The majority of Britons feel positive about their national identity ahead of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics, a survey suggests.

More than two thirds of people (68%) currently rank their feelings about being British as "seven out of 10 or higher", the study by social networking site Friends Reunited found.

Asked to rank "symbols" associated with being British, 82% named fish and chips, 79% mentioned the British pound and 74% said tea.

Others included Wimbledon (68%), rain (61%), and The Beatles and cricket, both named by 56% of respondents.

Football, a stiff upper lip, a love of the Monarchy and the Imperial weight system rounded out the top 10 symbols of Britishness.

Americans questioned for the same study listed tea, Wimbledon and cricket as their top associations with Britain, followed by The Beatles, fish and chips, the pound, a love of the Monarchy, football, bad teeth, a reserved nature and a stiff upper lip.

Sir David Attenborough is the celebrity most British adults believe embodies what it means to be British (25%) followed by Stephen Fry (22%) and Dame Judi Dench (15%).

Americans mentioned Dame Judi (13%) followed by Michael Cain (9%), Paul McCartney (7%), Colin Firth (6%) and Gordon Ramsay (4%).

Friends Reunited head Matt Bushby said: "2012 is set to be a great year to be British, with excitement building across the nation around the upcoming Diamond Jubilee and of course the Olympics. This summer will be all about getting together and celebrating the things that make our nation truly great, and that make us proud to call ourselves British.

"It's also really interesting to see that British people really value the pound right now, and this has probably been heightened more by the recent Euro turbulence."

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