Britons are no longer succumbing to the seven-year itch - or at least are making the best of things for a few years longer.
The phenomenon, made famous by the 1955 film of the same name, is based on the assumption that dissatisfaction with a spouse kicks in after seven years.
But the latest figures show that a marriage that ends in divorce has on average lasted 11.7 years.
Median duration of a marriage: Figures released by the ONS show that the average marriage lasts 11.7 years
This is a third longer than in 1985, when a divorce came typically after eight years and 47 weeks, meaning it probably hit the rocks after seven years.
And overall divorce rates in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest level since 1981 - there were 11.9 divorces for every 1,000 married people in 2007.
While analysts praised the growing durabliity of marriage, they pointed out that this has come about because fewer and fewer couples are choosing to wed, with only the most committed doing so. Currently, marriage rates are the lowest since records began in the 1850s.
Patricia Morgan, author of several books on the decline of the traditional family, said: 'The people who choose to marry are the ones who take a long-term view. Marriage has become largely a middle-class matter and marriage survival rates are at a 30-year high.'
Seven Year Itch: Marilyn Monroe and Tom Ewell in the film which is based around the idea that temptation to commit infidelity generally happens at seven years into a marriage
She added: 'It is cohabitation that is now temporary and cohabiting relationships that break up quickly. While people who marry are prepared for long-term commitment, many cohabitees regard their relationships as temporary.
'Middle-class married people are also usually unaffected by the benefit system, which rewards couples who break up.'
Michael Buchanan, the twice-divorced author of The Marriage Delusion, a new book, said: 'In previous centuries people would get married early, have children and then be parted by the death of one or other, usually within a decade or two.
'Nowadays they can expect to live for four to five decades after marriage. It's unrealistic to expect most people to sustain love and interest in each other for such long periods, especially if their children have grown up and moved out.'
George Axelrod coined the phrase 'seven-year itch' for the title of his 1952 Broadway play about the notion that the temptation to be unfaithful becomes irresistible at that point in a marriage.
Three years later it was made into a film by Billy Wilder, with Marilyn Monroe playing the beautiful neighbour tempting a businessman to stray while his wife and son are away. In the film's most famous image her dress blows upwards as she stands over a subway grating.
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