, said: “With men in the public eye wearing make-up, including X Factor winner James Arthur, it appears to be becoming more acceptable. Despite this, the majority of men who wear make-up feel that they have to do so in secret, although in reality, people around them are bound to have noticed but, in true British style, are probably too polite to bring it up!”

Words by Katy Pearson