This is the most popular day of the year to get dumped

You might not want to buy any heart shaped chocolates just yet…

We hate to break it to you but Tuesday 7th February is the most popular day of the year to dump your partner, with so many people selecting that day to break the bad news that it has actually been dubbed Red Tuesday. Yes, really.

While many are shopping for engagement rings, booking romantic trips away and making home-made cards, there are quite a few out there contemplating how they’re going to deliver the killer blow to their significant other.

It’s no coincidence that this date falls just one week before Valentine’s Day, with the impending day of romance mounting pressure on couples and forcing them to think twice about their other halves.

In a survey conducted by IllicitEncounters.com, the UK’s leading dating website for married people, 30% of the 1,500 members who took part, admitted to breaking up with their partner just one week before Valentine’s Day.

Their reasons for doing so were even more telling, with 80% realising that they no longer loved their partner and that they would feel too guilty to spend such a romantic day with them knowing that they no longer had those feelings.

Additionally, 57% of those people gave ‘fear of the dreaded proposal’ as a key reason, either worried about receiving a proposal or feeling pressurised into making a proposal that they weren’t ready for.

‘It's done out of a combination of fear, pity and guilt,’ explained Christian Grant, a spokesperson for the site. ‘Many find themselves in a relationship that they know has been heading off a cliff for some time, but they're too scared to step out their comfort zone. However, the guilt can't help but consume them as the pressures of Valentine's Day become too much.’

He continued: ‘The shame and general all-round awkwardness of having to profess your love to someone that you, well, don't really love, is a dreaded realisation that many only open their eyes to at the very last moment. Add to that the fear of having to make - or receive - a proposal, and many will gladly choose the lesser of the two evils and hammer the final nail in the coffin before the situation gets any worse.’

Good luck, everyone. We hope you make it through Red Tuesday break up-free.

See you on the other side.