Who is the greatest Briton alive?

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Originally Posted by blueblade

Maybe Sir David Attenborough?

Or Trevor McDonald
Richard Dawkins
David Frost
Stephen Fry
Mick Jagger
Paul McCartney
H from Steps 😆

Who gets your vote?

(Not including Sir Neil or your Dad)

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That list wouldn't be allowed, as you have no woman in there. You will be hounded out of all media outlets if you presented them with that list

My vote is for The Queen

Look at all the stuff she’s done for this country and the Commonwealth alongside Phil the Greek

Peter Whittingham

Paul McCartney.

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Originally Posted by Armitage Shanks

That list wouldn't be allowed, as you have no woman in there. You will be hounded out of all media outlets if you presented them with that list

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And a few on here

Neil Warnock.

Les Dennis deserves more recognition than he's received in this thread. I'd nominate the recent winner of this year's series of Love Island as the greatest living Briton.

I'm reminded of a recent survey that was published that asked British, American and Chinese kids what they aspired to be. The top pick either side of the pond was to become a youtuber while the Chinese hoped to be an astronaut.

We must wonder how many years it will take before it's the norm for irate Indian and Far East punters to ring UK-based customer service centres to bellow down the blower "you cupid stunt!" or similar.

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Originally Posted by az city

Trust me, I wasn't being unpleasant. I can do much worse than that.

I suspect I may be wasting my time here but I'll try to elucidate.

I have no idea why you want to conflate Farage with Wolfe Tone and William Wilberforce. That is clearly totally inappropriate and pernicious. Leave me out of it.

Let's just concentrate on Farage. The pro- and anti-Brexit arguments have been rehearsed on here and other places probably many millions of times now. So let's put them to one side.

What qualities do you think Farage embodies that make him "great"? (That's a rhetorical question BTW.) To my mind he has none; not a single one. The idea that schoolchildren will even know who he was 200 years from now, god forbid raising statues to him, actually makes me want to retch. Actually, on reflection, it doesn't really matter because Farage is a climate change denier so if he gains real power there won't be any kids to laud him in 200 years.

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I'm sorry to hear that you are often unpleasant.

It's nothing to do with anyone's opinion of the man, but the fact that his name is etched into history at this point.

You don't have to like him or agree with him to understand that, and the angry outbursts here about him are exactly the sort of stuff their opponents would have said about Wolf Tone and Wilberforce , so you can probably regard that as a test of my assertion.

It's a pity that quite a few here can't separate what should be an interesting and objective chat about the historical significance of people from their own political fanaticism . It's really not supposed to be about who you like most, and it's certainly not another opportunity to vent your arguments about Brexit .

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Originally Posted by RonnieBird

I'm sorry to hear that you are often unpleasant.

It's nothing to do with anyone's opinion of the man, but the fact that his name is etched into history at this point.

You don't have to like him or agree with him to understand that, and the angry outbursts here about him are exactly the sort of stuff their opponents would have said about Wolf Tone and Wilberforce , so you can probably regard that as a test of my assertion.

It's a pity that quite a few here can't separate what should be an interesting and objective chat about the historical significance of people from their own political fanaticism . It's really not supposed to be about who you like most, and it's certainly not another opportunity to vent your arguments about Brexit .

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TBF he's been funded by people to do a job of rabble rousing. Not sure it makes him great.

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Originally Posted by RonnieBird

I'm sorry to hear that you are often unpleasant.

It's nothing to do with anyone's opinion of the man, but the fact that his name is etched into history at this point.

You don't have to like him or agree with him to understand that, and the angry outbursts here about him are exactly the sort of stuff their opponents would have said about Wolf Tone and Wilberforce , so you can probably regard that as a test of my assertion.

It's a pity that quite a few here can't separate what should be an interesting and objective chat about the historical significance of people from their own political fanaticism . It's really not supposed to be about who you like most, and it's certainly not another opportunity to vent your arguments about Brexit .

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What has he achieved?

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Originally Posted by Armitage Shanks

That list wouldn't be allowed, as you have no woman in there. You will be hounded out of all media outlets if you presented them with that list

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Sophia Louisa Jex-Blake and Emmeline Pankhurst would be 2 certs for that list. My vote going for the former. Remarkable woman who’s story is well worth a read👍

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Originally Posted by William Treseder

Sophia Louisa Jex-Blake and Emmeline Pankhurst would be 2 certs for that list. My vote going for the former. Remarkable woman who’s story is well worth a read��

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They do trip up on the 'alive' category.

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Originally Posted by lardy

What has he achieved?

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Well, as I said in the first place, he's promoted a single issue which began as quite obscure to national and international prominence.
The issue in question is very divisive, as we can see here, and quite abhorrent to the establishment of the day, yet it has taken on a momentum which is unlikely to be halted.
We can easily recognise the hallmarks of such individuals in history, and the contraversy they create in their own times amongst supporters of their causes and it's opponents.

How could historians record the present century in Britain and Europe without mentioning Brexit and Nigel Farrage ?

They certainly won't mention David Attenborough much , and how many people will have heard of Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn in 150 years ?

I think my suggestion is both reasoned and reasonable , and it's a great pity that a few people here can't seem to operate on that level.

I don't understand why they need to launch into this hysterical venting of their opinions about the issues Nigel Farage represents or start throwing things at the person who made an observation about his part in making history. Whether we agree or disagree with what Nigel Farage says is of no account whatever in assessing the prominence he will get in history, which isn't a bad way of describing "greatness ".

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Originally Posted by RonnieBird

Well, as I said in the first place, he's promoted a single issue which began as quite obscure to national and international prominence.
The issue in question is very divisive, as we can see here, and quite abhorrent to the establishment of the day, yet it has taken on a momentum which is unlikely to be halted.
We can easily recognise the hallmarks of such individuals in history, and the contraversy they create in their own times amongst supporters of their causes and it's opponents.

How could historians record the present century in Britain and Europe without mentioning Brexit and Nigel Farrage ?

They certainly won't mention David Attenborough much , and how many people will have heard of Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn in 150 years ?

I think my suggestion is both reasoned and reasonable , and it's a great pity that a few people here can't seem to operate on that level.

I don't understand why they need to launch into this hysterical venting of their opinions about the issues Nigel Farage represents or start throwing things at the person who made an observation about his part in making history. Whether we agree or disagree with what Nigel Farage says is of no account whatever in assessing the prominence he will get in history, which isn't a bad way of describing "greatness ".

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It's probably because he's a ****

I would add Sir Anthony Hopkins to my list of possibles

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Originally Posted by lardy

They do trip up on the 'alive' category.

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My bad. Only just missing out 😂
Seriously Lardy. When you have time, have a read about Sophia Jex-Blake. Tremendous achievements.

Blimey, it took a while for it to be pointed out that, apart from what I assume was a not wholly serious nomination for Nigella Lawson, that no woman had been mentioned and, even then, I suspect it was done so with a degree of sarcasm. I'm not going to come out with a woman nominee that I believe has a genuine chance of deservedly winning such an award either, but, as someone who believes that the really, really important issue facing us is not bloody Brexit (serious though that is), I must say that Caroline Lucas seems to be a far more deserving suggestion than Farage.

To be elected, and then re-elected twice more with increased majorities, as the only MP ever for a party that has never enjoyed the higher profile it has in some European mainland countries is an outstanding achievement which suggests that she must be a very good constituency MP as well as an effective Parliamanetarian - she manages, with ease, to do what Farage is so desperate to, but keeps on failing to :hehe:.

A few observations on some of the suggestions in this thread. I honestly don't get the David Jason nominations and, as someone who has come to appreciate Paul McCartney more and more as I've got older, I can't agree with the contention that he "was, essentially, the Beatles" - Lennon was a lazy so and so at times, but the word "genius" applied just as much to him as it did to McCartney.

I find it hard to come up with suggestions that I would regard as genuine contenders for the title of greatest Briton alive which may explain why I find it hard to recognise this brilliant country that our new, unelected, Prime Minister and Cabinet keep on referring to, but Sir David Attenborough is the person most deserving of the title I'd say.

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Originally Posted by William Treseder

My bad. Only just missing out ��
Seriously Lardy. When you have time, have a read about Sophia Jex-Blake. Tremendous achievements.

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I haven't heard of her, but I will

I had assumed this thread was a tongue-in-cheek affair as it begun with a list of celebrities as nominees.

I can't think of a worthy wearer of the crown but it wouldn't be a crappy pop singer or an entertainer of any description nor a politician as they all lie for a living.

The winner is likely someone few of us have heard of who has been awarded an OBE, MBE or CBE at some point, perhaps for discovering a scientific or medical breakthrough. It could also be a person who hasn't had that recognition, maybe a surgeon whose skills saved a great many lives or a longstanding A & E consultant whose knowledge and quick thinking saved numerous souls.

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Originally Posted by RonnieBird

Well, as I said in the first place, he's promoted a single issue which began as quite obscure to national and international prominence.
The issue in question is very divisive, as we can see here, and quite abhorrent to the establishment of the day, yet it has taken on a momentum which is unlikely to be halted.
We can easily recognise the hallmarks of such individuals in history, and the contraversy they create in their own times amongst supporters of their causes and it's opponents.

How could historians record the present century in Britain and Europe without mentioning Brexit and Nigel Farrage ?

They certainly won't mention David Attenborough much , and how many people will have heard of Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn in 150 years ?

I think my suggestion is both reasoned and reasonable , and it's a great pity that a few people here can't seem to operate on that level.

I don't understand why they need to launch into this hysterical venting of their opinions about the issues Nigel Farage represents or start throwing things at the person who made an observation about his part in making history. Whether we agree or disagree with what Nigel Farage says is of no account whatever in assessing the prominence he will get in history, which isn't a bad way of describing "greatness ".

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So not achieved anything then. Boris and his bus was the difference.

Ferne

Out of interest, where is the hysterical venting in this thread? It looks like ronniebird was hoping to stir something up and fell short.

Perhaps we have different ideas of what’s hysterical venting.
It does seem hard to hold a rational discussion here to be quite honest

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Originally Posted by blueblade

I would add Sir Anthony Hopkins to my list of possibles

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Would he be on your list if he was Scottish or English? No chance!

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Originally Posted by Do me a Faerber

Wouldn't want to go for a musician usually, but McCartney is a genius. Knocked out another really good album in Egypt Station this year. He was, essentially, The Beatles. Lennon did eff all for large parts. "A Day in the Life" is their best song, but mainly because of McCartney's input with the "Woke up...". Tomorrow Never Knows (a Lennon song) is another great track that owes a lot to Macca.

Yeah, Frog Chorus and Ob-La-Di and Honey Pie.... yes he churned out some shit.

But, Ram, Band on the Run, the Abbey Road Medley, Yesterday, Blackbird, Tug of War, Hey Jude. Macca is definitely Britain's greatest musical influence... he just lacks self censorship and Brits love keeping their best talent down so enjoy whittling off Frog Chorus, I Will, . His Bass lines with the Beatles were revolutionary at the time. The Bass on Hey Bulldog is brilliant for example as it is on Come Together.

Then, you have his revolutionary (for pop music) piano playing on Penny Lane. Lady Madonna, Eleanor Rigby, the man is a genius.

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I like the song Honey Pie. I like listening to the 2018 Remastered version with ear-phones. There's sounds on it that I hadn't previously heard.