With Brits choosing which ghost or ghoul costume to wear, trick or treaters are planning which doors to knock on, and most importantly, people are choosing which scary movie to frighten themselves with at home we asked which film sends the most shivers down the nation’s spine.

• Three quarters (72 per cent) of the nation watch scary movies
• The Exorcist voted scariest movie of all time
• Paranormal movies prove to be the most frightening
• Half (46 per cent) prefer scary films with a companion beside them

With three quarters (71 per cent) of the nation wanting to be scared out of their wits by movies, respondents were asked which film is the most frightening they’ve ever watched with the top 10 coming out as:

1. The Exorcist
2. Saw
3. Silence of the Lambs
4. Paranormal Activity
5. Texas Chain Saw Massacre
6. The Ring
7. Psycho
8. The Blair Witch Project
9. Poltergeist
10. The Omen

Paranormal films come out as the most fearsome genre, followed by psychological thrillers, leaving one quarter (23 per cent) of Brits breathing a sigh of relief rather than feeling anything else after the credit roll.

Viewers feel safer from the terror by watching scary movies with somebody else as the research found almost half (46 per cent) of horror fans preferred watching them with a companion rather than alone. Furthermore, a quarter (26 per cent) favour the experience even more if their companion is scared adding to the scared excitement in the room.

Gregory Absalom, researcher at Opinium Research said: “For anyone looking for a good scare over the next few days The Exorcist is the film to watch. With nearly half of horror fans preferring to watch scary movies with a companion, watching alone is not recommended, except for those hardcore horror movie fans.”

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