Irishman Geldof fifth in poll of British heroes

Irish singer and charity campaigner Bob Geldof has come fifth in a poll of great British heroes.

Tue, 25 Jul, 2006 - 20:10

Irish singer and charity campaigner Bob Geldof has come fifth in a poll of great British heroes.

Bond star Sean Connery topped the poll, beating the likes of David Beckham and Robbie Williams to the accolade.

Olympic rower Steve Redgrave was second and TV chef Jamie Oliver was third, thanks to his campaign to improve school meals.

TV presenter Jonathan Ross, actor Ewan McGregor and Olympic gold medallist Kelly Holmes were also in the top 10.

The top 20 included Little Britain star David Williams, who recently raised £1m (€1.46m) for charity Sport Relief by swimming the Channel.

The survey was carried out by Thorpe Park, which is to name 20 seats on its new Stealth rollercoaster after the UK’s favourite heroes. The £12m (€17.6m) ride is the fastest in Europe.

The British amusement park is holding a charity auction offering members of the public the chance to have their names emblazoned on the seats alongside those of the celebrities. All proceeds go to charity.

The Top 20 British Heroes list:

1 Sir Sean Connery

2 Sir Steve Redgrave

3 Jamie Oliver

4 Richard Branson

5 Bob Geldof

6 David Beckham

7 Robbie Williams

8 Jonathan Ross

9 Ewan McGregor

10 Kelly Holmes

11 David Jason