The NHS, our sense of humour and a full English breakfast top the list of things that make us proud to be British
The nationwide study revealed what stirs our national pride the most, with our free NHS the jewel in the crown, chosen by 53 percent of us.
In joint second place is our dry sense of humour and a proper cup of tea (both at 37 percent), followed by the iconic Full English Breakfast (36 percent).
Our beautiful green countryside (35 percent), our long and interesting history (30 percent) and the fact we do sarcasm really well (29 percent) also made the top 30 list.
The research, conducted by British Lion eggs in its 21st anniversary year, reveals that we’re also delighted that the Royal family (30 percent), pubs (28 percent) and Sir David Attenborough (26 percent) form the fabric of our lives.
British food and drink is what we miss most when we leave the country, specifically a decent cup of tea (37 percent), fish and chips (36 percent) and roasts (31 percent).
When it comes to food which make our hearts swell, the Full English Breakfast comes top of the list, with 46 percent saying it’s the British dish we feel most affection for, beating off roasts (39 percent) and Christmas dinner (38 percent).
The global capital of London (20 percent), our football (18 percent) and quirky regional accents (21 percent) also help make British people proud.
The study found that national pride is very prevalent in our country, with a MASSIVE 93 percent of the 1,500 respondents claiming to feel proud to be British.
“The survey reveals that we are a nation that’s proud of our food and drink, national institutions and arts,” says Andrew Joret from British Lion eggs. “We may be in a time of political turmoil, but there is still much that the country takes great pride in.”
The research also revealed the celebs who make us proud to be British, a list which was perhaps unsurprisingly topped by Sir David Attenborough (46 percent), followed by Prince Harry (28 percent) who in the post-baby glow of approval beats his brother Prince William (26 percent).
Next came JK Rowling (24 percent), Adele (20 percent) and Emma Watson (17 percent).
Perhaps because of the runaway success of the film Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen top the charts for the music acts who instill pride in us (37 percent) actually beating the Beatles (36 percent) and Ed Sheeran (30 percent).
Harry Potter cast his spell over the cinema and book world, being the films most liable to make Brits proud (36 percent), followed by James Bond (36 percent) and Love Actually (25 percent).
Prince Harry was the top Royal with 40 percent, beating the Queen herself (38 percent) and Prince William (37 percent).
When it comes to our favourite traditions and traits, calm combines with a cuppa to help “putting the kettle on in times of crisis” into the top spot (31 percent) with our sarcasm (28 percent) and a nice chat in the pub (26 percent) following on.
The research uncovered that women love a cuppa more than men with 42 percent choosing it as their most proud British thing, compared to just 31 percent of men.
And a quarter of young 16-29-year-olds are proud of our arts, compared to just 18 percent of over 60s. However, the older generation are much more fond of the royal family, with 46 percent picking them, compared to 23 percent of the younger generation.
Liverpool was the proudest British city, where 99 percent of people said they were proud to be British, followed by Sheffield at 96 percent and London at 95 percent.
ENDS
Notes to editors
The research was conducted by Ginger Research and surveyed 1500 Brits during May 2019.
Top thirty things that make us PROUD to be British
The NHS is free - 53%
A proper cup of tea - 37%
Our sense of humour - 37%
Full English Breakfasts - 36%
Traditional British food - 36%
The lovely green countryside - 35%
The Royal Family - 30%
Our long and interesting history - 30%
We do sarcasm very well - 29%
Pubs - 28%
Sir David Attenborough - 26%
We have some of the world’s best universities - 26%
Politeness - 25%
British arts (film, theatre, visual arts etc) - 23%
Regional accents - 21%
London being a global capital - 20%
Afternoon tea with small sandwiches - 19%
Our television is pretty great - 19%
British farming / agriculture - 18%
Being part of a multinational society - 18%
We invented football - 18%
Our architecture - 17%
British swearing - 17%
Queuing without chaos - 16%
Tolerance - 15%
We punch above our weight on the world stage - 14%
The distinct seasons - 13%
Soap operas - 12%
Our weather - 12%
Our food scene being amongst the world’s best - 12%