Viewers want to see more drama and documentaries rather than reality and celebrity shows, research has shown.
The study also shows that viewers reckon Big Brother - soon to disappear forever from Channel 4 but which may be revived on Channel Five - is the show most people say they strive to avoid.
The figures - from a joint survey by SeeSaw.com and Radio Times - come as popular shows X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing prepare to go head to head for Saturday night ratings.
And Channel 4 is going all-out with Big Brother's last gasp as former stars flood the show for a fortnight.
The survey of 2,000 adults - to appear in today's Radio Times - finds nearly a third of viewers (31%) want more drama, while 30% would prefer to see more documentaries. Just 2% of those polled said they wanted more celebrity content, and 3% wanted further reality TV.
A total of 44% said Big Brother was the show they were most likely to avoid, with the X Factor landing 6% of the poll. Top Gear was named the nation's favourite show.
The study, which also looked at TV consumption and identified changes in the way people now view their programmes, found only 29% of students watched shows mainly on live TV, while 56% said they watched their shows online.
Just over a third of all those who took part (34%) said they now watched their favourite shows online.
John Keeling, platform controller of online TV service SeeSaw, said: "The nation's hunger for great television is insatiable.
"Viewing across the board is in robust health but scratch the surface and a quiet revolution is taking place. Whilst the nation continues to watch fantastic shows like Doctor Who and Top Gear, a whole new generation of TV fans are enjoying these shows online."
