Blunt served in the army as part of a peacekeeping force in Kosovo

The man behind hits such as You're Beautiful came fourth in the survey of 2,000 people, beaten only by cold callers, caravans and queue-jumpers.

Blunt has sold five million albums and won two Brit awards, but has faced a backlash from those who are not fans.

Big Brother's Chantelle and Preston were eighth in the poll by Lactofree.

The couple met on the most recent celebrity version of the Channel 4 show, with Chantelle being planted as a "non-celebrity" alongside stars including Ordinary Boys singer Preston.

UK'S MOST IRRITATING THINGS 1. Cold callers 2. Caravans 3. Queue-jumpers 4. James Blunt 5. Traffic wardens 6. People who tailgate 7. Brown-nosers 8. Chantelle and Preston from Big Brother 9. Ex-smokers 10. Noisy neighbours Source: Survey by Lactofree

Other entertainment figures in the survey included Countdown co-presenter Carol Vorderman at number 12, who was deemed more annoying than paper cuts, rude shop assistants and junk mail.

Former Celebrity Love Island star Abi Titmuss ranked at 18, with illusionist David Blaine and newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky further down the list.

Blunt's debut album Back to Bedlam earned him the best pop act and best male solo artist categories at this year's Brit awards.

However, he was removed from one radio station's playlist after what it claimed was listener pressure.

The former soldier defended his music by telling his critics to switch over if they didn't like his songs.