Help! One in five people in Britain does not know where the Beatles came from
ONE in five Britons is unaware that the Beatles came from Liverpool, according to a survey into the nation’s knowledge of music history.
Two in five do not know that Oasis hail from Manchester, and more than half have no idea that the British punk scene originated in London.
The survey of more than 2,000 adults was conducted on behalf of National Rail to mark the launch of a new set of travel guides exploring Britain’s musical heritage.
Jo Whiley, the Radio 2 presenter, narrates the stories of 30 cities and the “music gems” they contain.
They range from the well-known, such as the Cavern Club in Liverpool, to the more obscure. The guide to Peterborough
mentions the Nene Valley Railway, where Queen shot the video to their 1989 single Breakthu on a platform attached to a moving train.
The survey also found that only 12 per cent of Britons know that trip hop originated in Bristol, 40 per cent are aware that grime was born in London, and 9 per cent mistakenly believe that Madonna is British.
The guide for Stevenage references Knebworth House, which has hosted record-breaking concerts, but also Coda, a musical instrument shop on the high street where members of the Prodigy and Supergrass reportedly shop.
Doncaster gets its own guide as the home of former One Direction star Louis Tomlinson and singer Tony Christie. Watford is linked to Sir Elton John, as honorary life president of the town’s football club, and to George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, who went to school in nearby Bushey. Birmingham is “the home of heavy metal” and the guide signposts the Crown Pub, close to New Street Station, where a local band called Earth played their first gig in 1968. They subsequently changed their name to Black Sabbath. The Widnes guide begins with the tale of Paul Simon writing the lyrics to Homeward Bound as he waited for a train, and ends with the town’s other musical place in history: Spike Island, where the Stone Roses played in 1990.
Several London railway stations have their own guides. The London Bridge edition includes the story of Keith Richards and Sir Mick Jagger meeting down the line at Dartford station. The Euston edition journeys to nearby Camden, with its history of punk, Britpop and Amy Winehouse.
Whiley said: “I’m very passionate and proud of Britain’s musical heritage, and I’d hate for people to lose their connection to it. I believe that you can appreciate music on a whole new level when you get out there and experience the places that influenced it.
“Working with the rail industry, I’m hoping to inspire fans to take a trip, by train, and discover more about their favourite bands and genres of music.”