Coffee Chats: Have The Young (Under 35s) Become Really Boring?

Time is precious. Here we value non-boring valuable chats and interactions that are fully engaging, soulfully enriching, inspiring, and leave you a bit wiser than when you arrived. In that spirit, today’s hosted laid back social coffee chat will offer a perfect haven for the inquisitive & curious to share views on the following intriguing observation.

Growing up in the west - before the 2020s - Friday and Saturday nights meant going out with your mates for fun to enjoy music, dancing, drinking, eating, comedy, singing, fun silly moments and random conversations (and sometimes much more) with strangers you'd meet out and about 100% naturally. Taking drugs even. Tuesdays and Thursdays was for doing the same stuff but with work collegues hence the workplace was a place to make new lifelong friends. Weekend daytimes were for doing healthier but socially fun stuff like playing sports, pub lunches, visting galleries/museums, theatre and watching movies together at the Cinema or around a mate's house.

Fast‑forward 2026 - it feels like everything changed: Despite public transport running all night (it wasn't when I was in my teens/early 20s yet my peer group stayed out proper late most weekends) - on a Sat night "young" people head home at 10pm, skip the dance floor for board games in the pub, avoid bar banter, jokes and rarely engage in organic spontaneous chats with strangers. Whatsmore the stats are wild — data show virginity rates among men hitting record highs by age 30, social anxiety and social skills off-the charts. So what's happened?

We’ll explore questions like:

• Is this just nostalgia talking, or has something genuinely shifted?
• Why has typical multi generational fun pastimes (1950s to 2010s) lost its spark for the 20‑somethings?
• How much does health, economics, mobile phones, social media and gaming explain the trend?
• Are certain professions (like tech/IT) changing the social landscape, or just attracting already‑very introverted people?
• Why are some stats so contradictory? Think higher reported male virginity rates by 30 alongside rising STI rates in young people. Despite tanking alcohol sales - UK alcohol related death rates per capita are still rising. What's going on?
• Target audience demographics for commericial music radio stations (Capital, Kiss etc) is still 18 to 24 suggesting young people still consume music and other popular culture but are not going out to enjoy it. Why?
• Is it harder for younger people to make genuine friends today and if so why?
• Dancing is natural to all of us - every kid moves instinctively to music. So beyond a less joyous social life what happens when these innate behaviours get suppressed as adults? What has this healthy exercise and creative expression been replaced with?
• AI is predicted to take over technical job and tasks - the most future‑proof skills will be things like interpersonal skills & emotional intelligence built through real‑world socialising. Employers already complain that young people lack these skills. How will they get non-AI jobs?
• Levels of emotional intelligence and self-awareness - particularly amongst men - are at an all time low. Wiill social anxiety worsen further as the introversion trend accelerates?
• What does all this mean for dating, relationships, and starting families?

Expect lively debate, sharp humour, and a host (a former news journalist) that isn’t afraid to ask awkward questions. Bring your curiosity, your stories, and your caffeine tolerance — we’ll stir the coffee pot on whether the young have really become more boring or have they’re just discovered new fun activities - if so what are they? And if you are in your 20s - I would love to hear your views!

Lucas - The alcoholic 3am Eternal singing break-dancing geriatric