More people in Sheffield will start an affair on January 7 than any other day of the year

Dubbed '˜Blue Monday,' January 7 is set to be the peak day for affairs '“ sparked by being cooped up with a partner over Christmas, bad weather and looking for a fresh start for the New Year.

According to married-dating website IllicitEncounters.com, the prolonged festive period highlights the cracks in relationships with the period after Christmas the busiest week for cheating.

Registrations on the firm's website are forecast to be up 28% with affairs tipped to be at their peak just seven days in to the year.

Spokesman Christian Grant said: 'After an overdose of Christmas, the New Year, and most importantly, each other, many couples are making splitting up their number one New Year resolution.'

In a survey of 500 new signups, 75% claimed that being cooped up with their partner over the Christmas period left them feeling suffocated and in need of some time apart.

That, together with miserable cold weather, darker days and the despair of heading back to work has left couples across the country gasping for something new and exciting that the thrill of an affair can bring.

And IllicitEncounters.com sees January every year as the time when couples make their top New Year's resolution to split and move on from their troubled relationship. Not surprisingly it also happens to be the peak period for divorce lawyers.

Christian Grant added: 'The New Year is a time when people are making life-changing decisions so an increase in sign-ups at the beginning of the year is no surprise to us. The amount of new registrations since Boxing Day suggests that this year will be no exception.'

"A period of family lockdown means couples spend an intense time with each other over Christmas which can be quite claustrophobic.

'This can lead to a '˜cabin fever' situation where couples get so infuriated with each other that underlying problems are brought to the surface."

'Studies have shown that more couples argue in January than during any other month, with many trying to deal with the stresses of returning to work, over-spending, eating and drinking over the holiday period and money being stretched tighter and tighter by New Year price rises.

'This leads to an inevitable build-up of irritability and tempers are frayed. Add to this the financial implications of getting a divorce and the prospect of having an affair not only starts to look appealing, it becomes a financially viable option.

'January 7 is one of the first days back to work and couples take this opportunity to explore all the things they couldn't under the watchful eye of their partner.'