in England’s finest hours these were
their kings and queens
in some cases figuratively in some cases
literally so to have someone like the
Queen of England which is you know a
sister country to us we feel we feel
very closely close bonds of England
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
iconic Brits
for this list we are excluding those
celebrities associated with America more
than Britain so very sorry to all you
Charlie Chaplin fans also we are solely
including celebrities born in England
and not those from Scotland Wales or
Ireland
number ten Charles Dickens
considered the greatest Victorian
novelist ever this writer and critic of
19th century England wrote of the
country’s best of times and its worst of
times
often commenting on the social ills that
were occurring around him including
poverty prejudice hypocrisy and more
Dickens used his experiences to craft
some of the most beloved known and
timeless characters in all of literature
and therefore I am about to raise your
salary known as well today as he was in
his own time Dickens and his legacy as
an icon and British prose will continue
to live on thanks to pieces of writing
like great expectations a Christmas
carol a Tale of Two Cities and Oliver
Twist
so if someone says stop being such a
Scrooge we don’t have to have read
Dickens Christmas Carol to know
precisely what that person is telling us
number nine Richard Branson I’ve done
foolish things like trying to fly around
the world in balloons British business
tycoon and self-made billionaire Richard
Branson is founder of Virgin Group a
multinational made up of over 400
different affiliate companies including
subsidiaries in the airline railway and
mobile phone spaces as well as
commercial space travel but it all
started in the late 1960s with his
record business and by the next decade
Branson really began to amass his
fortune with the Virgin Records record
label further tussles with the places
god save the queen’ was launched
cemented virgins reputation as creative
disruptors
this culture of tearing up the rulebook
had spread throughout the country
thanks to Branson’s pioneering vision
and boyish charm the brand eventually
represented many groundbreaking acts and
made Branson one of the UK’s ten richest
citizens if you’re successful in life
enormous wealth can go with that success
if you have enormous wealth then
enormous responsibility goes with it too
number eight Charles Darwin Charles
Darwin set off on a fateful voyage that
would revolutionize our understanding of
life’s great diversity survival of the
fittest is the game of life so it’s no
surprise that Charles Darwin’s theory of
evolution propelled him onto our list
his work on the Origin of Species
proposed that all species of life
descended over time from common
ancestors originally there must have
been just one type of finch in the
Galapagos but over time it had
diversified into many kinds not only has
this naturalist helped the world’s
understanding of Natural Sciences
evolved he also revolutionized how
humans think of their place in the
universe and history it might have been
an absolute prerequisite for us landing
where we are today
all of this has easily made him one of
history’s most revolutionary scientists
as well as one of the most famous
Englishmen the scientists who carry on
his legacy have advanced his work in
wondrous ways number seven Margaret
Thatcher the lady’s not for turning this
Conservative Party leader was the
longest-serving Prime Minister of the
20th century and is the only woman to
have held Britain’s highest political
office that way you will never create
the world
hotcha policy uncompromising ferocious
and cunning Thatcher was not only an
icon in British history but also of
conservative thought with her right-wing
policies earning her adoration from the
right and disapproval from the left
especially when she cut funding to
social programs diminished the power of
the unions and privatized certain
state-owned companies however regardless
of your stance on her politics it’s
difficult to deny the impact this Iron
Lady had on twentieth century Britain
where there is doubt may we bring faith
and where those despair may be bring
hope number six
Sir Isaac Newton but then he had this
enormous capacity to hyper-focus
enormous capacity to ask fundamental
questions and the ability to do
experiments and to persist with a
question known as the father of modern
science and a significant figure in the
Scientific Revolution this natural
philosopher was a physicist and
mathematician best known for his
earth-shattering revelations in optics
and he designed a remarkably and
radically different kind of telescope
from anything that had been built before
calculus the laws of motion and famously
universal gravitation bang he suddenly
has the idea that’s the same thing
that’s making the Apple falls what’s
holding the moon in its orbit another
man who’s considered a key figure in
science history his book mathematical
principles of natural philosophy has
proved invaluable to the scientific
world ultimately I think people rightly
look back to newton’s principia
mathematica as the foundation of modern
science in fact without him Europe may
never have undergone the Scientific
Revolution it’s so desperately needed
and the phrase what goes up must come
down may never have even been proven
true he was buried among kings and
queens and Westminster Abbey beneath a
monument to his scientific achievements
number five queen elizabeth ii i declare
before you all it’s my whole life
whether it be long or so
shall be devoted to your service and to
the service of our great imperial family
to which we all belong head of the
commonwealth beginning with her
ascension to the throne in 1952
elizabeth oversaw numerous significant
changes throughout her tenure she very
much leaves family to go off and find
their own way and if you get it wrong
stand by you back in your place through
generations of anti-monarchist sentiment
she deserves credit for maintaining the
British monarchies overall support
celebrating her Diamond Jubilee in 2012
Her Majesty became the oldest reigning
monarch in the world as well as
Britain’s longest served monarch and
though the public isn’t privy to the
inner workings of her personality she is
still one of the most recognizable and
known Brits ever long-lived the Queen in
tomorrow’s world we must all work
together as hard as ever if we are truly
to be United Nations number four Diana
Princess of Wales and if you wanted to
go to draw princess I think she gorgeous
just like that the tiny bodies tiny ways
to knit great big skirt married to the
Prince of Wales in 1981 in one of the
most lavish and most-watched television
events in history
Diana became one of the first accessible
members of the royal family labeled by
some as the world’s most photographed
woman she couldn’t move anywhere without
a lens within feet of her face diana was
charismatic kind-hearted and elegant all
of which made her the focus of intense
media scrutiny across the globe
Princess Diana met children with kidney
failure who are dependent on machines
although that interest ultimately
contributed to her untimely death she
left behind a legacy of compassion and
contributions to humanitarian aid
efforts combating landmines homelessness
and hiv/aids she truly was the people’s
princess I think the biggest disease
this world suffers from in this day and
age is a disease of people feeling
unloved and I know that I can give love
for a minute for half an hour for a day
for a month but I can give I’m very
happy to do that and I want to do that
number three
William Shakespeare to be or not to be
that is the Bard of Avon perhaps no
other Britons shaped the English
language and culture as significantly as
Shakespeare contributing thousands of
new words to the English language the
legendary poet playwright and actor
described roughly thirty eight plays and
154 sonnets other no stones in heaven
but what’s his tales remain relevant to
this day as they not only impacted
English society but also revealed the
timeless and universal condition of
mankind and its folly
something which speaks not only to
British culture but which translates to
all languages and cultures as Victor
Hugo once said England has two books the
Bible and Shakespeare that English may
as French French Englishmen receive each
other God speak this amen
number two the Beatles
the British Invasion made many musicians
world famous and while Mick Jagger and
his fellow Rolling Stones are absolute
British icons no act sold more records
earned more number ones and elicited
more teenage screams than the Beatles
these four moptops boys from Liverpool
hold numerous records and honours not
the least of which is the unofficial
title of most influential band in the
world ever together as the Fab Four John
Lennon Paul McCartney George Harrison
and Ringo Starr changed the face of
music forever helping to bring
rock-and-roll to the mainstream and
becoming the best-selling band in
history in the process
before we crown our top pick here are
some honorable mentions those among the
most important is that I am a Puritan
that I am a believer in the visual and
that’s what I think that schools should
teach
mr. beauty the very
Henry the eighth’s the tyrant king he
was brutal he was ruthless he was
probably the most selfish King we’ve
ever had she produced fiction which had
a sort of a self possession and a
technical audacity which was
unparalleled anywhere else in Europe
number one Sir Winston Churchill the
beginning of the beginning our top spot
goes to the British bulldog himself an
officer in the British Army a career
politician historian and a Nobel Prize
winning author Churchill aided in the
defeat of Hitler during World War two
we shall fight in the fields and helped
popularize the peace sign or in his case
the V for victory sign and was named
Time Magazine’s Man of the Year in 1940
and there man of the half-century in
1949 I think he always felt he would win
though still a flawed hero this wartime
Prime Minister was considered one of the
best orders in modern times and one of
the greatest leaders of the 20th century
in the day the British and American
people will for their own safety and for
the good of all walk together in majesty
injustice and
do you agree with our list I don’t
really think so which Brit do you think
is the most iconic for more jolly good
top 10s published every day be sure to
subscribe to watchmojo.com until then
from all of the BBC team at Buckingham
Palace thank you for watching and good
night
their kings and queens
in some cases figuratively in some cases
literally so to have someone like the
Queen of England which is you know a
sister country to us we feel we feel
very closely close bonds of England
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
iconic Brits
for this list we are excluding those
celebrities associated with America more
than Britain so very sorry to all you
Charlie Chaplin fans also we are solely
including celebrities born in England
and not those from Scotland Wales or
Ireland
number ten Charles Dickens
considered the greatest Victorian
novelist ever this writer and critic of
19th century England wrote of the
country’s best of times and its worst of
times
often commenting on the social ills that
were occurring around him including
poverty prejudice hypocrisy and more
Dickens used his experiences to craft
some of the most beloved known and
timeless characters in all of literature
and therefore I am about to raise your
salary known as well today as he was in
his own time Dickens and his legacy as
an icon and British prose will continue
to live on thanks to pieces of writing
like great expectations a Christmas
carol a Tale of Two Cities and Oliver
Twist
so if someone says stop being such a
Scrooge we don’t have to have read
Dickens Christmas Carol to know
precisely what that person is telling us
number nine Richard Branson I’ve done
foolish things like trying to fly around
the world in balloons British business
tycoon and self-made billionaire Richard
Branson is founder of Virgin Group a
multinational made up of over 400
different affiliate companies including
subsidiaries in the airline railway and
mobile phone spaces as well as
commercial space travel but it all
started in the late 1960s with his
record business and by the next decade
Branson really began to amass his
fortune with the Virgin Records record
label further tussles with the places
god save the queen’ was launched
cemented virgins reputation as creative
disruptors
this culture of tearing up the rulebook
had spread throughout the country
thanks to Branson’s pioneering vision
and boyish charm the brand eventually
represented many groundbreaking acts and
made Branson one of the UK’s ten richest
citizens if you’re successful in life
enormous wealth can go with that success
if you have enormous wealth then
enormous responsibility goes with it too
number eight Charles Darwin Charles
Darwin set off on a fateful voyage that
would revolutionize our understanding of
life’s great diversity survival of the
fittest is the game of life so it’s no
surprise that Charles Darwin’s theory of
evolution propelled him onto our list
his work on the Origin of Species
proposed that all species of life
descended over time from common
ancestors originally there must have
been just one type of finch in the
Galapagos but over time it had
diversified into many kinds not only has
this naturalist helped the world’s
understanding of Natural Sciences
evolved he also revolutionized how
humans think of their place in the
universe and history it might have been
an absolute prerequisite for us landing
where we are today
all of this has easily made him one of
history’s most revolutionary scientists
as well as one of the most famous
Englishmen the scientists who carry on
his legacy have advanced his work in
wondrous ways number seven Margaret
Thatcher the lady’s not for turning this
Conservative Party leader was the
longest-serving Prime Minister of the
20th century and is the only woman to
have held Britain’s highest political
office that way you will never create
the world
hotcha policy uncompromising ferocious
and cunning Thatcher was not only an
icon in British history but also of
conservative thought with her right-wing
policies earning her adoration from the
right and disapproval from the left
especially when she cut funding to
social programs diminished the power of
the unions and privatized certain
state-owned companies however regardless
of your stance on her politics it’s
difficult to deny the impact this Iron
Lady had on twentieth century Britain
where there is doubt may we bring faith
and where those despair may be bring
hope number six
Sir Isaac Newton but then he had this
enormous capacity to hyper-focus
enormous capacity to ask fundamental
questions and the ability to do
experiments and to persist with a
question known as the father of modern
science and a significant figure in the
Scientific Revolution this natural
philosopher was a physicist and
mathematician best known for his
earth-shattering revelations in optics
and he designed a remarkably and
radically different kind of telescope
from anything that had been built before
calculus the laws of motion and famously
universal gravitation bang he suddenly
has the idea that’s the same thing
that’s making the Apple falls what’s
holding the moon in its orbit another
man who’s considered a key figure in
science history his book mathematical
principles of natural philosophy has
proved invaluable to the scientific
world ultimately I think people rightly
look back to newton’s principia
mathematica as the foundation of modern
science in fact without him Europe may
never have undergone the Scientific
Revolution it’s so desperately needed
and the phrase what goes up must come
down may never have even been proven
true he was buried among kings and
queens and Westminster Abbey beneath a
monument to his scientific achievements
number five queen elizabeth ii i declare
before you all it’s my whole life
whether it be long or so
shall be devoted to your service and to
the service of our great imperial family
to which we all belong head of the
commonwealth beginning with her
ascension to the throne in 1952
elizabeth oversaw numerous significant
changes throughout her tenure she very
much leaves family to go off and find
their own way and if you get it wrong
stand by you back in your place through
generations of anti-monarchist sentiment
she deserves credit for maintaining the
British monarchies overall support
celebrating her Diamond Jubilee in 2012
Her Majesty became the oldest reigning
monarch in the world as well as
Britain’s longest served monarch and
though the public isn’t privy to the
inner workings of her personality she is
still one of the most recognizable and
known Brits ever long-lived the Queen in
tomorrow’s world we must all work
together as hard as ever if we are truly
to be United Nations number four Diana
Princess of Wales and if you wanted to
go to draw princess I think she gorgeous
just like that the tiny bodies tiny ways
to knit great big skirt married to the
Prince of Wales in 1981 in one of the
most lavish and most-watched television
events in history
Diana became one of the first accessible
members of the royal family labeled by
some as the world’s most photographed
woman she couldn’t move anywhere without
a lens within feet of her face diana was
charismatic kind-hearted and elegant all
of which made her the focus of intense
media scrutiny across the globe
Princess Diana met children with kidney
failure who are dependent on machines
although that interest ultimately
contributed to her untimely death she
left behind a legacy of compassion and
contributions to humanitarian aid
efforts combating landmines homelessness
and hiv/aids she truly was the people’s
princess I think the biggest disease
this world suffers from in this day and
age is a disease of people feeling
unloved and I know that I can give love
for a minute for half an hour for a day
for a month but I can give I’m very
happy to do that and I want to do that
number three
William Shakespeare to be or not to be
that is the Bard of Avon perhaps no
other Britons shaped the English
language and culture as significantly as
Shakespeare contributing thousands of
new words to the English language the
legendary poet playwright and actor
described roughly thirty eight plays and
154 sonnets other no stones in heaven
but what’s his tales remain relevant to
this day as they not only impacted
English society but also revealed the
timeless and universal condition of
mankind and its folly
something which speaks not only to
British culture but which translates to
all languages and cultures as Victor
Hugo once said England has two books the
Bible and Shakespeare that English may
as French French Englishmen receive each
other God speak this amen
number two the Beatles
the British Invasion made many musicians
world famous and while Mick Jagger and
his fellow Rolling Stones are absolute
British icons no act sold more records
earned more number ones and elicited
more teenage screams than the Beatles
these four moptops boys from Liverpool
hold numerous records and honours not
the least of which is the unofficial
title of most influential band in the
world ever together as the Fab Four John
Lennon Paul McCartney George Harrison
and Ringo Starr changed the face of
music forever helping to bring
rock-and-roll to the mainstream and
becoming the best-selling band in
history in the process
before we crown our top pick here are
some honorable mentions those among the
most important is that I am a Puritan
that I am a believer in the visual and
that’s what I think that schools should
teach
mr. beauty the very
Henry the eighth’s the tyrant king he
was brutal he was ruthless he was
probably the most selfish King we’ve
ever had she produced fiction which had
a sort of a self possession and a
technical audacity which was
unparalleled anywhere else in Europe
number one Sir Winston Churchill the
beginning of the beginning our top spot
goes to the British bulldog himself an
officer in the British Army a career
politician historian and a Nobel Prize
winning author Churchill aided in the
defeat of Hitler during World War two
we shall fight in the fields and helped
popularize the peace sign or in his case
the V for victory sign and was named
Time Magazine’s Man of the Year in 1940
and there man of the half-century in
1949 I think he always felt he would win
though still a flawed hero this wartime
Prime Minister was considered one of the
best orders in modern times and one of
the greatest leaders of the 20th century
in the day the British and American
people will for their own safety and for
the good of all walk together in majesty
injustice and
do you agree with our list I don’t
really think so which Brit do you think
is the most iconic for more jolly good
top 10s published every day be sure to
subscribe to watchmojo.com until then
from all of the BBC team at Buckingham
Palace thank you for watching and good
night
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