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!

Jachin and Boaz.

I recently read two books off the top of my 'unread' pile. The first, bought months before from Oxfam, was 'The Lion of Boaz-Jachin and Jachin-Boaz by Russell Hoban. I enjoyed the book very much but found no reason for its title. The second book was a recently bought copy of Simon Sebag Montefiore's 'Jerusalem, The Biography'. On page 16 I discovered that the temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem had two bronze pillars, 33 feet high, decorated with pomegranates and lilies and called 'Jachin' and Boaz'. Two days later, Russell Hoban, of whom I had heard nothing for years, died. I do quite often notice coincidences. My latest involves Cardinal Newman but may not have yet run its course.

Small World

Towards the end of 2011, a letter from BT arrived at my address in Cambridge advising someone who does not live, and has never lived, at my address that her directory details were being amended. I had not been a BT customer for over 20 years, so I was puzzled and telephoned BT, to no avail, before returning the letter to them with a note asking them to check their customer's address etc. However, a couple of weeks later a similar letter addressed to the same person arrived. Once again I returned the envelope to BT. Shortly before Christmas 2011 a telephone bill arrived, addressed to the same person. Opening it I was able to get the customer's telephone number from the bill. I telephoned her to ask if she was expecting a bill from BT and to to find out the correct address to send it to. It transpired that she lives in Lanarkshire, Scotland. In the course of our 'wee blether', I mentioned that my sister lives in Scotland, having moved from England many years ago, and is currently living in a tiny village of around 200 people just north of Perth.

Captain Scott/ Nancy Mitford

Early this morning I sat in my kitchen reading Nancy Mitford's account of Captain Scott's last and fatal expedition, to the South Pole. I have very little interest in polar exploration and only read this as it is incuded in 'The Water Beetle', a collection of Mitford's writings, which I have recently acquired. Just about half an hour ago, I learned from Radio 4's 'A Point of View' that March 2012 will be the Centenary of the expedition.

spiritual connection?

My mother had passed away and I was sitting alone in the garden trying to come to terms with the fact that the house I had been born in would now , 47 years later, have to be sold. I would no longer be able to sit in the garden which my mother had cherished and where I had had so many wonderful times as a child. As I do when I am upset, I texted my daughter to say how sad I was about this. She replied immediately saying that she was watching Casualty and the music playing on the programme was what we had chosen for my mother's funeral due to her love of the garden and the birds - Blackbird by Paul McCartney. This is just one of many co-incidences I have experienced but this is probably one of the strangest and possibly most unlikely due to the unusual nature of the music which is rarely played, the chances of my daughter being somewhere where Casualty was on as it is not a programme she or I watch normally etc I have been aware of co-incidences happening in my life for many years and told friends about incidents - I am no longer surprised when it happens but they are, especially if it happens when I am with them.

Chance meeting 48/84.

In 1984 I met a person that I had met previously in 1948. We originally met when our parents moved to newly built homes at Honicknowle, Plymouth, Devon, in September 1948, we were both 11 years old and thus both had to join the local Secondary Modern school, we became friends, but only for a very short time, because Stanley Swain had passed a test which enabled him to go to grammar school, his parents then moved home to be nearer to his school; They had lived at No 11 Harewood Crescent whilst I had lived with my family had lived at No 29. In 1978 after a whole life time of moves etc I went to work in the Sultanate of Oman, my job was in the south at a place called Thumrait, I was moved from there in March of 1984 to the North of the country, an area known as Muaskar al Murtafa, another friend that I had met in the south was also being transferred by his Company a few days later, his name was Dennis Chivers, he also came from Plymouth, I had not known him previously. The day after he was transferred I took him with me to the beach club at Muscat so that he could join; We dealt with the formalities of getting him a pass and drinks tickets etc, then were about to exit via a door w

Sad story

My husband and I moved into my present house in 1991. Unfortunately, a few years later, at the age of 48, he was diagnosed with cancer. He died 3 years later age 51 and had lived in the house for 7 years and 10 months. A few years later I met a wonderful man who was 5 years younger than me. I had known him for 4 years when he too at the age of 48 was diagnosed with cancer. He too died 3 years later age 51 ahd he had lived in the house for 7 years and 11 months.

key names

My parents had 3 daughters. If they had had a son they were going to name him John Howard. (Howard was a surname lost because of the female line). I knew nothing of this until I met and married my husband- John Howard Wilkinson!

Time Twin

On my first day at Sunderland University I met a girl in my Halls. It turned out not only were our birthdays 24 hours apart, but that we had been born in the same hospital (in Stockport), where we'd both had jaundice, our mothers were both called Carol (and Carole). Later on in life, we have both ended up living in the same town (Reading) and having our children in the same hospital (with partners that we both met on the University course we studied). The next few sentences are less about coincidence as I suspect we may have been looking too hard for them!; our first teddies had the same name, we played the same position in hockey and our parents had the same china wedding dinner service.

Flying Visit

I was on a work trip to London which is unusual when I was changing trains on the underground. I saw a woman standing at the bottom of the escaltors and thought how similar to my friend that I'd lost touch with who lived in Singapore. As I walked past her and heard her talk in her Danish accent I realised it was my friend from Singapore who had flown in that afternoon. I hadn't seen her for 5 years and she hadn't been to UK for over 10 years.

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