NationStates Jolt Archive

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

Maybe they were just trying to mess with the results (I hope)

Where is a 'lolwhut' fruit when you need it?

Where is a 'lolwhut' fruit when you need it?

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u231/cheezeguy/n725075089_288918_2774.jpg

I second this lolwut.

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

And they say Americans are ill-educated?
Churchill was real. Sherlock Holmes was a fictional character.

History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.

A bit optimistic eh?
Especially in light of this survey.

Is "All babies look like Winston Churchill" a myth? That's the real question, even if Winston himself was mythical. Or a big baby.

Sherlock Holmes was a fictional character.

No shit?

I'm sort of shocked, but I'm mostly jealous of those Britons who apparently live in a more magical, wonderful world than I do. I wish I believed in Biggles and Sherlock Holmes.

The man himself isn't a Myth, but maybe the man that people portrayed him to be could be a myth?

The man himself isn't a Myth, but maybe the man that people portrayed him to be could be a myth?

He was the real deal.

I'm sort of shocked, but I'm mostly jealous of those Britons who apparently live in a more magical, wonderful world than I do. I wish I believed in Biggles and Sherlock Holmes.

How can you be shocked by a people that spend more time drunk then any other peoples on the planet?

No. He was a person.

Churchill was a real person. Sherlock Holmes was a fictional person based off of a real person.

Who? Detective Linley? He was pretty cool I guess.

Churchill was a real person. Sherlock Holmes was a fictional person based off of a real person.

I, for one, take this poll with a grain of salt, if not an entire mine.

Using no rationale aside from my own prejudice, I'm saying right here that those who watch UKTV Gold are suffering from senile dementia for the most part.

They don't know what happened 5 minutes ago let alone who's real or not.

*waits for first poster to write 'hey, I watch UKTV Gold'* - I hope it's TBC*

I'm thinking Holmes was based off of Dr. Josep Bell, maybe?

Well, then who was Det. Linley based on, eh?

Who? Detective Linley? He was pretty cool I guess.

I'm thinking Holmes was based off of Dr. Josep Bell, maybe?

I'm thinking Holmes was based off of Dr. Josep Bell, maybe?

If anything, Sherlock Holmes was based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself.

Well, at least Americans are no longer alone in pure idiocy. Maybe this country isn't that bad after all...

Well, at least Americans are no longer alone in pure idiocy. Maybe this country isn't that bad after all...

I'll bet there's a good number of historic figures people here would think were myths, or at least an amusing minority of people. :p Daniel Boone, Johnny Appleseed, Davy Crockett, etc. were all sort of mythic in their own time. Of course, none of them led the country through a war - that would excuse some ignorance.

How can you be shocked by a people that spend more time drunk then any other peoples on the planet?

I thought that was the Germans? I heard they drank more beer per year than anyone else.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU IMPORT MONKEYS WHO 'NO SPEAKA DA ENGLISH' AND BELIEVE THAT THEIR MOTHER COUNTRY IS BETTER THAN THE ONE THEYRE LIVING IN NOW, EVEN THOUGH THEY RAN FROM OR WERE KICKED OUT OF THEIR MOTHER COUNTRY


Dumbass racist anti anglo immigrants = :confused: :sniper: = Me!
Heh, wow....

*Post Was Deleted*

Well now. That was inflammatory.

what is true the world over is that there are myths and illusions in popular culture. thank ghod there is still some localism and diversity among them from place to place though.

even, at least slightly, indipendent evolution of them, from place to place.

while i want to live in a world where everyone gets along with each other, i would not want to live in one that was even close to culturally homoginous.

=^^=
.../\...

To reply to the apparently obvious comments in this topic... "no shit, Sherlock."

And they say Americans are ill-educated?
Churchill was real. Sherlock Holmes was a fictional character.

Ignorance is global, Kat. *nod*

Ignorance is global, Kat. *nod*

I thought it was Ingorance is Bliss. *nods*

I thought it was Ingorance is Bliss. *nods*

That was what we used to think until some poor Young Earth Creationist shmuck got struck and killed by a speeding fossil. Since then, the statement has been re-evaluated by the scientific community before reloading the fossil cannon. :)

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

I thought Shakespeare wrote plays

Well that's certainly depressing. -1 point to Britain.

Also, who watches UKTV Gold? It's all about Dave.

That was what we used to think until some poor Young Earth Creationist shmuck got struck and killed by a speeding fossil. Since then, the statement has been re-evaluated by the scientific community before reloading the fossil cannon. :)

Got to love the Fossil Cannon.

Who is Church-hill ? :rolleyes: :D

Who is Church-hill ? :rolleyes: :D

Hank Hill's alcoholic brother. *nod*

It's not all that surprising. I reckon more people in this country could name the last batch of X Factor finalists and the order in which they were voted off the show than could name, for example, the Education Secretary. Their view of Churchill is probably based more on the lame 2004 comedy (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0359078/) (which did make him out to be a myth) than on anything else.

I'm not sure it's necessarily a huge problem that most people don't give a toss about history and politics. Sure, they get to make an arbitrary and basically irrelevant choice between New Labour and the Tories every 4-5 years. But most people don't have enough influence on anything most of the time for it to matter whether that influence is well-informed or not.

Hank Hill's alcoholic brother. *nod*

So, kinda like Billy Carter was to Jimmy Carter?

Did James Cook really discover Australia?? Spain and the Netherlands already had colonies in the Sunda islands for almost 200 years and none of them had been to or knew of the southern land?

So, kinda like Billy Carter was to Jimmy Carter?

But more of a hit with the ladies. *nod*

Did James Cook really discover Australia?? Spain and the Netherlands already had colonies in the Sunda islands for almost 200 years and none of them had been to or knew of the southern land?You mean the place that used to be referred to as "New Holland" before they called it "Australia"?

Well, at least Americans are no longer alone in pure idiocy. Maybe this country isn't that bad after all...

Idiocy is a universal phenomenon.

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

Thank God. And I thought things like this only happened in my own nation. We still beat Britain in that regard, though.

As far as I'm concerned, and I have no evidence with which to back this up, the entire story is a PR stunt by UKTV Gold to promote their History channel or somesuch rubbish.

Add that to my previous point about UKTV Gold viewers being a few pies short of a picnic and this story explains itself.

I refuse to believe this story much as I refuse to believe in this 'theory of gravity' I hear people talk about.

OF COURSE Churchill was not a myth. Or at least, not yet. Much like King Arthur, a now mythic figure based on an actual leader in Britain, Churchill existed.

Historians will of course remember the now famous Global Rock-Paper-Scissors Rematch of '39 to '45. After losing those first three rounds, Churchill's presence was essential in the eleventh hour four round comeback that saw the now iconic strategy of repeated Scissors.

To summarize:

http://soundsofthecinema.blogspirit.com/media/00/00/7f2d2dfcea5379ff497a84370746f2b4.jpg

Thank you.

OF COURSE Churchill was not a myth. Or at least, not yet. Much like King Arthur, a now mythic figure based on an actual leader in Britain, Churchill existed.

Historians will of course remember the now famous Global Rock-Paper-Scissors Rematch of '39 to '45. After losing those first three rounds, Churchill's presence was essential in the eleventh hour four round comeback that saw the now iconic strategy of repeated Scissors.

To summarize:

http://soundsofthecinema.blogspirit.com/media/00/00/7f2d2dfcea5379ff497a84370746f2b4.jpg

Thank you.

LOL

Apparently 47% of people take polls in newspapers seriously. Churchill is just a puppet to sell car insurance "oh yes".

Did James Cook really discover Australia?? Spain and the Netherlands already had colonies in the Sunda islands for almost 200 years and none of them had been to or knew of the southern land?

Dutch shipper Abel Tasman discovered Australia, as far as I know, a century or so (don't remember the date) before James Cook. However, he landed on the west coast, saw a huge balzing desert and the killer roo of Caerbannongongong and had the only right idea: "Run away! Run away!"

Historians will of course remember the now famous Global Rock-Paper-Scissors Rematch of '39 to '45. After losing those first three rounds, Churchill's presence was essential in the eleventh hour four round comeback that saw the now iconic strategy of repeated Scissors.

Where did I read that the idea of paper beating rock could easily be disproved by taking your balled rock fist and smashing it into your opponents face while screaming 'Where's your @#$@$#@# paper NOW!'

A quarter of Britons seem to think so, with 47% believing that Sherlock Holmes was a real detective from Scotland Yard

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=375074

There are many other misconceptions on what is real and what is not listed in the article. Is this true only for Britons? Is it the same the world over?

Perhaps this had come about due to the recent surge in Post-Modern thought by historians who are attempting to turn the world on its head by proving how every you thought was real actually didn't happen e.g Shakespeare didn't actually right any of his plays.

Tell us what you think about the findings

When I saw the title I thought that you meant that metaphorically, as in "was Churchill really a hero or was he just a serial failure who happened to get really lucky when it was really important?"

I was all set to facetiously answer "nope I'm pretty sure he was a real guy," and then it turns out you meant the question literally.

That's sad.

UKTV Gold television surveyed 3,000 people.

hardly surprising when you consider the demographic.

Churchill was real. Sherlock Holmes was a fictional character.

wow, u r smrt.

I just checked that out, and found no mention of where these stats com fro, not even 'we polled 1000 kids' type of thing.

So I can say that this is certinaly a load of crap.

Never, ever underestimate the power of human stupidity.

I just checked that out, and found no mention of where these stats com fro, not even 'we polled 1000 kids' type of thing.

So I can say that this is certinaly a load of crap.

Never, ever underestimate the power of human stupidity.

heh I never do.

I'm skeptical about whether this poll of 3000 people was actually randomly selected in a proper statistical way.

interesting, what i want to know is which 13 people voted Churchill was a myth? Do they live in a hole? and which 3 people voted they don't know who he is? unless their finger slipped, i'm most worried. They should at least know that he was real i mean come on it wasn't that long ago the second world war was fought.
(you should have added if he was a talking dog, reference to a phone-company you know the "oh yessss").
Churchill=politician of Britian during the larger part of the Second World war.
Churchill=real, yes real the Second World War did happen.
Churchill=is real or was real, i wonder when he died?

interesting, what i want to know is which 13 people voted Churchill was a myth? Do they live in a hole? and which 3 people voted they don't know who he is? unless their finger slipped, i'm most worried. They should at least know that he was real i mean come on it wasn't that long ago the second world war was fought.
(you should have added if he was a talking dog, reference to a phone-company you know the "oh yessss").
Churchill=politician of Britian during the larger part of the Second World war.
Churchill=real, yes real the Second World War did happen.
Churchill=is real or was real, i wonder when he died?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joke

Gosh I thought this was serious until I read:
UKTV Gold television surveyed 3,000 people.

*wipes brow*

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joke

Why thank you, i never knew what a joke was until you posted that informative link to it.
I will forever cherish it in my memory.

interesting, what i want to know is which 13 people voted Churchill was a myth? Do they live in a hole? and which 3 people voted they don't know who he is? unless their finger slipped, i'm most worried.

I am almost sure that they were all sarcastic replies. I bet that a lot of the pole replies were too.

Clearly this means that there is serious debate about the existance of Churchhill and Holmes. And Bush was behind 9/11. And the moon landings were faked. And Oswald didn't kill JFK.

And making fun of the people who believe such things is like calling a kid retarded and then finding out that he is. Except in this case it just causes more lulz.

Who is Church-hill ? :rolleyes: :D

Good pick I put that down as a typo

When I saw the title I thought that you meant that metaphorically, as in "was Churchill really a hero or was he just a serial failure who happened to get really lucky when it was really important?"

I was all set to facetiously answer "nope I'm pretty sure he was a real guy," and then it turns out you meant the question literally.

That's sad.

What? I actually put down that title to attract peoples attention I was not trying to find out from the NSG population if he was real or not

Ignorance is global, Kat. *nod*I thought it was Ingorance is Bliss. *nods*


Ignorance is global bliss?

Although historians and archeologists have been sofar unable to prove that Winston Churchill existed, I choose to believe in him. I have faith in Churchill and believe he brought a great message to humanity.

Although historians and archeologists have been sofar unable to prove that Winston Churchill existed, I choose to believe in him. I have faith in Churchill and believe he brought a great message to humanity.

Winstonianity? or Churchillianity?

Where did I read that the idea of paper beating rock could easily be disproved by taking your balled rock fist and smashing it into your opponents face while screaming 'Where's your @#$@$#@# paper NOW!'Yes, but I don't play ordinary paper. I play kungfu paper. It has the ability to catch any rock and crush it into dust.

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh141/lordtothe/scissorsbeatspaper.jpg

I feel a little better about my countrymen, only 7% of whom believe professional wrestling is real.

Also, Sherlock Holmes was based on a real person, a doctor. I only know this because his modern incarnation, Dr. Gregory House, was based on Sherlock Holmes, and it is said that the story of Holmes "comes full circle" with a character who's a doctor based on him. A cranky, pill-popping genius (as I understand, Holmes had some personality quirks and was a coke-head.)

Also, Winston Churchill was nothing more than a figure who appeared on people's radio and screens, a la Big Brother from Orwell's novel 1984. During the war, Britain needed a figurehead who was a great leader but could not possibly be assassinated. This was the genesis of Churchill. All the other British leaders, such as Chamberlain, were pants-wetting panic bunnies. Therefore, a leader had to be invented. The man Churchill was based on is alive and selling donuts in Scottsdale, Arizona. I wouldn't know the place; I don't eat donuts.

Incidentally, people tell me I make up stories on the spot, commonly following a true story with a bogus one. I'm not sure why anyone would say that.

Am I the only one who expected this to be a parody of the "Did Jesus Really Exist?" thread?

Am I the only one who expected this to be a parody of the "Did Jesus Really Exist?" thread?

The OP would have had to have been:

Did Churchill really exist? Does it matter?