The movies and television programs I've seen from England led me to believe that the common gestural insult in that locale was The Two Fingered Salute, two fingers, upward thrust, palm facing inward. The USA equivalent, The Finger, was unused in England, or so I thought.

But I just saw The World's End last night (absolutely brilliant film by the way, Pegg/Wright are amazing filmmakers), and some of the jokes in the film specifically depend upon The Finger as a cultural element.

So I'm wondering... Is the film accurate? Culturally, in England, has The Finger supplanted the Two Fingered Salute? Or were Pegg/Wright simply choosing to target the US market? If the latter, how would an English resident interpret the gesture? Or more specifically, would an English resident see the film and roll their eyes at the obvious Americanizing of the representation of English culture?