What Did Gyles Brandreth Do Inside Canterbury Cathedral? | Would I Lie To You?

Gyles Brandreth: "I once did something truly dreadful in Canterbury Cathedral." (dropping a Stradivarius down the stairs)
From Would I Lie to You? Series 15 Episode 4.
Would I Lie to You? is the hit BBC panel show where two teams of celebrity guests try to figure out whether their opponent's ridiculously far-fetched statements about themselves are true or, in fact, a lie.
Featuring inimitable host Rob Brydon with lightning-quick team captains David Mitchell and Lee Mack.
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[@adi-sharma]

With a person like Gyles, whose quantum of stories can only be surpassed by his own eagerness to share them, it’s always going to be true.

[@lolacorinne5384]

Boy, he really does have stories from his life, doesn’t he? How can one person have such a life-just fascinating!

[@jacks5kids]

Fact check: THIS WAS A LIE. Brandreth has repeated this lie several times over the last few years, but here are the facts: 1) All reports about Menuhin's violin being dropped down stairs and badly damaged come solely from Brandreth and the BBC, and these all relatively recent, considering that this was meant to have happened in 1970 2) There are multiple websites that provide extensive accounts about Menuhin's two Stradivarius violins, and none mention that either was badly damaged in 1970 3) You can read the archived New York Times account of the 1970 ceremony at Canterbury when Menuhin performed and it fails to mention the wrecked violin 4) Dropping a violin and having it fall down a flight of stone stairs is likely to destroy the violin beyond repair, but the strings would not snap as Brandreth claims 5) Menuhin had two Stradivarius violins, one from 1713, one from 1733. David Oistrakh had a Strad from 1671 that he played in 1970, so the claim that this was the oldest Strad in use was another demonstrable lie 6) Menuhin was Jewish on both sides by birth; his first name means Jew in Hebrew. While he had an interest in Indian pacifistic religions, he was not a Buddhist. Brandreth lied about that too. 7) My comments about this being a demonstrable lie are repeatedly deleted from this page. I am trying again without links to the websites that prove this to be a lie.

[@annemariefrank]

Thanks! That makes much more sense. (Musician family here). The part about the strings snapping had me immediately knowing it was a lie. If the violin was damaged, the concert/performing would have been cancelled upon inspection from the insurer. Also, NEVER would someone hand this kind of instrument to another person as easy as that (much less having him give it further to a third one). So yes, it was a blatant LIE. By the way, KZbin deletes comments with links, this is their policy, not BBCs.

[@jacks5kids]

Another lie is that Menuhin's Stradivarius was the oldest in use. Nowhere close: Menuhin's was made in 1733. At the time of the 1970 ceremony in Canterbury, David Oistrakh played a Stradivarius made in 1671, a full 62 years older.

[@artistjoh]

@@jacks5kids It is certainly widely known that Menuhin's violin is not the oldest still used, however, it is known as the Soil (pronounced Swal) Stradavarius, and is regarded as one of the finest of all the Stradivarius violins in existence, both for its exquisite sound, and for the beauty of its timberwork.

[@dannycheesums]

This is the kind of obscure trivia I appreciate

[@silban]

​@@artistjohUsed to be renowned for that until Gyles got a hold of it!

[@artistjoh]

@@silban :)

[@foresthill8462]

Bob Mortimer and Gyles Brandreth have lived more exciting stories than anyone else I know 😂😂😂

[@NanakiPL]

Both of them lived more exciting stories than the rest of the humanity combined :D

[@CharlieQuartz]

The only part of the story I find hard to believe is that Strad wouldn't smash to pieces on the impact Gyles described. Many of those violins already have a multitude of cracks and repairs and would surely split or end up with a broken neck. I also don't buy that all the strings had "broken" just from an absent bridge. Every other detail fits with the score of Brandreth's life, but I would bet he overplayed the fall and condition of the instrument.

[@kuruman1]

Some serious gems from Lee here.

[@SaulG88]

...and that's why he had to cancel his appearance on the Morecombe & Wise show.

[@coopdivi]

Brilliant! 🤣🤣🤣

[@williammorris1384]

Gyles Brandreth is one of those people who you really want to dislike , but can’t quite commit to doing so! He’s actually a great storyteller and a fiendishly clever guy , who can talk , entertainingly so, for hours on end. I’m a big fan ! 👍

[@hopebgood]

I love all these sort of comedy panel shows but tbh Gyles Brandreth bores the arse off me. The same goes for Brian (Shouty) Blessed.

[@GAGL.Evolution]

Lee&Giles Awesome Comedic pairing 😅😂❤

[@watchmejumpstart24]

It was obviously true because when its not true they don't make the lie prompt as vague as that

[@Sunshine-dw5cm]

Who paid for the repairs?

[@MakeSomeNoiseAgencyPlaylists]

Church....they got all the money in the world

[@thomasdalton1508]

The insurance company, almost certainly. A violin like that will always be insured.

[@just-tess]

augh why is there a notification ping at 2:00

[@ilinasingh3840]

😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@ilinasingh3840]

😂😂

[@srijanbanerjee4369]

filly jumpscare

[@buyout-anagram]

No way. Who on earth would ask if they could hold a pricelessly valuable object just because they want to? And who on earth would say yeah sure here you go? That whole scenario was absurd.

[@Nexus42]

Yeah, plenty of stories on this show are just way too unbelievable. I think there are parts of it that are true, but no fucking way is someone handing a stradivarius away for no reason. More likely just an expensive violin that he bumped into and broke by accident. Or the whole thing is made up entirely for the sake of entertainment.

[@bllawlk]

Also people usually hold violin by its neck, impossible to drop it

[@ThisIsMeUK]

I seem to remember Sharon Osbourne said a truth on the show, but after the show aired she admitted it was only a half true, she played it up for the ‘comedy’!

[@deterlanglytone]

@@Nexus42 BOB MORTIMER burned down his house as a child, does his own dentistry, and was once paid in Eggsandwiches for haircuts... just as a few things that sound like lies but are true.

[@ThisIsMeUK]

Oh and the bloke who taught his cat to wink, claimed it was true. Then when Bez was on the show a few years later Lee Mack brought it up and claimed he still does not actually believe it was true! (Yes, I watch this show far too many times!! lol)

[@andrewashdown3541]

Sorry but I don't believe a word of it - the violin case was padlocked to Mr Menuhin's arm? Hah hah! Total fabrication. But then Mr Brandreth has made a career out of anecodotalising his rather privileged life

[@Tao_Tology]

There was no such person as "Thomas _Ah_ Beckett" He was just called Thomas Beckett. #TheMoreYouKnow 🎶

[@dielaughing73]

What rhymes with "no, you CAN'T"?

[@vaw796]

A vulgar word for a female's vagina that rhymes with hunt.

[@alex_madeira]

Swap the A in CAN'T for a U

[@NanakiPL]

Rookie mistake. How would Gyles Brandreth know the violin landed on the exact spot where the murder was committed 800 years ago? He was there!! Obviously!

[@IanPageEchols]

Or, possibly that will be revealed on another panel show as another anecdote from his storied family history, as he and his family appear to have played part in far too many historical events.

[@NotoriousWhistler]

I hate guests like Filly who just say the other contestants are funny and add nothing else. It's so cringeworthy.

[@kosefix]

No, I found that quite adorable.

[@azadgun2324]

Nah it's great. People like Lee mack are surrounded by people who are used to them, so seeing someone react like me the first few times I watched him reminds me how truly funny he is.

[@call_me_pebble]

I know... it hurts me when the other guests don't know how to react to their unamusing comments.

[@dragonsdynamite6403]

I concur.

[@lmonk9517]

@@azadgun2324 that's what the audience is for.

[@artistjoh]

Why would Rob think we needed to be told who Yehudi Menuhin was? Does he think people are so enthralled by talentless social media celebrities that we are unaware of the world beyond an iPhone screen? Not knowing who Menuhin was is like not knowing Sarah Bernhardt, Pavarotti, Caruso, Melba, Picasso, Jimmy Stewart, Louis Armstrong, Cole Porter, Van Gogh, or any of the other great talents that transcend time and cultures. Yehudi Menuhin bought the Soil (pronounced swal) Stradivarius in 1950, and played it for decades. Of all the Stradivarius violins, it is considered the finest, with the most perfect tones. Dropping that violin was not like dropping just any of the other 700 Stradivarius violins. This one is the crown jewels of Stradvarius violins. Just to be able to hold it is a great honor. To drop it is beyond terrible. It is the mark of Menuhin's Zen, that he did shove the violin bow up Brandreth's fundament, and strangle the man.

[@jeremello]

I didn't know who this was - but I'm not European so I miss a lot of famous names

[@bield7]

Pretentious, moi?

[@artistjoh]

@@jeremello Yehudi Menuhin is a Jewish name, but he was born in the US, but he lived in Britain, so he was kind of international. I'm not European either, but I certainly know about his talent. He is commonly regarded as the greatest violinist of the 20th century, and probably one of the greatest of all time, although without recordings we cannot be sure about violinists from before the invention of the gramophone.

[@ThisIsMeUK]

@@jeremello I had no idea who he was too lol

[@dielaughing73]

​@@bield7 que?