Londoners hidden hopes

6 March 2003

Published for the first time today, a new survey by the Museum of London reveals the hidden hopes, wants and desires of those who live and work in Greater London.

Over 2,500 visitors to London’s Voices, a recent oral history exhibition supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, answered a series of questions ranging from ‘who do you most admire’ to ‘what would you most like to change about the city’.

The results, which can be found in full at www.museumoflondon.org.uk provide a unique snapshot of life in the capital at the turn of the century, and show that there is more to life for Londoners than where we live and work.

It seems we are more multicultural than ever. A fifth of respondents were born aboard, in over 81 different countries, and a quarter claimed to speak French. Less than 2.5% of respondents living in the capital chose to identify themselves as being from London – fewer than those who used their religion to describe their origins.

And we remain reluctant to label ourselves. When asked to define their ethnic background, 40% moved outside the categories used in the 2002 census, with over 60% describing their nationality as that of their parents. After all, how do you classify a ‘Greek Jewish Cockney’, or a ‘half Chinese, half Mancunian, born in Wales?’

But do we like living in London? It seems that Ken has his priorities right - transport was by far the most hated part of the city life, with a staggering half of those answering the survey choosing it as the one thing they would change, whether through improvements on the underground or a reduction in traffic on the streets. Yet congestion charging is not necessarily the answer. Only 3.5% suggested more car free zones.

In second place, nearly a fifth of respondents would clean the capital’s streets of litter, while nearly half again would change the attitude of its people. Yet relatively few were concerned about poverty and homelessness – mentioned in just over 5% of the total answers - with overcrowding seen as a less pressing issue than that of the weather.

But what would make us happy? It appears that spending more time out of the capital is top of our priority list. When asked about plans for the future, a third of those questioned stated they would like to travel, and almost a quarter located their happiest moment abroad. And when not dreaming of escape, it seems we are a city bursting with cultural talent – over 10% of respondents have an unfulfilled ambition to become an author, while 6% would like to be an artist.

Yet, despite the traffic, dirt and our yearnings to be rich and famous, it would seem Londoners are largely content with life in the capital as it is – 23% of respondents stated that they are most happy now.

As for our mentors, a staggering fifth of respondents who answered this question chose Nelson Mandela as the living person they most admired, second only to family members, who together claimed over a third of the vote. Men were more likely to idolise their partners than women, while the Queen proved only slightly less popular, making an appearance at number 6.

Tony Benn was the most respected political figure at number 8, followed by Margaret Thatcher (9), Ken Livingstone (10) and Desmond Tutu (11). The only sporting entry in the top 20, at number 12, was the boxer Muhammad Ali. The Dalai Lama, Tony Blair and the Pope all reach number 14 in the list, beaten marginally by Madonna at number 13.

And finally, how would we like to be remembered? Overwhelmingly, it appears Londoners want to be seen as good people. Just less than 46% of those surveyed said they would like to be considered kind, compassionate, nice or decent, and over a fifth want to be thought of as happy or funny.

But we are also ambitious. Nearly 10% of respondents want their epitaph to state they were intelligent, talented or successful, closely behind the number who would like to be responsible for bringing about change. For 7%, the work place is where they would like to make most of an impression, but perhaps surprisingly only 1.3% want to be remembered as being beautiful or sexy.

Press information:

Judith Holmes: 020 7814 5502

Editor's note:

Questioning London? is part of London’s Voices, a three-year programme of events dedicated to collecting and sharing the spoken memories of Londoners from all backgrounds and of all ages. London’s Voices is organised by the Museum of London and supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

For more information on the project, visit www.museumoflondon.org.uk.