'The Simpsons' voted best cartoon ever

The Simpsons has been voted the best ever cartoon in a poll conducted by Channel 4.

The Springfield family came above Hanna Barbera's cat and mouse duo Tom And Jerry, who were in second place, followed by Matt Stone and Trey Parker's South Park. Toy Story and Family Guy completed the top five.

Scotsman.com quotes Professor Alistair McCleery, who includes a lecture about The Simpsons in his sociology course at Napier University, as saying: "It is very funny and extremely successful, although we cannot know if it will still be watched in 50 years time.

"It is very much of its time and it reflects the concerns of our age. In the past, there was a distinct division between high and low culture but in The Simpsons there is no division.

"When people watch Star Wars and Star Trek they realise that they illustrate aspects of US culture at that time. The Simpsons is in the same league, and deliberately so."