New figures from England and Wales show that divorces are becoming more concentrated among couples who have been married for two decades or longer, suggesting the “seven-year itch” is no longer the dominant pattern.
Multiple outlets cite Office for National Statistics data indicating that for opposite-sex couples, 26% of divorces in 2025 follow 20 years or more of marriage. Other reporting describes this as a record-style shift, with marriages appearing more likely to end later rather than in the earlier years. The coverage generally notes that while many people associate marital breakdown with mid-marriage, the latest figures point to longer-term marriages as a larger share of divorces.
Some articles also emphasize the practical impact of ending long marriages, including the costs involved when couples choose to divorce after many years together. Across outlets, the differing emphasis is on framing (from “seven-year itch” to a “20-year itch”), but they align on the underlying ONS finding that longer-duration marriages make up a significant and growing proportion of divorces.
