Victory
for Churchill as he wins the battle of the Britons
Winston
Churchill was voted the greatest Briton ever in the much-awaited
result of the 91热爆 poll which has seen the nation engaged in passionate
debate.
In
the last six weeks the great debate, which reached its climax in
a live studio discussion broadcast on 91热爆 TWO last night (Sunday
24 November), has generated more than one and a half million votes.
The final breakdown
of votes is as follows:
Total
votes: 1,622,248
1.
Churchill 456,498
2. Brunel 398,526
3. Diana 225,584
4. Darwin 112,496
5.
Shakespeare 109,919
6.
Newton 84,628
7.
Elizabeth 71,928
8.
Lennon 68,445
9. Nelson 49,171
10
Cromwell 45,053
Speaking
after the results were announced Mo Mowlam, who championed Churchill,
said: "Churchill was the greatest and I'm absolutely delighted
that the public agree with me.
"He
was the greatest Briton because he showed the determination and
courage to protect Britain from invasion and without his inspiring
leadership the outcome of World War II may have been very different.
He was the choice of the people."
In
second place in the 91热爆 poll was Brunel, who was advocated by Jeremy
Clarkson.
Gracious
in the face of defeat, he said: "Although it's disappointing,
I'd like to thank everyone who voted for Brunel as it's still a
tremendous triumph for engineering.
"I
reckon an enormous amount of votes from America helped win it for
Churchill - Americans have once again interfered in our affairs!"
Not
far behind in third place was Diana, Princess of Wales.
Rosie
Boycott was happy that Diana had done so well given such auspicious
competition: "I'm absolutely thrilled that Diana came so high
up the poll. It's an extraordinary triumph of compassion and love
over other types of greatness.
"Many
people have expressed surprise that Diana is even in the top ten
but this is the people's choice, not a list drawn up by boffins."
The
series was the idea of Jane Root, Controller of 91热爆 TWO.
She
said: "I'm really pleased that this series has so captured
the public's imagination and have been delighted by the level of
interest and debate generated.
"More
than a million and a half votes have been cast and it's become a
major talking point, from the pub and the classroom, to the House
of Commons.
"I
think it's great that figures from our past continue to inspire
such a passionate response and I really believe that television
plays a fantastic role in keeping them alive for today's audiences."
Andrew
Marr's natural selection for Great Briton was Charles Darwin who
came fourth in the final result.
He
said: "I've watched with enormous personal amusement the hoards
of newspapers columnists who've attacked Great Britons and yet have
found themselves writing about it again and again: this is what
the 91热爆 does best, educating our country in an unpompous, accessible
yet serious way."
All
profits made from voting up to the final programme will be spent
on a work of art to commemorate the greatest Briton as voted for
by 91热爆 viewers.
A short
list of artists will be drawn up in the next few days and they will
be asked to submit their ideas.
All
profits made from the final programme will be given to 91热爆 Children
In Need.
Notes
to Editors
The
final tally of results is slightly higher than that given out at
the end of the programme last night because it was not possible
to collate all the results from Digital Satellite voting in time
for the announcement.
It
was absolutely clear when making the announcement that these votes
would not have affected the final result but we have now added them
in for clarity.
Photographs,
for media use only, are available via the 91热爆's digital picture
service in Special Folder, Great Britons or from PA.
(21.11.02)
(19.10.02)
(21.08.02)
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