9 mins, 36 secs of gossip, weather and news make the perfect phone call!

London, Nov 19 : The perfect phone call lasts nine minutes and 36 seconds later, and contains a chatty mix of family news, current affairs, a sprinkling of personal problems and a dash of the weather, according to experts.

Researchers came up with the best subject matter and timing after analysing more than 2,000 people's likes and dislikes about talking on the phone.

According to the experts, in a call lasting nine minutes and 36 seconds, three minutes should be spent catching up with news about family and friends, one minute on personal problems, another minute on work/school, 42 seconds on current affairs and 24 seconds on the weather.

Chatting about the opposite sex should last 24 seconds, 12 seconds should be spent on celebrity gossip, one minute and 42 seconds on laughing, 12 seconds on silence and a minute on other general topics.

And it seems that mum's the word when it comes to the perfect telephone conversation -as one in five people said they spent most time on the phone to their mother.

The research, by the Post Office, revealed that the phrase "I'll get your mother" is common.

Only three per cent of people named their father as the person they spent most time on the phone with - because dads hand over the phone to their wives.

Catherine Blyth, author of The Art of Conversation, says anyone can conduct a good chat.

"Conversation can slip along with little more than a friendly smile and an open mind," the Daily Express quoted her, as saying.

Hugh Stacey, head of telephony at the Post Office, said: "It was surprising that celebrity gossip only occupied 12 per cent of the perfect telephone call. The biggest surprise is that silence is golden - with 12 seconds of every call set aside for a little quiet contemplation."

Psychotherapist Christine Webber said: "Regular contact with friends or family brings down blood pressure, lowers cholesterol and may stave off dementia."

ANI