You might not have known who Alan Turing was before 'The Imitation Game' starring Benedict Cumberbatch. But without him, WW2 could have gone a lot differently. He was recently voted as the greatest icon of the 20th Century and is now the face of the brand new £50 note. But who was Alan Turing and why is he held in such high regard?
Who was Alan Turing?
Alan Turing was one of the greatest mathematicians that the world has ever seen. He was born in London in 1912 and studied at both Cambridge and Princeton universities. In 1939, he took up a full-time position at Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire where top secret work was used to break military codes used by Germany and its allies.
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Enigma and The Bombe
The Germans were using a machine called the Enigma, which would encipher messages so they could be sent securely to their forces. This meant the England could never be prepared for any attacks. Turing built a machine called The Bombe. It sped-up code-cracking efforts from weeks to hours by trying multiple permutations. The information they gained helped the Allies get an upper hand in the war it was even said his work helped bring a sooner end to the war.
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An icon in the LGBTQ world
He wasn't just an amazing scientist, but he's become an icon in the LGBTQ world - Turing was gay; however, this was during a time it was illegal to be homosexual in the UK. Ultimately, he ended up being arrested for gross indecency in 1952 and given a stark choice between prison and chemical castration - he chose the castration.
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When did Alan Turing Die?
Enduring the castration and controversy surrounding his sexuality made Turing suffer not only physically, but mentally and he was said to have committed suicide in 1954. He was immortalised on the big screen with the 2015 film The Imitation Game where he was portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch. He was eventually posthumously pardoned for his crimes by the Queen on Christmas Eve 2013.
When will I be able to own the new note and what will it look like?
If you're in a fortunate enough position to own £50 notes then you'll be able to own one by the end of 2021. The notes will carry a photo of Turing and will feature details relating to his work, including technical drawings for the British Bombe, which was the device designed by the scientist which helped break German messages encoded using Enigma machines.
The note will also feature a quote by Turing himself: "This is only a foretaste of what is to come, and only the shadow of what is going to be."
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