Churchill’s We Shall Fight on the Beaches beaten in poll of favourite speeches

24 January 2024 , 19:12

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Winston Churchill came in at second place (Image: Getty Images)

Martin Luther King’s iconic ‘I Have a Dream’ speech has been voted the most inspirational address of all time.

A new poll found the talk, delivered in Washington on August 28, 1963, was found by Britons to be the most powerful of all time. In it, the American activist called for equal civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States.

The speech was said to have had an important role in helping pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and is seen as one of the most motivating addresses in history. Second on the list was Sir Winston Churchill’s We Shall Fight on the Beaches speech, given in 1940 - a year after the outbreak of World War 2.

In it, the wartime Prime Minister aimed to counter the jubilant public reaction provoked by the evacuation from Dunkirk and remind them that the Battle of Britain was about to begin. In third place was Nelson Mandela’s 1964 speech, Prepared to Die, made while in court as he faced the death penalty for sabotage, furthering communism and aiding foreign powers.

MLK during his movement defining speech in 1962 (Popperfoto/Getty Images)

Other notable orations that made the top 10, compiled by insights agency Perspectus Global, was the late Queen Elizabeth II’s 2020 We Will Meet Again speech, made in the face of the coronavirus lockdown and Margaret Thatcher’s 1980 speech at the Conservative Party Conference, in which she famously declared “The lady’s not for turning!”.

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The poll also found 93% of people say a powerful speech can be a catalyst for change, while 77% say they have been brought to tears by an inspirational speech.

Caitlin MacLean, of Perspectus Global, said: “We wanted to look at the most impactful and important speeches of all time, and it’s fascinating to see that a 60-year-old speech from the American civil rights activist and Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr is the one that moves Brits the most.”

Top ten speeches

1. Martin Luther King, I Have A Dream, (1963)
2. Winston Churchill, We Shall Fight On The Beaches (1940)
3. Nelson Mandela, Prepared To Die (1964)
4. Winston Churchill, Battle of Britain speech, to the House of Commons (1940)
5. Queen Elizabeth II, We Will Meet Again Covid speech
6. John F Kennedy’s inauguration speech (1961)
7. Margaret Thatcher, Conservative Party Conference (1980)
8. Emmeline Pankhurst, Freedom or Death speech (1913)
9. King George VI radio address to the nation (1939)
10. Abraham Lincoln Gettysburg address (1863)

Natasha Wynarczyk