Half of UK children think aliens have already visited Earth … Recent research shows that 41 per cent of children believe they have seen an alien or UFO compared to a quarter (25 per cent) of adults. Are you surprised with the result? Not really….
The study commissioned to mark the launch of the Ben 10 Omniverse toy range shows that 65 per cent of children believe there is ‘something out there’, whilst over half (57 per cent) of adults believe the same.
Children in the East Midlands are the most likely to believe they have seen an alien with one in three (32 per cent) reporting a sighting. Kids in the capital are also believers with a quarter of children in London (24 per cent) thinking they have seen an alien, whilst the most cynical children hail from the East of England with only 4 per cent.
The top regions where children believe they have seen an alien:
1. East Midlands (32 per cent)
2. London (24 per cent)
3. Yorkshire (22 per cent)
4. North West (19 per cent)
5. Wales (18 per cent)
6. South East (18 per cent)
7. Scotland (17 per cent)
8. West Midlands (11 per cent)
9. North East (8 per cent)
10. South West (5 per cent)
11. East (4 per cent)
Over half (57 per cent) of children polled said they would like to make contact with aliens, with a further 61 per cent saying we should actively try to communicate with extra-terrestrial life. Half (49 per cent) think that aliens have already visited Earth with 39 per cent stating they believe there are aliens living here now.
The research showed that one in five girls (21 per cent) believe that the Queen would be the most suitable welcome committee for aliens, whilst 16 per cent of boys thought the army should greet aliens. One in ten children (10 per cent) thought Lady Gaga would be the perfect person to greet aliens, with 9 per cent stating it should be a job for The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Two out of three children (67 per cent) are confident we will discover other life forms in the future – with 66 per cent excited about the prospect, compared to less than half (49 per cent) of adults. Over half (60 per cent) of children wish aliens were real and 65 per cent think that aliens are ‘cool’.
When asked what they imagine aliens to look like nearly half (46 per cent) of children revealed aliens would be green, 38 per cent thought they would have massive eyes and one in five (21 per cent) said they would look very alike to humans. A quarter of children (26 per cent) believe aliens will look like E.T and 25 per cent akin to giant bugs.
