I tried the Nescafe Azera when Asda first had it in stock and were selling the 60g tins for £1 and it was good for instant but nothing like as good as proper coffee. I do buy instant though to make milkshakes which I adore, so there's always Nescafe Cap Colombie in the cupboard in an airtight container.
I also occasionally buy 150 bag boxes of Lyons ground coffee bags from Amazon, both the 'Coffee Break' and the 'Gourmet Italian', which you make just like tea bags. To my mind they occupy the middle ground between instant and proper ground coffee, albeit at the premium price of 15p a bag. At least with the bags you get the smell of ground coffee, although the taste isn't quite there.
If you've got the patience OP, with a cafetière from the 99p shop or about £3 from Wilkinsons, you can make the real thing for only a slightly higher price than instant if you buy the ground coffee from Home Bargains or B&M.