Robbie Williams is not more popular than eleven sweaty men in shorts

For some reason, Travelodge have conducted a poll which purports to measure the "fanbase" of a hotchpotch of things, discovering the process that Manchester United and Robbie Williams are amongst the most-fanned things in the country.

This is their top 20:

1. Manchester United
2. Robbie Williams
3. Liverpool Football Club
4. Arsenal
5. JK Rowling
6. U2
7. Take That
8. Tottenham Hotspur
9. Stephen King
10. Killers
11. John Grisham
12. Aston Villa
13. Guns N' Roses
14. Green Day
15. Roger Federer
16. Chelsea Football Club
17. Billy Connolly
18. Arctic Monkeys
19. John Le Carre
20. Bolton Wanderers

If John Reid is serious about wanting to dissuade Bulgarians and Romanians from coming to the UK, he should just pin this list up at Immigration. It's about as depressing a summary of a sludgy nation as you can hope to find: supporting the team that has huge investment and wins everything, finding a place in their hearts for John Grisham and Guns N Roses and Robbie Williams. Billy Connolly? In 2006? What especially - those lotto adverts he did, or the US sitcom? And Roger Federer, we understand, is that bloke who works in the office down the corridor who wears the sweaters and is always first to get drunk at the Christmas party.

[Thanks to Flaart for the link]

music robbie williams manchester united roger federer