New research has revealed a list of legendary lost iconic figures that Britons under the age of 30 are unfamiliar with.
Mary Seacole, who nursed British soldiers during the Crimean War, tops the list of lost icons. And despite Kim Kardashian wearing her iconic dress to the Met Gala ball this week, as many as 49 percent said they were unaware of who Marilyn Monroe was and what she was even famous for.
Nearly eight in ten surveyed by the Perspectus Global agency had never heard of Alan Turning, the man who broke the Enigma machine code that altered the course of the Second World War.
Seventy-seven percent of respondents aged 18-30 were unclear as to who Emmeline Pankhurst was and what she did to become a household name.
89 percent had no idea who the artist Frida Kahlo was, while a surprising 71 percent were unaware of what Andy Warhol was famous for, with 66 percent of respondents clueless as to what Pablo Picasso used to do for a living.
Modern Brits were also surprisingly oblivious to silver screen duo Ginger Rogers (77 percent) and Fred Astair (73 percent), as they were to Jimi Hendrix (63 percent), Alfred Hitchcock (65 percent), and Breakfast at Tiffany’s Audrey Hepburn (66 percent).
Managing director of the research agency Perspectus Global, which conducted the survey, Ellie Glason, said: “It is fascinating to see how many iconic figures from history are unknown to the younger generation of Brits.”
Other historical figures who seem to have gotten lost to the mists of time for younger generations include civil rights campaigner Rosa Parks (73%), the Lady of the Lamp, Florence Nightingale (58%) and the first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong (53%).
And when it comes to what makes an icon, 74 percent of Brits said it was someone who had been inspirational, 55 percent said overcoming challenges was important, while 51 percent said it was all about doing something ground-breaking that changed the world.
We’ll leave you with the full list of the “TOP 35 LOST ICONS” (*with percentages corresponding to the number of Brits under 30 who said they were “not sure who they were or what they achieved”).
