Life in Medieval Britain may not have been comfortable but its inhabitants had a dedication to debt-free living that we could learn from today, a think-tank has claimed.

Health care and a terrifyingly low life expectancy were some of the downsides to 12th century life, but medieval Britons could at least claim to have a "healthy scepticism about money."

The harshness of life in the 1100s was mitigated by endless holidays and parties and a healthy attitude towards work and debt, an audience at the Guardian Hay festival was told....