As a great admirer of Alan Turing, I was delighted to hear that he has been named the BBC’s 20th Century Icon — ahead of Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Ernest Shackleton, David Bowie, Muhammed Ali and Pablo Picasso.
I won’t enter into a discussion on the composition of this list except to say that I question the presence of Ali, Bowie and, to some extent, Shackleton and Picasso. On the other hand, King, Mandela and Turing definitely have their place.
Turing was a brilliant mathematician who, through his codebreaking diligence at Bletchley Park, had a profound effect on the conduct of the second world war. There is a good argument to support the premise that his work helped to shorten the war by two years.
Of course, this is just one aspect of Turing’s legacy. He is also the father of modern computing. Every time we glance at our smartphone or smartwatch we should be asking ourselves whether these devices would have existed without the contribution to science of this unassuming and much maligned Cambridge graduate.
Indecency
I believe we are all familiar with the Turing story: A lonely, autistic, gay (although that word would not have been used at the time) genius who fell foul of the inhuman indecency laws of the time, who was chemically castrated by court order and died in very suspicious circumstance having bitten an apple laced with cyanide.
I’m not a conspiracy theorist by any stretch of the imagination, but I cannot help wondering if his death was the suicide that has been claimed.
At the height of the Cold War and in the light of the subsequent unmasking of homosexual traitors such as Guy Burgess and Anthony Blunt, the security services must have been highly concerned that such an “unreliable individual” was in possession of so much classified information.
Bletchley Park itself wasn’t declassified until 20 years after Turing’s premature death. In the early fifties, the Western allies were determined to hide the full extent of Bletchley’s success from the new Soviet enemy. Homosexuals in possession of such secrets must have been highly suspect, primarily because of the risk of blackmail.
Overshadowed
For many years, Turing’s genius was overshadowed by his sexuality (just as was Oscar Wilde’s) but it is fitting that this great man received a Royal Pardon in 2013 and even more appropriate that he is now seen as a suitable candidate for a person of the century award.
On February 5 Turing won the BBC’s public vote. The success was entirely worthy and my regard for the public’s perception has just gone up a notch or two. A popular vote could just have easily have thrown up some half-baked modern celebrity from an Australian jungle who will be forgotten in eight years, never mind eighty. Turing has his place in history and will be remembered in the same way that we think of Isaac Newton, Louis Pasteur, or Charles Darwin
My point was broader than just British v Non British. I agree that that it is not surprising that one of the ‘British chaps’ won. I would certainly take Turing over Bowie any day, but that might be an ‘age thing’. I could extend the discussion by pointing out that all of the suggested parties were ‘chaps’ or was there a separate one for the ‘ladies’?
William
Don’t know about the chapesses. It’s an old survey but probably there were some non-male contenders knowing the BBC.
I must have missed this the first time around. While I would have been tempted by Shackleton, as a fellow Irishman, I probably would not have voted for Turing, if I could have voted. My choice would have lain between Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King or Muhammad Ali and I’m still not sure which one I would have gone for. Picasso, I can understand, but David Bowie? In the field of music there were many people who made much bigger contributions. The list is oddly limited and there were many ‘icons’ in the 20th Century who were not on the list.
William
Muhammad Ali? Pass the smelling salts, please…
I thought he could KO the rest and he did take a very brave stand on Vietnam. He had to be brave all of his life, particularly when he won an Olympic Medal for the US and would not be served in a restaurant in his home town. Also check out the name Abe Grady on Google. You have probably already guessed what the result would be.
I suspect that for a large part of the 1960s through to the end of the 1980s Muhammad Ali was the best known person on this planet and, dare I say it, the most widely admired. To assess this you need to look outside of your own circle and see what effect he had on 100s of millions of people across the planet.
William
I still need the smelling salts. But these things are a personal choice so we have to leave it at that, I’m afraid.
Thanks Mike. I am looking at the people on the list in a global (as in worldwide) context, of course.
William
I did check back and I think that was the scope of the original survey. Of course, since it was a British survey (conducted by the BBC) it is perhaps understandable that Turing was chosen. Of you did a survey in China, for instance, it’s quite possible Chairman Mao would head the list!
This is a bit off topic, but the photo of the young woman at Bletchly Park is magnificent. But you took this photo? Since you are far too young to have done so in the 1940s, may I assume this is a modern day model posing as a 1940s codebreaker? Now back on topic, the whole world owes a great debt to all of the codebreakers at Bletchly Park and elsewhere. Hitler could have won WWII, and might have done so without them.
Richard, yes, I took the photograph at a reenactment day some years ago. I think they have similar days every year. I agree on the history of Bletchley and the impact on the outcome of the war. It was kept a secret until, I think, 1974 and everyone was astounded to read about it then. Bletchley is one of my favourite museums and I try to visit at least once a year; there is always something new to catch the attention.
You question Picasso being on the list? What?
Whilst I don’t question the final choice, Turing is indeed a hero, I do question the right of the BBC to represent a balanced playing field when it comes to 20th century icons.
It is perhaps the most scurrilous mouthpiece of that century, and continues to maintain that position to date.
We are indeed lucky that it wasn’t Peter Andre. Oh no, that would be ITV.
Turing is still relevant today, since no machine has yet passed his eponymous test.
Good Choice!
Mike, just for the record there are no jungles in Australia but we certainly have more than our fair share of half-baked celebrities.
Anyway the choice of Alan Turing is very enlightened and almost brave given that we live,as you say,in an age when half-baked and in some cases half-mad celebrities are revered and lauded at every turn.
Jungle… ah, I thought that was what celebrities were keen to get themselves out of. Maybe its the same thing under another name!
I agree with John above, an excellent choice, and a exceptionally gifted individual. Blighted only by an early demise – if he had lived longer who knows what other discoveries he could have made.
Sorry John below – not sure how that appeared – must have written in the wrong place. lol.
Great choice, I can’t imagine the full scope of his mental prowess.