WWIII? German, UK tabloids trade blows

Germany's Bild daily hit back Friday with a vengeance against British rival The Sun for making fun of Teutonic habits with a quiz ripping apart all that is wrong "on the island."

In a bid to silence once and for all accusations that Germans have no sense of humour, Bild made much of Britons' drinking and eating habits, the decades of English World Cup failures and the country's obsession with World War II.

The questions, aimed at determining how British readers are, included "How do you shoot a penalty?" -- missing left, missing right or over the top -- and which Premier League team shirt to wear on formal occasions.

Others included where best to have a romantic encounter -- in a disco or car park on a Greek island or in a bus shelter outside Buckingham Palace -- and which kind of precipitation on the rain-swept British Isles is best.

The Sun launched the opening salvo earlier this week with a questionnaire entitled "How German Are You?", prompted by a claim by geneticists that up to half of Britons could have German blood in them.

Its tongue-in-cheek teasers also made much of Germany and England's long-running football rivalry, and took a dig at German fashion, the country's love for David Hasselhoff - and of course the war.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.