David Brent's homilies more memorable than classics

The babblings of television’s “chilled-out entertainer” David Brent are better known than quotes from the giants of English literature, a survey said today.

Figures showed 34% of 25- to 44-year-olds in the UK remembered the moment in BBC sitcom, The Office, when fictional manager Brent said: “Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue.”

But just 9% of the same age group remembered the searing satire of Oscar Wilde when he remarked: “I can resist everything except temptation.”

Interviewers found 71% of that age group knew Star Wars evil overlord, Darth Vader, said: “If only you knew the power of the dark side”.

But 90% did not know that the Shakespearean quote “now is the winter of our discontent” was from Richard III.

Some thought that in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, “Friends, Romans and Countrymen” were asked to lend ‘swords’ or ‘money’ rather than ‘ears’.

The survey is marking the ‘Words Worth Reading’ event, where more than 175,000 children from across Britain will simultaneously recite Wordsworth’s ‘Daffodils’ on March 19.

Chris Smith, former British Culture Secretary and a Wordsworth scholar, said: “It’s understandable that people should remember contemporary sources better than the classics but we want to ensure they’re also aware of some of the great and most enduring writing in the English language.”

Researchers also found lines by singers Will Smith and Will Young both had a higher recognition than Shakespeare in the under-25s category.

The survey, commissioned by Yellow Pages, was compiled after interviews with more than 1,000 people, in varying age groups, last week.