More people in the U.K. correctly identified a line from the Lord’s Prayer than quotes from Shakespeare, Dickens, Churchill or the “Star Wars” franchise, a new national poll shows.
The phrase “Give us this day our daily bread” was the most widely recognized among seven iconic lines from literature, history, music and film.
Over 80% of respondents correctly identified the Lord’s Prayer line, edging out “May the force be with you” from “Star Wars,” which scored 79.9%, according to the poll conducted by research firm Savanta ahead of the Church of England’s annual Thy Kingdom Come prayer initiative.
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The survey tested recognition of well-known lines by asking over 2,000 adults across the U.K. to match quotes to their correct sources from a multiple-choice list.
Other quotations included “To be or not to be” from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, identified correctly by 73% of participants, and “Happy and glorious, long to reign over us” from the British national anthem “God Save the King,” which was matched by 63%.
Churchill’s wartime declaration, “Never in the field of human conflict, was so much owed by so many to so few,” was recognized by 61%. “You’ll never walk alone,” a show tune popularized by Liverpool FC fans, was chosen by 58%.
The least recognized quote was Dickens’ famous opening line from A Tale of Two Cities, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” which only 39% could correctly match.
The phrase from the Lord’s Prayer that respondents found most meaningful was “ … and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” It resonated with 43% of all participants and 56% of those identifying as Christian.
The survey also revealed that 89% of respondents had previously heard of the Lord’s Prayer, also known as the Our Father. Among Christians, this rose to 95%, but even among people who reported no religion, 88% said they were familiar with it.
In terms of practice, 89% of all respondents said they had recited or prayed the Lord’s Prayer at some point, and 58% said they had done so in their daily lives.
“These results reflect what we’ve been hearing across the North of England through our Faith in the North initiative, which invites people to explore the Lord’s Prayer,” commented the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell.
“Though ancient, its words continue to resonate with people of all faiths and none,” he continued. “In a world of shifting cultures and changing circumstances, the Lord’s Prayer remains a steady guide — perhaps never more so than now. Lines like ‘Give us this day our daily bread’ speak powerfully to today’s challenges, reminding us to seek sufficiency, not excess, and to consider what ‘enough’ truly means.”
The Church of England said the survey results align with the reach of its Daily Prayer podcast and app — launched during the pandemic and offering audio versions of Morning and Evening Prayer — which have been downloaded more than 12 million times.
The survey was conducted between May 23–26, ahead of Pentecost.
