We live in a world where you can now watch television in 3D, on a phone, or even sneakily at work on your computer screen.

But yet there remains a handful of people in southwest London - and thousands more across the UK - who remain committed to watching the box in black and white.

Figures released today by TV Licensing reveal the number of UK families watching on black and white TVs has dropped a further 12 per cent in the past year, with fewer than 12,000 sets now in use nationwide.

According to this year’s figures:

  • Croydon has 34 black and white TV licences
  • Sutton has 16
  • Kingston has 13
  • Epsom has 12
  • Morden has 11
  • and Twickenham has 7

Despite it being nearly 48 years since colour transmissions began, digital switchover and the recent Christmas seasonal surge of television, laptop, tablet and smartphone sales, it seems there are still some nostalgic UK homes firmly attached to their trusty black and white TV sets.

Iain Logie Baird, Associate Curator at the National Media Museum in Bradford and grandson of television inventor John Logie Baird, said: “Despite over 25m people opting for a colour TV Licence in the UK, it may be some time before the black and white television disappears completely from our living rooms.

“The National Media Museum has hundreds of black and white television sets in its collection and there will always be a small group of people who prefer monochrome images, collect vintage sets or just don't want to throw away a working piece of technology.”

The cost of a black and white TV Licence remains frozen at £49 until BBC Charter Review in 2016. A colour licence costs £145.50.

A TV Licence is needed if watching or recording programmes at the same time as they are shown on television.