Did I Say That Out Loud? - Epic Faux-Pas! Quiz

Answer: Gerald Ratner

Gerald, you plonker! Within days, around £500 million had been wiped off the value of his company after this colossal gaffe in 1991. He added that "We sell cut glass decanters and six glasses on a silver tray, all for £4.95" and when asked how he can sell for such a low price he stated that it was because they were "total crap".

In a further attempt to completely destroy his company, he stated that "Our ear-rings cost less than a Marks and Spencer sandwich and won't last as long". These gaffes were so widely reported at the time that a new phrase entered the English language.

Whenever anyone commits such an enormous error of judgement they are said to be guilty of 'doing a Ratner'!

Answer: Holding a school text book upside down

Poor old George ... This was photo-shopped, but Mr Bush committed some howlers during his terms in office. Who could forget this inspired nugget: "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we; they never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we". How could anyone ever forget his attempt to 'massage' the shoulders of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, at the G8 Summit in July 2006 and the hilarious attempt to escape the press in Beijing in 2005 when he was foiled by a locked door!

Answer: Gordon Brown

This single incident, possibly more than any other, cost the Labour Party, the 2010 General Election. After being confronted in Rochdale by Mrs Gillian Duffy, a voter with questions on immigration and crime levels in the area, the Labour leader, Gordon Brown, forgot to switch off and remove a TV microphone after getting into his car after the meeting.

He was heard to say "That was a disaster. Who was that bigoted woman?". Later, after hearing his remarks played back, a shocked Mr. Brown realised that this was probably the kiss of death for his re-election campaign. To compound his embarrassment he telephoned Mrs Duffy in person and made a grovelling apology. Did this cost him the election? One thing is certain; it didn't help his case!

Answer: Walter Mondale

During the 1984 US presidential election, Democrat Walter Mondale made history by selecting Geraldine Ferraro as his running mate. Unfortunately, a controversy over her husband's financial deals cast a shadow over their campaign efforts. Strangely, Mondale made the following pledge to raise taxes: "By the end of my first term, I will reduce the Reagan budget deficit by two-thirds. Let's tell the truth.

It must be done, it must be done. Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won't tell you. I just did." The statement dealt Mondale's campaign a serious blow from which it never recovered.

The final blow came during the second of the televised presidential debates when Mondale tried to make an issue of Ronald Reagan's age, he was 73 at the time, only for Reagan to retort with "I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponent's youth and inexperience." Even Mondale laughed at this remark and with that the election was effectively over. Reagan went on to win a landslide victory...

But that wasn't to be the end of it for Reagan!

Answer: Brian Johnston

Brian Johnston or 'Johnners' as he became to be known was, and is still one of cricket's best loved commentators. There are many instances when, during his commentary he has bought the press box almost to a standstill with laughter and he has possibly committed almost as many faux-pas as HRH the Duke of Edinburgh.

This occasion came during the 1976 Test Series and has gone down in English cricket commentary history. Johnston denied that he had ever said it during his commentary but his colleague and friend Henry Blofeld (known as 'Blowers') confirmed that Johnston had uttered this incredibly funny remark.

Other gems uttered by 'Johnners' include "Welcome to Worcester where you've just missed seeing Barry Richards hitting one of Basil D'Oliveira's balls clean out of the ground!" and the occasion when he said "Freddie Titmus is coming on to bowl, he's got two short legs and one of them is square" (You need to be familiar with the game to make sense of that statement), and a female viewer wrote in later to say that there was "No need to be rude about people's disabilities!" On the 5th of January 1994 the world of sport, and cricket in particular, became a poorer place when 'Johnners' sadly passed away in hospital after suffering a massive heart attack some time earlier.

Answer: Barclays

Matt Barrett, who was the head of Barclays, uttered this career changing statement whilst giving evidence to the Commons Treasury Select Committee which was investigating banking practices at that time. During his presentation he made the implication that "the astute consumer would do well to steer well clear of it (Barclaycard Visa card)", as their interest rates were so high. Following this gaffe, which it has to be said left many of his business colleagues in shock, he then went on to say that "I do not borrow on credit cards. I have four young children. I give them advice not to pile up debts on their credit cards." But clearly good enough for the rest of us!

Answer: Ronald Reagan

This gaffe is the Republican offering. It took place during the sound-check for one of Reagan's weekly addresses on national radio. Although not actually broadcast his remarks were 'leaked' and it later came to light, through a report in a Japanese newspaper that the Soviets had put the Red Army on alert after they had been informed of Reagan's statement.

It is not known whether or not Reagan apologised to the Soviets but his prior attitude to them says, in all probability that he didn't. Another of Reagan's witty comments, and my favourite, came out during the 1980 presidential campaign when he said that "a recession is when your neighbour loses his job.

A depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his"... Brilliant!

Answer: HRH Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh

What can we say about HRH the Duke of Edinburgh? Certainly the most outspoken and indiscreet member of the British royal family, he has uttered some absolute corkers over the decades. Always reported in great detail in the British press, some of his most notorious 'foot-in-mouth' moments include these absolute gems:

He remarked to a British student on a visit to China in 1986, "If you stay here much longer, you will go home with slitty eyes", immediately insulting a vast swathe of the human race!

"Do you still throw spears at each other?" he asked Aboriginal leader, William Brin, thereby alienating the native population of a loyal Commonwealth partner during a visit to Queensland in 2002.

In 2000 he was reported as saying that "People think there's a rigid class system here, but dukes have been known to marry chorus girls. Some have even married Americans".... Ouch!

God bless him!

Answer: John Lennon

This remark, by John Lennon, was made during an interview on the 4th of March 1966 for an article that appeared in London "Evening Standard". This remark is considered by some to be the beginning of the end for the Beatles as a band. After his comment, largely ignored over here in the UK, was published in an American magazine there were many angry demonstrations in the US. Radio stations withdrew Beatles songs from their playlists, records were burned and the Beatles manager, Brian Epstein, seriously considered withdrawing from and cancelling the band's forthcoming tour of the states.

The US tour did go ahead but many of the concerts were disrupted.

Answer: President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

Radio and television microphones have a lot to answer for and you'd think that the powerful would wise up and be more careful, but no... On the 5th of April 2013, 77 year old President of Uruguay and former guerrilla leader, Jose Mujica, committed a Gordon Brown-esque gaffe of epic proportion! In a brilliant example of absent-mindedness, he referred to the Argentine President as an 'Old Hag' and said that she was 'worse than the cross-eyed man'.

Although Mujica has denied that he was talking about de Kirchner, who succeeded her husband Nestor after his death in 2010, who incidentally had a lazy eye, his remarks appear to be more than just coincidental!