Survey finds 1 in 8 Brits believe they could pull off the perfect bank robbery?
Image: Greatest Heists With Pierce Brosnan
Sky HISTORY's new criminally good series, Greatest Heists With Pierce Brosnan, explores some of the most elaborate real-life heists in history, from the Baker Street bank burglary to Antwerp Belgium Diamond Heist.
However, it turns out that some of our viewers may be tuning in for tips on committing the perfect heist. A recent survey found that one in eight viewers reckon they could pull off a bank robbery – after learning tips from film and TV.
Respondents were confident that they could solve a bank robbery with three in 10 believing they could solve a bank robbery. They might be onto something, As the Baker Street burglary episode shows, police very were quick to identify the suspects, when the gang’s walkie talkie chatter was intercepted by an amateur radio enthusiast.
The research, commissioned by Sky HISTORY to launch Greatest Heists with Pierce Bronsan, also found 26% would swipe a bag of cash they found in a bank. Though as the series illustrates, heists are never that simple to pull off. While this group would be happy to steal from a bank, they would never consider stealing from a person or independent business.
24% of those surveyed admitted that they have even thought about how they might go about pulling off a heist themselves. Watching the series will give these viewers all the insight they could ever hope for, without ever having to commit a crime.
71% think some true crime events are wilder and more unbelievable than fictional stories. Looking at the episode guide, the featured heists are crazier than anything Hollywood could devise.
Criminology expert, Professor Emmeline Taylor who spoke to Sky HISTORY for a series interview said: ‘This new series is fascinating as it reveals details about some of the most audacious heists ever attempted.
‘Some of the stories from around the world are simply more outlandish than the movies.
‘People love watching the extreme lengths criminals will go to driven by sheer greed, and of course see the consequences that criminals face afterwards.’
The survey also revealed that people’s heist scenes in film, include the sequence in 1996 movie, The Italian Job, the robbery in Bonnie and Clyde and Terry Benedict’s vault in Ocean’s Eleven.
Greatest Heists With Pierce Brosnan airs at 10pm on Mondays from 1 May on Sky HISTORY. The full series will be made available on Sky as a boxset from 1 May.
