writing a phd thesis how long does it take

I examined a Ph.D. thesis this week. I usually do about two or three of these a year. I was curious to work out how long it takes to undertake this task, so in my slightly obsessive fashion, I got cracking on the time tracking.
For this thesis, I had to read three very long novels that I hadn’t ever got round to before and two poetry collections (other texts that it dealt with were very familiar with me and directly in line with my precise expertise, hence the selection as an examiner). I then had to read the thesis itself. I then had to write up my comments in the independent report on this (4,200 words). I then travelled across the country, conducted the viva, wrote the co-report with the internal, stayed overnight in a hotel, and travelled back the next day.

References:

http://qbc.wa.edu.au/?qtgek=how-to-write-a-phd-thesis-statement