French forward Thierry Henry celebrates after scoring during the friendly football match France vs Denmark at the Bollaert stadium in Lens, 31 May 2006. Despite the historic antipathy between Britain and France, one in five Britons wish they were born on the other side of the English Channel, according to a poll. In a survey of 1,010 people, Britons were apparently charmed by the so-called "Thierry Factor" -- the rise of high-profile French celebrities here, such as Arsenal striker Thierry Henry. Meanwhile, just under a third, 32 percent, of Britons under 50 said they would prefer to live in France, with 23 percent choosing Britain as the ideal home. Jointly third in Europe were Italy and Spain, both receiving 19 percent of the vote for the best place to live. More than a third, 37 percent, would like to move to France after they retire, while 30 percent would like to continue living here. In addition, Britons seem better able to identify French landmarks and icons than their own -- while 93 percent of British people could identify the Eiffel Tower, 83 percent could point out the equivalent in Blackpool, northwest England. At the same time, while 69 percent of those polled could name Paris's Arc de Triomphe, only 40 percent could identify London's Marble Arch. Some 40 percent of Britons also thought wine was the best drink to accompany a meal, with just 5 percent choosing a glass of traditional British ale. (Agencies)

一项民意调查显示，虽然英法两国之间存在历史宿怨，但五分之一的英国人觉得还是生在法国好。 这项有1010人参与的调查表明，英国人对所谓的“蒂埃里效应”很感兴趣，“蒂埃里效应”指的是一些法国名人在英国的影响力越来越大，比如阿森纳队的前锋蒂埃里·亨利。 此外，在50岁以下的英国人中，32％人的人说他们更想在法国生活，而23％的人表示还是愿意在英国生活。 除法国外，欧洲的意大利和西班牙也颇受英国人青睐，各有19％的调查对象认为它们是理想的居住地。 37％的人表示想在退休后移居法国，30％的人愿意继续在英国生活。 此外，英国人在识别法国的象征性建筑和标志时比本国的还要强。93％的英国人可以认出埃菲尔铁塔，而只有83％的英国人能认出英国西北部的布莱克浦塔。 另外，69％的调查对象能说出巴黎凯旋门的名字，而只有40％的人认得伦敦的大理石拱门。 约40％的英国人认为葡萄酒是最佳佐餐饮品，而只有5％的英国人青睐传统的英国爱尔啤酒。 (英语点津姗姗编辑)