Anorak

Anorak News | Dumb Britain

Dumb Britain

by | 5th, August 2004

‘ANOTHER week, another poll showing just how thick we Brits really are.

Sir Francis Drake

According to the Independent, almost half of all 16 to 34-year-olds in the BBC poll did not know who led the English fleet against the Spanish armada in 1588.

One in five 16 to 24-year-olds thought it was Christopher Columbus, while one in 20 opted for Gandalf, the wizard from Lord Of The Rings.

Asked what battle the Orangemen in Northern Ireland commemorate when they march on July 12, 15% of the same age group said Helm’s Deep, the battle at the end of The Two Towers.

Predictably, the paper says the news has been greeted with dismay by campaigners for a return to a more traditional history syllabus.

‘Some of the results are really surprising,’ said Peter Furtado, editor of History Today.

Surprising perhaps if you were never 18 yourself and seriously think that most teenagers will give an honest answer to a pollster.’



Posted: 5th, August 2004 | In: Broadsheets Comment | TrackBack | Permalink