Other odd entries include Aleister Crowley (didn't know he had that much of a following), Paul "Bono" Hewson (hang on, isn't he Irish?), and the "Unknown Soldier". And I'm not sure if people like Robbie Williams (wasn't he a former boy-band dancer or something?) belong on a list of "greatest Britons of all time". Ah well, at least they didn't accept Ayn Rand, L. Ron Hubbard or Jesus Christ as "Britons".
If Britain includes Ireland, where's James Joyce? Or Sir Arthur Guinness for that matter.
Well, the 26 counties of southern Ireland, form the Irish Republic (formerly the Irish Free State), which is an independent country (therefore not part of Britain); the 6 counties of Northern Ireland are part of the United Kingdom, though.
Good point about Joyce. He was born in Dublin prior to Irish independence, so was therefore 'British' for at least part of his life. Bono was born in Dublin and is therefore Irish, not British. The distinction gets blurred at times though, in much the same way as New Zealander Russell Crowe sometimes seems to end up Australian ...
Feh, Bono. They can have him, the messianic twat.
Well, Ireland is part of Britain, if not Great Britain...