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23rd September 2025
11:19am BST
Among the things to look out for include someone taking a long pause before answering a question, an accelerated blink rate and a rise in vocal pitch.
Other telltale signs are too much eye contact and arm folding as a barrier ritual to defend themselves.
While a glance to the left, an asymmetrical smile and a shrug of the shoulders can also give the game away, according to TV behavioural expert Judi James.
As well as pointing with an index finger, a touch of the neck and feet shuffling.
Stillness is also often an option for a liar, who might adopt a neutral, deadpan expression and try to keep all movement to a minimum to avoid looking guilty.
It comes after research found 34 per cent of Brits reckon they have an ace 'poker face' - and hide their true feelings as often as three times a week.
A poll of 2,000 adults found 25 per cent are so confident in their deception abilities, they think people can rarely tell when they aren’t being honest.
Judi James, who is working with Lottoland.co.uk, which commissioned the research, said: "Body language is not a precise science and it’s important to be aware of what is called The Othello Error, where what we believe to be lying traits are actually symptoms of a truthful person feeling under pressure to be believed.
“Both lying and proving your honesty can produce a stress response that can emerge as identical non-verbal signalling.
“TV programmes like The Traitors showcase this perfectly. People trying to prove they’re genuine Faithful’s to the other contestants will often look more guilty than the lying traitors.”
The research also found, of the 92 per cent who disguise their feelings, 28 per cent do this by avoiding eye contact, while others won’t take deep breaths (14 per cent) or cross their arms (13 per cent).
Fidgeting with their hands or objects (11 per cent), touching their face or mouth (11 per cent) and slowing down their speaking (10 per cent) also featured.
While 62 per cent think it is important to hide their emotions in public.
Some of the main reasons being to avoid conflict (47 per cent), to stay in control (43 per cent) and to prevent awkwardness (42 per cent).
Others do it to not hurt someone’s feelings (41 per cent) and to stay professional (41 per cent).
With 28 per cent most likely to hide their true emotions in a workplace setting.
On the flipside, 58 per cent think they could tell when someone is lying, with too much, or too little eye contact, nervous laughter and fidgeting being the key giveaways.
Followed by a different tone of voice, blushing, and sweating, according to the research by OnePoll.
A spokesperson for Lottoland.co.uk said: “The ability to deceive does make an excellent poker player – it’s all about not giving anything away in your facial expressions.
“It seems many people are confident in their own lying abilities, and they do it often, but I do wonder if they are a good as they think.
“A lot of the tactics they use to hide their emotions, for example fidgeting and avoiding eye contact, does also appear in the list of things people look out for to catch a liar.
“This is why we partnered with Judi, to see what a real expert makes of this.”
1. NON-VERBAL DEVIATION: To unmask a liar, watch them tell the truth first to use as a baseline, so you can spot changes and deviations
2. EYE-DIRECTION: We often look to our left to remember and to out right to make things up.
3. COMPOSITION TRAITS: Liars often take a long pause before answering and paused during speaking; repeat your question; repetition during the answer; exaggerated swallows or coughs
4. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES: The heart rate speeds up which can cause a breathless tone; sweating; blushing; fidgeting; an accelerated blink rate, and a rise in vocal pitch.
5. INCONGRUENT BODY LANGUAGE: Hand and feet movements are at odds with the words can signal a lie
6. GRANDIOSE RESPONSES: A liar will often fight back by creating a state of authoritative, self-important aggressive arousal to try to intimidate including inflating to full height, using an index finger to point and rolling their eyes.
7. FORCE-FIELD RITUALS: A liar will often try to defend themselves, which could emerge as barrier rituals like arm-folding, one shoulder-shrugs or head-shaking denial rituals.
8. SELF-COMFORT GESTURES: Auto-contact gestures like face, hair or neck-touching can show a desire to cope with the awkwardness of being under pressure by the lie, or you could see more fiddling or foot-shuffling.
9. RICTUS SMILE: Many liars put in extra effort to overcome the muscle tension, leading to a rigid overkill, mirthless smile.
10. EYE-DANCING: If there is a moment of panic as they try to form the lie the eyes can begin to dance about the room in a darting movement.
11. HONESTY CLAIMS: Verbal fillers will often also increase during a lie, like ‘Um…er…’ or ‘You know’ ‘Basically’ or ‘So….’
12. THE HAND FAN: A liar will fan their hands out from their elbows in a display of acted openness or honesty, often the shoulders are shrugged too.
13. THE POKER FACE: Stillness is often an option for a liar, who might adopt a neutral, deadpan expression and try to keep all movement to a minimum to avoid looking guilty.
14. ‘DELIBERATE’ REVEAL: While they lie to you, they will also be giving the game away via a cheeky, asymmetric smile or smirk that suggests you should enjoy the bluff too.
15. GESTICAL DELAY: In a normal conversation the gestures will occur just before the words but when someone lies that order will often be reversed.
