France and the French
A 1994 MORI poll on British attitudes to and impressions of our cross-Channel neighbours
MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,069 adults aged 15+ at 149 constituency sampling points across the United Kingdom (Great Britain and Northern Ireland). Interviewing was conducted face-to-face, in home, on 16-20 June 1994. Data were weighted to match the profile of the population. The survey was conducted on behalf of the BBC Language Unit.
Q How friendly or unfriendly do you personally feel towards German/French/Spanish people, generally speaking?
| German | French | Spanish | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | |
| Very friendly | 17 | 16 | 20 |
| Fairly friendly | 52 | 49 | 55 |
| Not very friendly | 14 | 17 | 7 |
| Not at all friendly | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| Don't know | 10 | 11 | 16 |
Q Which if any of the items on this card would you say are better in France than in Britain? Q And which, if any, are better in Britain than in France?
| Better in France | Better in Britain | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | |
| Railways | 46 | 8 | +38 |
| Food | 40 | 20 | +20 |
| Romance | 13 | 8 | +5 |
| Architecture | 17 | 18 | -1 |
| Films | 5 | 32 | -27 |
| Sport | 4 | 38 | -34 |
| Pop music | 1 | 41 | -40 |
| Television | 1 | 47 | -46 |
| None of these | 10 | 3 | |
| Don't know | 21 | 19 |
Q (To women only) Which of the French men on this card do you think is the sexiest? Base: 537 women
| All | 15-24 | 25-34 | 35-54 | 55+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | |
| Sacha Distel (the singer) | 24 | 1 | 16 | 30 | 35 |
| Eric Cantona (the footballer) | 11 | 27 | 22 | 7 | 1 |
| Gérard Depardieu (the actor) | 8 | 7 | 13 | 12 | 2 |
| Alain Prost (the racing driver) | 8 | 14 | 15 | 5 | 3 |
| Charles Aznavour (the singer) | 7 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 16 |
| Jean-Michel Jarre (the musician) | 5 | 7 | 5 | 8 | 1 |
| Jean-Paul Gaultier (the fashion designer) | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Antoine de Caunes (the TV presenter) | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Other | * | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| None of these | 15 | 22 | 14 | 18 | 10 |
| Don't know | 18 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 30 |
Q (To men only) Which of the French women on this card do you think is the sexiest? Base: 532 men
| All | 15-24 | 25-34 | 35-54 | 55+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | |
| Brigitte Bardot (the actress) | 30 | 10 | 20 | 33 | 46 |
| Catherine Deneuve (the actress) | 18 | 3 | 15 | 26 | 22 |
| Vanessa Paradis (the singer) | 16 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 0 |
| Mary Pierce (the tennis player) | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 3 |
| Beatrice Dalle (the actress) | 3 | 8 | 7 | * | 0 |
| Francoise Hardy (the actress/singer) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
| Other | 1 | 0 | 2 | * | 1 |
| Don't know/can't think of any | 22 | 25 | 17 | 19 | 27 |
Q Of the different aspects I read out, please tell which, if any, you feel apply to Britain? Q And which, if any, apply to France?
| Britain | France | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| It has a strong economy | 7 | 9 |
| It has a lot of political scandals | 58 | 8 |
| It has a relaxed way of life | 15 | 42 |
| The people are business-like | 22 | 10 |
| The people are fair-minded | 38 | 10 |
| The people are arrogant | 23 | 40 |
| The people are open-minded | 24 | 14 |
| None of these | 2 | 2 |
| Don't know | 6 | 19 |
Q I am going to read out some French words and phrases. Please tell me what you think each one means in English. If you are not sure, please tell me what you think it is most likely to mean.
| Rive gauche | C'est la vie | Vin de table | S'il vous plait | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | |
| Correct | 11 | 32 | 45 | 59 |
| Wrong | 19 | 18 | 10 | 15 |
| Don't know | 70 | 51 | 44 | 26 |
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