Who and what represents Britain today? Our country has changed significantly in the last few decades; but, a batch of YouGov polls published this weekend suggest that traditional notions of what is British remain remarkably unchanged. The public was asked to choose which prominent people they think reflect Britain today. Members of the Royal Family occupy four of the top five positions — the Queen, Prince William, Harry and the Duchess of Cambridge — while fifth spot is represented by the nouveau riche Richard Branson:
David Beckham is the only mega celebrity to have made this list. There are plenty of actors present (Judi Dench, Helen Mirren and Joanna Lumley), but it’s great to see ‘Britishness’ embodied by a variety of characters from Stephen Hawking, JK Rowling to former Spectator editor Boris Johnson. The only other politicians who feature are Nigel Farage and David Cameron – both of whom appear way down the list.
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