Among the thousands who experienced the tremor was Ben Sweeting in Scunthorpe, who told The Times: “My whole house shook like it was going to fall over and it felt as if the whole roof was coming off. I thought a tree had been thrown into the roof by a tornado or something.

"Everyone in Scunthorpe is out on the streets now talking about it.”

Kevin Simons, 45, from Hannington near Northampton, said: “I was lying in bed, I had been there for about an hour, and the whole house shook, the whole house was moving.

"It lasted about 45 seconds. My wife was petrified. We thought the house was coming down, I knew it was an earthquake straight away.

"It was as strong as I have ever felt anywhere and I lived on the west coast of America for four years.”

Anna Waddell was at home in Hampstead, London, with her husband and three children when the tremors struck.

She said: “The house started creaking and then the bed started shaking, it was very spooky and completely frightening.

"It was like the house was sort of coming away from itself. It was like a giant was walking about in the garden."

Richard Flynn, from Oldbury in the West Midlands, said: “All the power was cut off and seemed to be so for about a five mile (8km) radius.”

Richard Lloyd Parry, a Times journalist familiar with earthquakes having lived in Japan for more than 10 years, felt it in Sandsend in North Yorkshire.

He said the quake lasted between five and ten seconds.

”It felt like a side-to-side shake and a mirror above the fireplace rattled and the windows shook,” he said.

Joanna O’Donoghue, 21, a student living in Leicester, said she was “absolutely petrified” when her block of flats began shaking around her.

“The front of my chest of drawers fell out and my candles fell on the floor and broke. I thought it was a ghost.

"All my neighbours came out and people from all over the country have already started sending me messages saying they felt it. I’m still a bit panicky; I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep."

Richard Borthwick from Sutton-on-Sea said the tremor, which lasted between five and 10 seconds, was much stronger than one he experienced several years ago in Los Angeles.

At first he thought the vibrations might be caused by a low-flying jet or a crashed plane.

“I couldn’t understand it at first”, he said. “After it had finished shaking things were still rattling from the movement”.

Anthony Samuelson, 78, from Totteridge: “It was very strong here. I live in a house on top of a ridge and the whole house shook."

Sylvia Tilley Harris, from Leicestershire, who has experienced earthquakes in Los Angeles and Italy before, said: “It was like a truck was coming, a big juggernaut coming down the road. I live in a new house and it shook like a piece of paper.”

Bernard Wakefield-Heath, 49, of Stroud, in Gloucestershire, said the tremor was strong enough to shake his block of flats.

Mr Wakefield-Heath, a business consultant, said: “I live in the middle section and I could feel everything around me move, shaking quite considerably. It lasted about 10 to 15 seconds at least.

“I remember the quake a few years ago and when you feel something like that, you don’t forget it.”

John Jenkin, from Bourne in Lincolnshire, was woken by the tremors and said objects fell from shelves.

“I was woken up. It was hell,” said Mr Jenkin. “The police around here suddenly became very busy.”

David Rendel, a former Liberal Democrat MP, said that he felt the tremor as he sat at his desk in his home in Thatcham, Berkshire.

“I heard quite a large noise and I thought there was a lorry or a train going by but I’m not near a railway line and my lane outside is very small for lorries.

“There then seemed to be a shaking and then at this stage I realised it was an earthquake because it was going on so long. I got up and I felt giddy. It was very definite.

“I went upstairs to see if my son was awake and what he thought and he was coming down to tell me he thought there had been an earthquake but perhaps it was not enough to wake people up.”

Jenny Hollings, from Hatfield in Hertfordshire, said: "It was horrible! It woke me up and I thought I was having a fit or something so I just laid still throughout it and realized what it actually was this morning! Amazing!"

A taxi driver reported seeing the Blackpool tower sway. Shirley B, of Blackpool, said: "I'm now 66 and sleep alone. First time my bed has shook in years!!"

Americans were irritated by Britain's excitement. "Man up, Britain. I'm in Arizona, US, and we've had seven earthquakes in the last week and a half, ranging from mild tremors to sizeable jolts," wrote Kit, of Yuma.

Summer, of Spofforth in Yorkshire, was unrepentant. "Would the Americans please stop talking about how they are so unimpressed with this. We don't care how experienced and cool you are for having them frequently. It's exciting for us - don't steal our thunder!," she retorted, adding mournfully: "Ps. I slept through the whole thing, damn it!"

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