100 Worst Britons

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100 Worst Britons We Love to Hate is one in a series of "100 Greatest..." shows to be shown on British TV.

The poll by the British TV station Channel 4 in 2003, was inspired by the BBC series 100 Greatest Britons, though it was less serious in nature. The aim was to discover the 100 Worst Britons We Love To Hate. The poll specified that the nominees had to be British (unlike the BBC poll, which had contained 2 Irish people), alive and not currently in prison or pending trial, although enough respondents ignored this for a fictional character and a pop band to be listed among the "winners".

The results of the vote were shown on Channel 4 in an evening-long programme presented by comedian Jimmy Carr. The programme was a countdown from No. 100 to No. 1, featuring TV clips of the Britons in question, together with various commentators suggesting why they had made the list.

The results reflected the opinions of those who voted on the Channel 4 website. As with many similar polls, little or no effort was expended to prevent people voting more than once. Harry Potter was included in the list despite being a fictional character. Jimmy Carr defended this by stating that "The Queen is German and therefore technically not British". He also stated that the only real restrictions to who could be up was that they must be perceived as British and must not be either dead or incarcerated in prison - therefore Harry Potter was eligible to be on the list, and Jeffrey Archer at the time was not eligible because, as Jimmy Carr explained, "sadly he's in prison, and not dead." (Since the show has aired, Jeffrey Archer has been released from prison.)

Channel 4 has a reputation in Britain for championing high culture and being subversive. This is reflected in the make-up of this list, which includes many well-known tabloid figures and members of the Establishment.