WE have all been there.

Wrestling inside your pocket or rummaging around the bottom of your handbag searching for your ringing phone only to find when you answer it, it's someone trying to sell you something you don't want or telling you they can get you compensation for the accident you never had. 

So what do you do next?

Hang up immediately? Spend the next 10 minutes trying to get them off the phone? 

Unsolicited calls hit the headlines this week as a new way of avoiding them was revealed by the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) - click here for more details. 

But before you rid your lives of these nuisance calls for good. Here's a few ways to deal with them that's sure to put a smile on your face. 

1. Start talking to them in a very random long-winded way about something completely unrelated. When they ask how you are, start prattling on about your weekend plans – or better still, quiz them about what’s going on in their life.

News Shopper:

2. Answer all their questions with film titles or song lyrics.

News Shopper:

3. Pretend you don't speak English and throw your best GCSE French at them

News Shopper:

4. Tell them that you’re busy with something and ask if  they know where to buy a shovel and some strong acid

News Shopper:

5. Repeat everything they say back to them in an accent of your choice

News Shopper:

6. Pretend they have reached your voicemail, complete with very unconvincing 'beep' sound.

News Shopper:

7. Just say yes – answer yes to every single question they ask even when it makes no sense.

News Shopper:

8. Try to sell them something. Gets rid of them very quickly.

News Shopper:

9. Ask the caller their name and then cry out in surprise, "Dave! Is that you? Oh my God! Dave, how have you been?"

News Shopper:

10. Tell them your name is something a bit more amusing. Chris P Bacon anyone?

News Shopper:

11. Put a small child on the phone and let them do the talking. Goo goo. Dada? Doggy!

News Shopper:

How do you deal with nuisance callers? Let us know in the comments below.