[shetlandbairn]

Oh, wait...

23% thinking Churchill was a myth.

But was Lady Godiva not real?

And Dick Turpin for that matter?

This post has been edited by shetlandbairn: 05 February 2008 - 00:03

[Fuctifano]

Dick Turpin was definitely real (although opinion differs on the extent of his crimes)- I think the thing in that report is that a percentage were 'unsure' if he existed or not, which is a bit confusing.

[Poet of the Macabre]

Dick Turpin's real dammit!

[McMuffin]

So was Robin Hood, although not quite the fairytale cheeky chappie loveable rogue that could rip the arse out of your trousers at 50 paces. Stupid poll, although normally anything that exposes Yank daftness is alright by me.

This post has been edited by McMuffin: 05 February 2008 - 07:23

[bluetooner]

McMuffin, on Feb 5 2008, 02:22, said:

So was Robin Hood, although not quite the fairytale cheeky chappie loveable rogue that could rip the arse out of your trousers at 50 paces. Stupid poll, although normally anything that exposes Yank daftness is alright by me.

I may well be whooshed, but it exposes british stupidity

[ClydeNewcomer]

shetlandbairn, on Feb 5 2008, 00:02, said:

Oh, wait...

23% thinking Churchill was a myth.

But was Lady Godiva not real?

And Dick Turpin for that matter?

Richard Turpin the highway robber lol

He definately existed

[Swampy]

bluetooner, on Feb 5 2008, 13:55, said:

I may well be whooshed, but it exposes british stupidity

I think you've been slightly whooshed... my take on it was that these polls are quite often taken from American sites, and the regular Keplers and Leibnizes (Leibnizii?) that inhabit this site queue up to give the dumb Yanks a verbal shoeing before they're due back at the drive-through window.

This time the situation is closer to home, so naturally they're nowhere to be found.

[Larsson.]

So Eleanor Rigby wasn't the fifth Beatle...

This post has been edited by Larsson.: 05 February 2008 - 14:42

[bluetooner]

Swampy, on Feb 5 2008, 10:21, said:

I think you've been slightly whooshed... my take on it was that these polls are quite often taken from American sites, and the regular Keplers and Leibnizes (Leibnizii?) that inhabit this site queue up to give the dumb Yanks a verbal shoeing before they're due back at the drive-through window.

This time the situation is closer to home, so naturally they're nowhere to be found.

Yeah i knew that, but McMuffin seemed to think (atleast i read it this way) that the poll was done by Americans. (i.e. read the title, and then just skimmed the article).


FWIW, just like the polls that do this for Americans, this is equally as shite, and likely just asking the lowest of the low the poll questions.

[BadgersNadgers]

23% of us thought Churchill was a myth... where and who did they ask ??

[Centre Stand Hero]

BadgersNadgers, on Feb 5 2008, 21:17, said:

23% of us thought Churchill was a myth... where and who did they ask ??

I wish he bloody was, then we might not have had to put up with those freaks Thatcher & Blair all those years

[Swarley]

bluetooner, on Feb 5 2008, 13:55, said:

I may well be whooshed, but it exposes british stupidity

No, I thought exactly the same

Quote

Shame-faced Brits are increasingly confusing fact and fiction when it comes to historical knowledge – that's the verdict of a compelling new study which found that most people believe that fictional figures such as King Arthur, Sherlock Holmes and Eleanor Rigby really existed.

The study, specially commissioned by UKTV Gold, tested the nation on its historical knowledge by asking 3,000 people a series of questions relating to famous factual and fictional characters. The results provide a fascinating insight into the influence that popular TV, film and fiction has had on the nation's perception of history over the last 50 years.

King Arthur, Sherlock Holmes and Robin Hood top the list of fictional characters that Brits are most likely to confuse with fact –

Sod all to do with the Yanks then?

[StewartyMac]

shetlandbairn, on Feb 5 2008, 00:02, said:

23% thinking Churchill was a myth.

One sub appearance as a trialist against St Johnstone, and we havenase seen him since.

I'm with the Yanks.

Or the Brits even

(Must remember to read rest of thread......)

This post has been edited by StewartyMac: 05 February 2008 - 21:41

[turboshandy]

Churchill was a myth?

Ooooh, yes.....

[Neiljb]

Classic!

A bunch of fannies trying to make others look stupid and they can't even get their facts right.

Dick Turpin was real.

He was hanged in York. I seem to remember visiting his condemned cell when I was a kid.

Or was that a myth.


Edit to add, Lady Godiva was based on a real woman too but the story has been embellished into a myth.

This post has been edited by Neiljb: 05 February 2008 - 21:51

[shetlandbairn]

Err... yes, I maybe need to add in the fact I was well aware it was a UK survey. That was my point.

Having checked, Dick Turpin was real but the legend is, well, just that. If I'd been asked I would have said he was real.

Thank f'ck they didn't ask about Jesus!

This post has been edited by shetlandbairn: 05 February 2008 - 22:00

[Neiljb]

shetlandbairn, on Feb 5 2008, 21:56, said:

Err... yes, I maybe need to add in the fact I was well aware it was a UK survey. That was my point.

Having checked, the Dick Turpin was real but the legend is, well, just that. If I'd been asked I would have said he was real.

The question was:

"Top ten fictional characters that the British public thinks are real"

Turpin was REAL.

[Lossie Loon]

Neiljb, on Feb 5 2008, 21:47, said:

Classic!

A bunch of fannies trying to make others look stupid and they can't even get their facts right.

Exactly. There are those that are clearly fictional characters in there (e.g. Biggles and Sherlock Holmes) but several of them are real with varying degrees of mythology added to their real story.

Dick Turpin and Lady Godiva were both definitely real people. Hell, I even see Lady Godiva on my way to work every morning.

Robin Hood and maybe even King Arthur were real too - although extremely heavily mythologised (is that a word?), especially in the case of the latter if they were real.

And you could argue that 'Mona Lisa' is real too - it is the painting of a real person you would assume, although most probably not her real name. It wasn't as though Da Vinci made her appearance up in his head.

[StewartyMac]

Lossie Loon, on Feb 5 2008, 22:04, said:

It wasn't as though Da Vinci made her appearance up in his head.

Does this mean there is a person who looks exactly like Marge Simpson??

[TheFalkirkBairn]

Well is was done by UKTV Gold and answered by the viewers of UKTV gold, hardly the most intelegent viewing core, and then when you widdle that down to those who have enough time and are sad enough to do said survey your not exactly looking at Britains smartest and brightest.

That said the poll was fuked up in the first place as half of the "Fictional Characters" were real just exaggerated a little.