The 50 things real men should know

CALL yourself a real man? Well, you should know what year England won the World Cup.

And you should know how to change a light bulb and offer a confi dent handshake when meeting someone.

A man must be able to identify which wires are live, earth and neutral in a plug, be confi dent explaining the offside rule and know the difference between ale and lager.

But it seems nearly half of men who took the test are not quite as manly as they seem.

Among the 2,000 questioned for the research compiled by researchers for bookmakers William Hill, 47 per cent admitted they would struggle to tick off all 50 things they are supposed to know.

It also suggests all men should be able to wet shave, polish shoes and know how to carve meat.

A man should never forget what his other half likes to drink while he should always be astute enough to realise that when a woman says “do what you want” she means “don’t do what you want.”

The research found that many men had a particular diffi culty when it came to sport, with a fi fth confessing that they have faked their way through a conversation about football and discussed teams they had no clue about.

A William Hill spokesman said: “Knowing your anniversary date or remembering to polish your shoes might seem like small things but they’re obviously important.

“The list shows a good blend of traditional values long associated with masculinity.

“Being handy and good at practical tasks is always going to help a man seem competent but a bit of sporting passion clearly doesn’t go amiss.”