News Copy - By Richard Jenkins
Princess Diana is the famous figure Brits would most like to bring back, according to a survey.
The beloved ‘People’s Princess’ was chosen by a quarter of the population, who want her to return so she can enjoy her grandchildren and continue her charitable work.
Her life was tragically cut short on 31st August 1997 after a car accident in a Parisian tunnel, leading to an outpouring of national grief.
This Monday (1st July) would have been Diana’s 58th birthday.
One in five would like to see the return of Churchill, who died in 1965, so he could sort out Brexit and our current political situation.
And 10 per cent think Charles Dickens coming back would ‘save’ literature as we know it.
Famous knights from the past who Brits believe would have a huge positive impact today include Scottish biologist Sir Alexander Fleming, who discovered penicillin, and Sir Isambard Brunel, the genius civil engineer whose innovations helped shape modern Britain.
The research was commissioned by TV channel HISTORY, to launch series two of historical drama Knightfall on Tuesday 2nd July at 9pm.
A HISTORY spokesman said: “We’ve got no shortage of heroes and inspirational icons to look up to.
"But sometimes, it’s interesting to think back about the ones we’ve lost, and the impact they could have if they were around today.
"What lessons could geniuses and philanthropists from the past teach us now, if they could come back and see the state of the world?”
The poll of 2,000 adults found one in 10 would like to see Emmeline Pankhurst come back to teach women to stay strong together.
And 14 per cent think Leonardo Da Vinci could help our inventors and scientists with their creativity.
Neil Armstrong would also be welcomed back so he could spearhead the movement towards exploring space on the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the moon.
Another 22 per cent would love nothing more than Freddie Mercury to return, so he could take his rightful place as lead singer of Queen, and fifteen per cent of the public think that John Lennon’s return would be beneficial in bringing back meaning to music.
The survey also revealed the parts of British life Brits believe needs to be fixed with 46 per cent putting the NHS at the top of the list.
Forty-four per cent believe Brexit to be the nation’s most pressing issue, while one in four want climate change to be addressed ahead of anything else.
But with Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt currently poised to be the next Prime Minister, four in 10 Brits said that if Winston Churchill came back and ran for Prime Minister they’d vote for him without a moment’s thought.
And 44 per cent of respondents, polled via OnePoll, also believe that people who were alive in years gone by were better at getting things done than their equivalents today.
HISTORY’s spokesman added: “Of course, you have to be careful when looking back at figures from the past, in case one views them through rose-tinted glasses.
“While Winston Churchill had many remarkable qualities, politics today is hugely different from how it was in the 30s and 40s.
“And it’s the same for many others on the list – William Shakespeare may have no idea how to write a play suitable for modern audiences, but I’m sure he would be gratified so see how enduring and adapted for stage and screen, his own works have been to the present day.”
THE TOP 40 PEOPLE BRITS WOULD MOST LIKE TO BRING BACK
1. Princess Diana, to carry on her charitable work
2. Sir Winston Churchill, to sort out the current political mess
3. Freddie Mercury, to re-join Queen
4. Florence Nightingale, to fix the NHS
5. Sir Alex Fleming, to help cure more diseases
6. Aneurin Bevan, to save the NHS
7. John Lennon, to bring meaning to music again
8. Leonardo Da Vinci, to help our inventors with creativity
9. Sir Isambard Kingdom Brunel, to fix the railways
10. Margaret Thatcher, to get the country back on track
11. David Bowie, to help teens stay true to themselves
12. Alan Turing, to sort the internet out
13. Charles Dickens, to save literature
14. James Watt, to help us reach green energy faster
15. Dame Emmeline Pankhurst, to help women stay strong together
16. William Shakespeare, to write another great play
17. William Wilberforce, to help end modern slavery
18. Joseph Banks, to save our endangered species
19. Amy Winehouse, to bring soul back to the charts
20. Dame Agatha Christie to bring more mystery to our bookshelves
21. Beatrix Potter, to write another great children’s book
22. Dame Audrey Hepburn, to bring glamour back
23. Queen Victoria, to empower more women
24. Sir Roger Moore, to pick the James Bond mantle back up
25. Neil Armstrong, to spearhead moving into space
26. George Orwell, to expose more big brother secrets
27. Jane Austen, to write another love story
28. Dame June Whitfield, to brighten our TV screens
29. Sir Alfred Hitchcock, to save cinema
30. Sir Alfred Ramsey, to coach the England football team to World Cup glory like he did in 1966
31. Sir Charlie Chaplin, to save comedy
32. Robin Gibb, to bring good old disco back to the charts
33. Sir Alistair Cooke, to sort out the ‘fake news’ in the media
34. Dame Daphne Sheldrick, to protect endangered elephants
35. Sir Edmund Hillary, to help Brits face the impossible
36. J.M.W Turner, to bring art back into schools
37. Sir Alec Guinness, to revive the Star Wars franchise
38. Sir Jack Goody, the anthropologist who could bring the world back together
39. Baroness Trumpington, to inject some life back into British politics
40. Dame Ada Lovelace, to show women how to be an IT wizard
ENDS
