Vicky Shaw

Experts have created a new formula for the perfect female and male voices.

According to research for Post Office Telecoms, a combination of Mariella Frostrup, Dame Judi Dench and Honor Blackman make up the perfect female voice.

The most appealing male voices echo the rumbles of Alan Rickman, Jeremy Irons and Michael Gambon.

The formula represents the subtle blend of tone, speed, frequency, words per minute and intonation that make up the perfect voice.

Experiments revealed that vocal traits associated with positive characteristics, such as confidence and trust scored higher.

The ideal voice should utter no more than 164 words per minute (wpm) and pause for 0.48 seconds between sentences that fall in intonation, researchers found.

The study was conducted by linguistics Professor Andrew Linn from Sheffield University and sound engineer Shannon Harris, keyboard player for Rod Stewart and Lily Allen.

Prof Linn said: "As humans we instinctively know which voices send shivers down our spine, and which make us shudder with disgust.

"The emotional responses panellists had to the voices were surprising and go some way to explaining how voice-over artists or radio DJs are selected, or why particular celebrity voices appeal."