Tennant has nearly a quarter of viewers (23%) swooning in front of their screens, while one in five have the hots for Friel, a poll carried out by the Hallmark Channel revealed.

More than 1,600 TV viewers took part in the survey, which was aimed at examining the effects of sex appeal on keeping people hooked on their favourite TV shows. One in five respondents felt that actually seeing any sex distracted them from their enjoyment of the plot however.

The recipe for sexiness in a TV character was thought to include charisma (38%), looking great (36%) and not playing by the rules (12%).

A Hallmark Channel spokesman said: "Our ongoing research into what makes great gripping drama has revealed that a sexy male or female lead can make a real difference to the success of a new series.

"If you were creating the ideal on-screen TV couple it would arguably be David and Anna, but you wouldn't want to see them doing anything that distracts from the plot!"

Eva Longoria of Desperate Housewives fame followed Friel in the sexiest female TV character top 10, while Wentworth Miller, who plays Michael Scofield in Prison Break, was voted second sexiest male character after Tennant.

More than two thirds (68%) of male respondents admitted that they felt sex did not in fact get in the way of a good plot and nearly half (49%) put the looks of their favourite female leads well beyond being charismatic (26%) or not playing by the rules (10%).

Women put charisma (42%) above good looks (31%) and revealed that being good in a crisis (10%) was also an important factor in a lead male character's sex appeal.

In Northern Ireland and Wales, Miller was voted sexiest leading male (28%), while ex-EastEnder Michelle Ryan, who plays Jaime Summers in Bionic Woman, was voted sexiest leading female (23%).



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