A dreamy night-time scene featuring a person floating on a fluffy cloud, holding colourful balloons, with a large glowing moon in the background and the Devon Duvets logo displayed below.

At Devon Duvets we believe that if you sleep better, you dream better…and if you dream better anything is possible! In a recent poll by YouGov over 4,450 British and Americans were asked to nominate their shortlist of great ideas, conceived during sleep and/or inspired by dreams and we’ve shared some of them below. Sleep is not just vital to your health but looking at the list below, perhaps it is also a great source of creativity and new ideas.

1.    Einstein’s Theory of Relativity

This world-famous theory reportedly first evolved when the German-born theoretical physicist Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955) dreamed about a field of cows surrounded by an electric fence. However, when he told the farmer who he met in the dream what he’d seen, the farmer’s account differed. This gave Einstein the insight that the same event could look different from different perspectives.

2. Beatle mania

Paul McCartney reported that the tune for their hit song Yesterday came to him in his sleep once night in 1964. The song was first released on the album Help! in August 1965. It is one of the most covered songs in the history of recorded music.

3. I’ll be back

The movie character, The Terminator, first appeared to film director James Cameron during a dream. Whilst filming another movie, he caught a cold and had a high fever and when dreaming saw an image of a robot coming out of a fire with a knife. The character, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, only spoke 17 lines in the film but his presence alone made a huge impact.

4. Do it by the number

René Descartes (1596 – 1650) the French philosopher, scientist and mathematician who reputedly slept for up to 12 hours a day, connected the previously separate fields of geometry and algebra and devised the principles of analytic geometry.  Although bon in France, he spent much of his life in the Dutch Republic (as The Netherlands was called then), initially serving in the army and later becoming a central intellectual of the Dutch Golden Age.

A dark, moody castle under a stormy sky with flashes of lightning and silhouettes of ravens flying, evoking a dramatic and mysterious atmosphere.A dark, moody castle under a stormy sky with flashes of lightning and silhouettes of ravens flying, evoking a dramatic and mysterious atmosphere.

5. The first science fiction book

When the English writer Mary Shelley (1797 – 1851) was eighteen, she had a nightmare during a thunderstorm. A year later she attended a science lecture in Bath, where the lecturer, Dr Wilkinson, suggested that one day electricity might be used to bring inanimate matter to life. When she then accepted a challenge from Lord Byron at a house party to write a ghost story, her recollection of the lecture, combined with her dream, inspired her to write her famous novel Frankenstein. Although considered to be the first work of science fiction, the book also tests our own capacity for inclusion and morals about what we create.

6. No Satisfaction

Reportedly, whilst dreaming once night, Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones heard a melody in his head. On waking, he discovered that he had unwittingly recorded it on a tape recorder during the night. It turned out to be the first verse of I can’t get no satisfaction. Known for Keith Richard’s guitar riff, it was the group’s first number one in the USA and then later became their fourth number one in the UK. Remaining hugely popular, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998.

Close-up of a periodic table of elements with colourful molecular models placed on top, representing chemistry and scientific discovery.Close-up of a periodic table of elements with colourful molecular models placed on top, representing chemistry and scientific discovery.

7. It’s elemental

The periodic table of chemical elements seems to have appeared fully formed to the Russian chemist, Dmitri Mendeleev (1834 – 1907) in his sleep during the night of 17th February 1869. He said “I saw in a dream where all the elements fell into place as required. Awakening, I immediately wrote it down on a piece of paper. Only in one place did a correction later seem necessary.”

Finally…the French novelist, literary critic, and essayist Marcel Proust (1871-1922) once said “Sleep is the only source of invention”. British politician, statesman and Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965) agreed and added that the best time and place to get ideas was when asleep.

A neatly rolled white duvet placed on a cosy bed with warm lighting in the background, accompanied by a lit candle from the Cherish Nature range, creating a relaxing bedtime vibe.A neatly rolled white duvet placed on a cosy bed with warm lighting in the background, accompanied by a lit candle from the Cherish Nature range, creating a relaxing bedtime vibe.

Visit our website to see how our natural and sustainable duvets, toppers and pillows can help you to sleep well…and dream well.  Also check out our gorgeous Cherish Nature range of candles, air parfums and wax melts, all crafted with natural essential oils to help you create a relaxing bedtime routine.

If you have any questions about any of our products, please contact the team, who will be happy to help.