Bank Of England's Own Focus Groups Turned Against Historical Figures Theme
Savanta questioned 119 Britons in 14 focus groups last year, and most called Churchill and Turing's banknote imagery outdated and elitist.
- Savanta ran 14 focus groups, 7 to 10 people each, from August 28 to September 18.
- Prompted, participants named Churchill, Turing, Austen, Nightingale and Darwin; unprompted, almost none could.
- Most wanted Nature as the new theme, calling it neutral, unifying and less likely to divide.
Why it matters: A central bank measuring which faces to keep is manufacturing consent, not discovering it.
Bank of England FOI disclosure: "Bank of England banknote imagery findings report by Savanta" ↗ · Sep 14, 20269/14/26