1. In 2004, a Cumbrian pensioner was fined £100 for flicking the V-sign at a speed camera.

2. In 1990, The Sun ran a front page with the headline "Up Yours, Delors" and a large hand giving the V-sign, to signify its anti-European stance.

3. In Scotland, the V-sign is known as the Vicky .

4. And in Australia it’s known as the forks.

5. During the German occupation of Jersey, a stonemason incorporated a “V” for victory while repairing paving in Royal Square.

6. Mexican singer Rigo Tovar’s fondness for using the V-sign is commemorated in the statue of him in his hometown.

7. Showjumper Harvey Smith’s famous 1971 V-sign won him an entry in Chambers’ Dictionary: “a Harvey Smith” was defined as “a V-sign with the palm inwards, signifying derision and contempt”.

8. In The Royle Family, Antony Royle’s use of the V-sign (usually to sister Denise) is accompanied by the phrase, “Are these yours?”

9. The V-sign was a favourite gesture of the characters Vyvyan and Rick in 1980s comedy The Young Ones.

10. A popular rumour suggested that Churchill’s famous “V for victory” sign was created by writer and occult leader Aleister Crowley