Westcountry

Two musicians whose work captures the essence of modern community life in Devon have won the title 'Greatest Devonians'.

Show of Hands - comprising of singer/songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer - have romped home with over a third of the votes in Devon County Council's recent poll.

Sir Francis Drake finished in second place, followed by Charles Babbage in third and Agatha Christie in fourth.

Sir Joshua Reynolds, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, George Monk and Peter Cook also made the top 10.

But Teignmouth indie band Muse and singer Joss Stone registered less than one per cent of the votes.

Widely acclaimed as the country's most popular acoustic roots pairing, Show of Hands have just finished a nationwide tour to promote their latest album, Witness, and will perform at the historic Royal Albert Hall for the third time next Easter.

The duo met playing in pubs in Exeter as teenagers, and since then have been a big hit at major festivals, including Glastonbury and WOMAD.

In 2004, Show of Hands were voted "Best Live Act" at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards as well as being shortlisted for best original song for Country Life.

However, their rise to critical and popular fame has never watered down the content of their songs.

Beer and Knightley, who both live in Topsham, still write about the gritty issues of life in 21st century Devon such as the decline in agriculture, problems with affordable housing, transport, and the closure of local post offices.

Nearly 5,000 people voted in Devon County Council's Greatest Devonian survey.

Knightley said: "We're both flattered and a little bemused to have won this popular vote. We are self evidently not the greatest ever Devonians, but we are perhaps the most active currently promoting, through our music, the landscape, people and issues that face the region as a whole and the county in particular.

"If Devonians feel that our songs give a voice to those issues, celebrate the county's landscape and heritage, or just connect with them on some level, that's great."

Beer added: "We're a bit knocked sideways by the result of the poll but really appreciate the fact that so many people out there took the time to vote for us and like what we do.

"Personally I voted for Babbage, the father of computing, who was way ahead of his time and who affects pretty much everything we do today!

"Devon is obviously very special for us - it doesn't just loom large in our songs; it's the place we come back to after tours and where we spend a lot of our time. It's important to stay in touch with the people and places we sing about and hopefully we achieve that. I have loved living at various places across the county, from a Dartmoor farm to the coast. It's the best."

Councillor Sheila Hobden, Executive Member for Culture, said: "Show of Hands don't just happen to be from Devon - their Devonian identity is stamped through them like a stick of rock. They are wonderful winners for our poll and exceptional ambassadors for our county."