Polls by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) suggest that many people worry about giving the ‘kiss of life’, so the organisation is now saying that it should be ignored in favour of hard and fast compressions in the centre of the chest.

Ellen Mason, senior cardiac nurse at the BHF, said, "The kiss of life can often be daunting for untrained bystanders who want to help when someone has collapsed with a cardiac arrest”.

She also said that the kiss of life remained the “gold standard” of CPR, but added that if the person had not been trained in it, the best option would be chest compressions.

The new BHF advert features Vinnie Jones as the traditional hardman, administering chest compressions to the Bee Gees hit, Stayin’ Alive.

Speaking about the new campaign, Mr Jones said, "There really shouldn't be any messing about when it comes to CPR. If you're worried about the kiss of life just forget it and push hard and fast in the centre of the chest.

"Hands-only CPR should give have-a-go heroes the confidence to step in and help when somebody is in cardiac arrest."