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!

death/stopping of the clock!

My step father was in hospital, old and ill and not expected to live much longer. We went to see him in the evening and he saw and spoke to his daughter who had flown in from abroad to be with him. His only words to her were, "Now I've seen you I can go!" We left the hospital early evening and I asked the staff to contact me during the night should there be any changes. In the early hours of the morning I received a call. He had just died. I looked at the clock. It was 4.20am. Not wishing to disturb my mother or sister I went back to sleep. The next morning I went round to their house and broke the news. They asked what time he had died. I told them. At that information they both looked astonished and pointed to the battery operated wall clock. It had stopped at 4.20 am!

Martin Bright

My father in law, Charles Becket had not seen his older brother, from North London for over 30 years. Charles moved to Bracknell, Berkshire & had no knowledge of his brother's whereabouts. Charles had a heart attack & was hospitalised in Heatherwood Hospital, Ascot in about 1970. The nurse remarked to him. "what a coincidence, there's a mister Becket in the bed next to you" Needless to say it was the brother who he had not contacted since about 1938. He too had suffered heart failure.

Sharing birthdays

My wife and I had a daughter on the 13th August which coincidentally is the same as my mothers birthday. One year later my brother also had a baby (this time a boy) on the 13th August. Neither baby were due on this date. My daughter was late and my nephew early. As well as my daughter sharing my mothers birthday, she was also given the same name as a baby girl my mother lost 20 years previous during pregnancy, the name of which she had never disclosed.

Mr

As a child growing up in Eastbourne I went with my older sister to the beach one Summer's day. As we approached the beach I remarked that it was very windy there and my sister replied with something like "did you say Wendy's here?" I said no and mentioned the wind again but, moments later, when we arrived at our chosen beach, there was her friend Wendy, along with her boyfriend. Only a small coincidence but one I've remembered for almost 60 years.

A reserved room?

In 1968 I became an undergraduate at Cardiff University, and had a room one of the Halls of Residence. My room number was Old Hall 10. Many years later I married a man who had been married before and had two daughters. One of the daughters married and went to live abroad. In time, her own children grew up, and the eldest returned to the UK to attend university. She chose Cardiff, as she still had family connections in the area. She was also allocated a room in one of their Halls of Residence - and it was the same Hall of Residence that I had stayed in so many years before. Oh yes - and her room was Old Hall 10.

Chance meeting

I was invited to a wedding of an acquaintance and, because I knew no one else there, I was sat with a table of strangers. I was chatting to a couple who told me that they had had a tiring day house hunting. It transpired that they had looked at a house that I was born in and had lived some 30 years previously. The wedding was in Hertfordshire, I was living in London and the couple were from Buckinghamshire I think. I had never met them before and have never seen them since. The only connection was our friend who was getting married. This story was read out on R5 last week when the Prof was on.

same PIN number

a few weeks ago i asked my hubby to go to the cash machine for me, i passed him my card and reminded him of my PIN , to which my brother exclaimed - thats my pin number too!, we have our accounts with different banks and have both kept the pin the bank gave us

Mrs Sheila Allen

1. My younger sister was born on the same date 1.8 as myself but is 7 years younger. 2. My mother and mother in law were born on the same day - 25.5.1916. They are both called Doris - one Doris Mary and one Doris May. We only found the fact out that they were the same age when they were celebrating their 80th birthdays. 3. My father and father in law both have birthdays in Dec - one on the 6th and one the 13th. 4. My father in law died in my father's birthday. 5. My older brother was born on the actual day 27.7.1940 when my in laws got married. 6. My husband's birthday and my own are a week apart. Many coincidences - perhaps we were meant to get together!

Business card coincidence

We were out walking one day, and passed a business card which had fallen on the ground. Curiosity got the better of us, so we went back and picked it up... It was a person whose name didn't mean anything to us, however, the address was peculiar, as it was called Percy French Road, on the other side of the city. Interestingly, in our small town, there is a bench dedicated to Percy French, as it was there that he wrote the famous song "The Mountains of Mourne". We thought nothing of it, except that it was a strange coincidence.. A few weeks passed, and we were selling an item in eBay... When we got paid, it told us to send the item to who other, but the person whose business card we had found on the ground.... What a coincidence.

Old friends

Back in 1960 I did temporary work in London where several Australians were doing similar work. I had my son in July 1961 and then became a stay at home mum. I had exchanged addresses with a girl called Eleanor Clarke but we then lost touch. Many years later, my husband and I thought we might like to visit Australia. I sent a letter to Eleanor to her old address, in Glengowrie. The letter was passed on and on by neighbours and I finally had a reply from Sydney where she then lived. She had married an Englishman, Fred, from the office where we had worked together and in fact had lived in England for 5 years before they emigrated as a £10 Pom. I have a vague recollection of him. We then were in touch by email. When my letter finally reached Eleanor, they were actually on holiday in England, staying with Fred's brother, Richard and his wife. We finally had a holiday in Australia about 5 years ago and arranged to meet Eleanor and Fred. We spent a memorable day with them in Sydney. They were very hospitable and as thrilled as we were. </p> <p>Our hobby is now croquet. We play at Northampton and are always on the look out for new members.

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