Actually, “Famous people born in Wessex” would be a more suitable title for this page. An accident of birth does not automatically create a loyalty to a place. For example, the actor Anthony Head (Giles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer) was born in London, but moved to Wessex out of love for the region, whereas Julie Burchill left her native Bristol at the earliest opportunity, and rarely misses an opportunity to disparage her home town. I would say that Head is far more deserving of being called a Famous Wessaxen than Burchill. However, birthplaces are far easier to research than attitudes towards a place, so Burchill is in and Head is out. The only exception is the First Doctor himself, William Hartnell, who always listed his birthplace as Seaton in Devon, but was later found to have been born in London. His desire to be a Wessaxen went above and beyond the call of duty, so I have posthumously granted him his wish (sort of).

The following list has two sources: the Biographies section of the Internet Movie Database (whose reach extends beyond the movie industry— those who have appeared as themselves in newsreels and documentaries, and authors whose works have been filmed, are also included) and the Birthplaces of Famous People pages of the Readers Digest Atlas of the British Isles. I also added Sir Francis Drake myself as he was noticeable by his absence. Please report any other errors and omissions at the e-mail address below.

Two groups of people deserve to be mentioned en masse. The first is the Royal Family, which claims descent from the House of Wessex, and many of whose members throughout history have been born in Windsor Castle. Slightly closer to our own era, it would be too time-consuming to list the practitioners of the so-called “Bristol Sound” (e.g. Massive Attack, Portishead) individually. If you are interested, I recommend Phil Johnson’s excellent book Straight Outa Bristol.Having got all that out of the way, let’s start the list with Caroline Munro Actress & Bond Girl (1950-) - Windsor

Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister (1874-1965)

- Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire

Jenny Agutter
Actress (1952-) - Taunton

Holly Aird
Actress (1969-) - Aldershot, Hampshire

Ronald Allen, Actor (1930-1991) - Reading

Heather Angel
Actress (1909-1986) - Oxford

Trevor Bannister,
Actor (1936-) - Durrington, Wiltshire

Ralph Bates,
Actor (1940-1991) - Bristol

Judy Bowker,
Actress (1954-) - Shawford, Hampshire

Felix Bowness,
Actor - Harwell, Berks

Christopher Cazenove, Actor (1945-) - Winchester

John Cleese, Actor/Writer (1939-) - Weston-Super-Mare

Denise Coffey,
Actress (1936-) - Aldershot, Hampshire

Michael Crawford,
Actor (1942-) - Salisbury

Anthony Daniels,
Actor (1946-) - Salisbury

Arthur English,
Actor (1919-1995) - Aldershot, Hampshire

Alice Evans,
Actress (1971-) - Bristol

Joseph Feinnes,
Actor (1970-) - Salisbury

Colin Firth, Actor (1960-) - Grayshott, Hampshire

Gabrielle Glaister, Actress ("Bob" in Blackadder) (1960-) - Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire

Cary Grant,
Actor (1904-1986) - Bristol

Rupert Graves,
Actor (1963-) - Weston-Super-Mare

Charles Gray,
Actor (1928-2000) - Bournemouth

Richard Greene,
Actor (1918-1985) - Plymouth

Robert Hardy,
Actor (1925-) - Cheltenham

William Hartnell,
Actor (1908-1975) – "Seaton, Devon"

Amanda Holden, Actress (1971-) - Bishops Waltham, Hampshire

Tom Hollander,
Actor (1969-) - Oxford

Julian Holloway,
Actor (1944-) - Watlington, Oxfordshire

Wilfred Hyde-White, Actor (1903-1991) - Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire

Sir Henry Irving,
Actor (1838-1905) - Keinton Mandeville, Somerset

Geraldine James, Actress (1950-) - Maidenhead

Martin Jarvis,
Actor (1941-) - Cheltenham

Milton Johns,
Actor (1938-) - Bristol

Mark Lester,
Actor (1958-) - Oxford

Nicholas Lyndhurst, Actor (1961-) - Emsworth, Hampshire

Patrick Malahide, Actor (1945-) - Berkshire

Jack May,
Actor (1922-1997) - Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire

Mandy Miller,
Actress (1944-) - Weston-Super-Mare

Robert Morley,
Actor (1908-1992) - Semley, Wiltshire

Robert Newton, Actor (1905-1956) - Shaftesbury, Dorset

Billie Piper,
Singer/Actress (1982-) - Swindon

Michael Praed,
Actor (1960-) - Gloucestershire

Dave Prowse,
Actor (Darth Vadar) (1935-) - Bristol

James Purefoy, Actor (1964-) - Taunton

Ralph Reader,
Actor (1903-1982) - Crewkerne, Somerset

Michael Redgrave, Actor (1908-1985) - Bristol

John Rhys-Davies, Actor (1944-) - Salisbury

Sir Ralph Richardson,
Actor (1902-1983) - Cheltenham

Arnold Ridley, Actor/Writer (1896-1984) - Bath

Laura Sadler,
Actress (1980-2003) - Ascot, Berks

Peter Sellers,
Actor (1925-1980) - Southsea, Hampshire

Sir Donald Sinden, Actor (1923-) - Plymouth

Nigel Terry,
Actor (1945-) - Bristol

David Tomlinson, Actor (1917-2000) - Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire

Richard Vernon,
Actor (1925-1997) - Reading

Rachel Ward,
Actress (1957-) - Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire

Emma Watson,
Actress (1990-) - Oxford

Kate Winslet,
Actress (1975-) - Reading

Agatha Christie, Author (1890-1976) - Torquay

Samuel_Taylor_
Coleridge,
Author (1772-1834) - Ottery St. Mary, Devon

Charles_Dickens,
Author (1812-1870) - Portsmouth

Henry_Fielding, Author (1707-1754) - Sharpham Park, Somerset

Thomas_Hardy,
Author (1840-1928) - Upper Bockhampton, Dorset

John Le Carre
, Author (1931-) - Poole, Dorset

Nick Hornby, Author (1957-) - Maidenhead

P D James, Author (1920-) - Oxford

Charles Kingsley, Author (1819-1875) - Holne Vicarage, Devon

Dick King-Smith, Author (1922-) - Bitton, Gloucestershire

Stephen Leacock, Author (1869-1944) - Swanmore, Hampshire

Laurie Lee, Author (1914-1997) - Stroud

Philip Massinger, Author (1583-1640) - Salisbury

George Meredith, Author (1828-1909) - Portsmouth

J.K. Rowling, Author (1965-) - Yate, Gloucestershire

Robert Southey, Author (1774-1843) - Bristol

Snoo Wilson, Author (1948-) - Reading

Christopher Fry, Author (1907-) - Bristol

Martin Amis, Author (1949-) - Oxford

R.D.Blackmore, Author (1825-1900) - Longworth, Berks

Michael Bond, Author (1926-) - Newbury, Berks

John Brunner, Author (1934-1995) - Preston Crowmarsh, Oxfordshire

Hugh Lofting, Author (1886-1947) - Maidenhead

Maria Edgeworth, Author (1787-1849) - Black Bourton, Oxfordshire

Dorothy L Sayers, Author (1893-1957) - Oxford

Jeffrey Archer, Author (1940-) - Weston-Super-Mare

Richard Adams, Author (1920-) - Newbury, Berks

Pam Ayres, Poet (1947-) - Stanford-in-the-Vale, Oxfordshire

 Roger Bacon, Philosopher and Alchemist (1214-1294) - Ilchester

Julie Burchill, Journalist (1959-) - Bristol

Humphrey Carpenter, Biographer - Oxford

Thomas Chatterton, Poet (1752-1770) - Bristol

Sir William D'Avenant, Poet Laureate (1608-1668) - Oxford

Thomas Hobbes, Political Philosopher (1588-1679) - Westport, Wiltshire

John Locke, Political Philosopher (1632-1704) - Wrington, Somerset

Christopher Tolkien, Editor, The Silmarillion (1924-) - Oxford

Thomas Young, Part translator of the Rosetta Stone (1773-1829) - Milverton, Somerset

John Ford, Playwright (1586-1639) - Ilsington, Devon

Dennis Potter, Playwright (1935-1994) - Forest of Dean

William Tyndale, Translator of the New Testament into English (1494?-1536) - Slimbridge, Gloucestershire

John Gay, Playwright (1685-1732) - Barnstaple, Devon

Ned Sherrin, Writer (1931-) - Low Ham, Somerset

David Croft, TV writer (1922-) - Poole, Dorset

Anna Ford, Journalist (1943-) - Tewkesbury

 Dr Raj Persaud, Psychiatrist - Reading

John Churchill, Victor at the battle of Blenheim (1650-1722) - Musbury, Devon

Sir Francis Drake, Privateer (1540-1596) - Plymouth

Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy, Kissed Admiral Nelson (hello, sailor) (1769-1839) - Kingston Russet, Dorset

William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury (1573-1645) - Reading

Viscount Palmerston, Prime Minister (1784-1865) - Broadlands, Hampshire

Sir Walter Raleigh, Explorer (1552-1618) - Hayes Barton, Devon

Dick Whittington, Lord Mayor of London and pantomime character (1358-1423) - Pauntley, Gloucestershire

Sir Christopher Wren, Architect (1632-1723) - East Knoyle, Wiltshire

St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury (924-988) - Glastonbury

Bishop Joseph Butler, Theologian (1692-1752) - Wantage

Thomas Newcomen, Inventor of the atmospheric steam engine (1663-1729) - Dartmouth, Devon

Sebastian Cabot, Explorer (1474-1557) - Bristol

Willam Dampier, Piloted the ship that rescued Alexander Selkirk, the inspiration for Robinson Crusoe (1651-1715) - East Coker, Somerset

George Monk, Largely responsible for the restoration of Charles II (1608-1670) - Landcross, Devon

Robert Falcon Scott, Explorer (1868-1912) - Devonport

John Hanning Speke, Explorer (1827-1864) - Ashill, Somerset

Gilbert White, Pioneering natural historian (1720-1793) - Selborne

Sir Humphrey Gilbert, Colonised Newfoundland (1539-1583) - Brixham, Devon

Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Engineer (1808-1853) - Portsmouth

Willam Friese-Greene, Inventor of Cinematography (1855-1921) - Bristol

Stephen Hawking, Scientist (1942-) - Oxford

Sir Isaac Pitman, Inventor of shorthand (1823-1893) - Trowbridge

Samuel Plimsoll, Introduced the Plimsoll Line on ships (1824-1898) - Bristol

Nicholas Hilliard, Painter (1537-1723) - Exeter

Sir Thomas Lawrence, Painter (1769-1830) - Bristol

Sir John Everett Millais, Painter (1829-1896) - Southampton

Sir Joshua Reynolds, Painter (1723-1792) - Plympton

Ron Goodwin, Composer (1925-2003) - Plymouth

Gustav Holst, Composer (1874-1934) - Cheltenham

Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer (1872-1958) - Down Ampney, Gloucestershire

Mike Batt, Composer and Womble (1950-) - Southampton

Adam Clayton, Musician (U2) (1960-) - Chinnor, Oxfordshire

Russ Conway, Pianist (1925-2000) - Bristol

Craig David, Singer (1981-) - Southampton

Dave Dee, Musician (1943-) - Salisbury

Julia Fordham, Singer (1962-) - Portsmouth

Robert Fripp, Musician (1946-) - Dorset

Derek McCulloch
Radio Presenter (1897-1967)Plymouth,

P J Harvey, Musician (1969-) - Yeovil

Chesney Hawkes, Singer (1971-) - Windsor

Howard Jones, Singer (1955-) - Southampton

Nik Kershaw, Musician (1958-) - Bristol

Stephanie Lawrence, Singer (1949-2000) - Hayling Island, Hampshire

Joe Meek, Musician (1929-1967) - Newent, Gloucestershire

Zoot Money, Musician (1942-) - Bournemouth

Mike Oldfield, Musician (1953-) - Reading

Reg Presley, Musician (The Troggs) (1945-) - Andover, Hampshire

Richard Vranch, Musician (1959-) - Bristol

Wayne Sleep, Dancer (1948-) - Plymouth

John & Roy Boulting, Film directors - Berkshire

Stephen Daldry, Film director (1960-) - Dorset

Mike Hodges, Film director (1932-) - Bristol

Peter Lord, Film director (1953-) - Bristol

Jonathan Lynn, Film director (1943-) - Bath

John Madden, Film director (1949-) - Portsmouth

Sam Mendes, Film director (1965-) - Reading

Ken Russell, Film director (1927-) - Southampton

J. Lee Thompson, Film director (1914-2002) - Bristol

Edgar Wright, Film & TV director (1974-) - Poole, Dorset

Peter Yates, Film director (1929-) - Aldershot, Hampshire

Roger Deakins, Cinematographer (1949-) - Torquay

Ed Stewart, DJ (1941-) - Exmouth, Devon

  Tommy Vance, DJ (1943-) - Oxford

Johnny Ball,
TV presenter (1938-) - Bristol

Jill Dando,
TV presenter (1961-1999) - Weston-Super-Mare

Keith Floyd,
TV presenter (1943-) - Somerset

Phillippa Forrester,
TV presenter (1968-) - Winchester

Katy Hill,
TV presenter (1971-) - Poole, Dorset

Arthur Negus,
TV presenter (1903-1985) - Reading

Julian Pettifer,
TV presenter (1935-) - Malmesbury, Wiltshire

Hugh Scully,
TV presenter (1943-) - Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire

Chris Tarrant,
TV presenter (1946-) - Reading<