lisaro I'm fascinated. What do you mean by a "real name"? All names at one time meant something other than they do now.
Even 'John' means "Graced by God". And Mary's original meaning is "bitter"!
Thanks for all the responses, I expected a 50/50 split (as in our house) but there seems to be more approving noises than disapproving!
I'm most pleased no one has even offered up the "Beckham" association. That was the bit I was worried about most.
Married You might be interested to know that amongst previous Governors of the Bank of England There are:
2 Gilberts, a Beachcroft, a Stamp, a Merrick and a Delillers.
The current holder of that position is of course Mervyn
The forenames the parents of future High Court Judges gave their offspring don't seem to be auspicious either, amongst the (very ordinary) John, Brian, Stephens etc there is Jeremy, Roderick, Colman, Peregrine, Adrian, Lloyd, Vivian, Ross, Rabinder and Guy.