Cambridge Coincidences Collection

As of the 23rd May 2022 this website is archived and will receive no further updates.

understandinguncertainty.org was produced by the Winton programme for the public understanding of risk based in the Statistical Laboratory in the University of Cambridge. The aim was to help improve the way that uncertainty and risk are discussed in society, and show how probability and statistics can be both useful and entertaining.

Many of the animations were produced using Flash and will no longer work.

Well I Never!

Professor David Spiegelhalter of Cambridge University wants to know about your coincidences!

Car birthday registration

When I was young our car registration number was JLY 863 N. I was born on July 9th 1963, so obviously no coincidence there then! Perhaps I could pick up the proper one quite cheaply.

Grandfather's job 'prediction'

My grandfather (b. 1869) was a grocer in the village of Tudhoe in County Durham, in fact he had a shop with his name on the front ("Noted for finest Danish Butter; Tea 1'4/lb etc) in the early 1900s. We also have a photo of him standing with employees of the Co-operative society at their depot, which we think was taken around 1908 as my grandmother is holding a baby, probably my fathers oldest sister. On the side of the horse drawn wagon is painted "Battersea and Wandsworth Co-operative Society Ltd Regd Office 13 St Anns Hill Wandsworth". Wandsworth is a suburb of south east London. I was born and grew up in Sunderland, also in north east England, but went to university in London. During the summer term in 1983 I answered an ad for a temporary summer job posted in the students' union. The office was at 212 St Anns Hill, Wandsworth, and I ended up working there for 2 years after I graduated. Although I didn't notice the connection on the photo for several years afterwards I always thought it was amazing that my grandfather whom I never met and I were connected by this minor side road 300 miles away from home, 75 years later.

Two wives of the same name dying at the same age

A friend of mine was married...his wife called Sarah died of cancer aged 49. He subsequently met and remarried another lady called Sarah. A couple of years ago she died of cancer aged 49.

Long 'lost' brother

My only brother, now aged 62, followed a successful career as a garden designer and when he married he and his wife bought a farmhouse and made a garden in Northern France. Many years ago he chose to have no communication with our family. I last visited him in France about 23 years ago and have not seen him or heard from him since. In October 2012 I spotted a tiny advert in back of the Sunday Telegraph 'Life' supplement asking for someone to spend an extended stay in St Vincent in the Caribbean to look after house and cats while the owners travelled abroad. Having no commitments to prevent us (parents deceased, children grown up, no grandchildren), we applied and were accepted (all other applicants having eventually dropped out). While there, in Feb/March 2013, we visited an isolated garden, open to visitors, up in the mountains and discovered that the owner was my brother. We were all equally stunned by the elements of chance involved in bringing us together in this one tiny corner of the world and would love to know the probability of such an event. From Jon aged 59, Essex.

My late Mother and the RNLI

I am writing this for the attention researchers and others who are investigating or interested in coincidences. This story is entirely true and took place towards the end of November 2011. Your comments and reflections on the events described would be of interest. My mother died at the end of November 2011. My wife and I planned the funeral following my mother’s wishes, but she did not indicate whether she wanted flowers. We felt that it would be more appropriate to hold a collection for charity but as my mother did not show any particular allegiance to a charity we decided before the funeral was planned to have a collection for the RNLI. We have particular interests in that charity and as my mother lived in Lytham St Annes, there was a local interest particularly as the media were reminding us of a great loss of life when the St. Annes lifeboat tragedy occurred.

Coincidence

On 18th June 2013 I listened to a fascinating programme on BBC Radio 4: it was an interview with Professor David Spiegelhalter on 'The Life Scientific' and it prompted me to look up the Cambridge Coincidences Collection. On 20th June 2013, I bought a copy of The Big Issue magazine. This is a magazine I buy probably 8-10 times a year, so I was interested to find an article about risk by Michael Blastland which also mentioned a new book co-authored by Professor Spiegelhalter. As far as I can recall, I had not heard of the Professor prior to last week.

Lost money coincidence.

I was living in St. Leonards-on sea, about twenty years ago when my strange event happened. There was a small co-op store nearby, which i would shop at regularly. I lost a five pound note in an isle, which was very unlike me. I remembered exactly where i dropped it, and two days later i found a five pound note in the very same place. "That's a coincidence" i thought to myself. I must say, while i'm here, that my husband often comments on something being weird, and seems to happen particularly to me. I reply that thousands of small events happen every day, which nothing is noticed or commented on. I think if everything was recorded, it would not seem quite as odd. I would absolutely love to know whether i am on the right track or not. Thanks, Lucy Pine

Same telephone number

Directory Enquiries gave me the number of my old colleague in Worthing in Sussex & apart from the area code ,of course, it was the same number as mine in Over , Cambs. I had to ring DE to check they hadn't made a mistake but it was correct. I moved to Over 20 years ago but we only exchanged Christmas cards so never knew our phone numbers matched.

Slobbery Dracula

Our dog an enthusiastic eater, had just finished his food - he was covered in slobber with his canine teeth showing. I remarked that he looked liker a 'slobbering Dracula'. At that VERY moment, I got an order for a Vampire book (for sale on my website), from someone who in all honesty (I still have the proof of posting certificate), was called Slobadon Draculic. JG O'Donnell Bristol Books Bristol

wife's family

I did some family history research on my wife's family. They are from the Sunderland area and I discovered that her great grandfather (on her father's side) came over from Sligo in Ireland and settled in the area, working as a coal miner. He is the root of her family name in that area. He married his neighbour's daughter. I didn't try to research this Irish side of my wife's family, but concentrated on her great grandmother's family (the neighbour's daughter). I discovered that this family were also of Irish descent and that they had moved to the North East of England from the London area, where they were engaged in the business of unloading colliers in the London dock area. I discovered that my wife's great-great grandfather and great-great grandmother had met in Shadwell and married in the parish church that has a direct connection with the school that I went to (Raine's Foundation School and St George's in the East), which has its roots in the Wapping/Stepney areas.

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