List of people from Leicester

This is a list of notable people born in Leicester, England, educated there, or otherwise associated with the city.

Henry Walter Bates

Alfred Russel Wallace

File:David Attenborough.jpg

David Attenborough

Daniel Lambert

Gary Lineker

Peter Shilton

Thomas Cook

Lady Jane Grey

File:George Fox.jpg

George Fox

Mary Linwood

Academia (except scientists)

• Graham Barnfield (sociologist)
• W. G. Hoskins (landscape historian)
• Jack Simmons (historian esp. of British railways)

Architecture

• John Breedon Everard (architect and civil engineer)
• Ernest Gimson (architect, craftsman)
• John Johnson (architect)
• William Keay (architect and civil engineer)
• Samuel Perkins Pick (architect)

The arts and entertainment

Acting and film

• Richard Armitage (actor, North and South, Robin Hood, The Hobbit)
• Richard Attenborough (actor, Jurassic Park; director, Gandhi)
• Martin Ballard (actor and broadcaster)
• Patrick Barlow (actor, comedian and playwright)
• Lydia Rose Bewley (stage and movie actor, The Inbetweeners Movie)
• Jeremy Bulloch (actor, Star Wars)
• Graham Chapman (comedian, Monty Python)
• Selina Chilton (actress, Doctors)
• Charlie Clapham (actor, Hollyoaks, Kick-Ass 2)
• Amanda Drew (actress, EastEnders)
• Betty Driver (singer and actress, Coronation Street)
• Terri Dwyer (actress, Hollyoaks)
• Stephen Frears (film director, Dangerous Liaisons)
• Tom Hopper (actor, Merlin, Doctor Who)
• Colin Hurley (Shakespearean actor)
• Dominic Keating (actor, Star Trek: Enterprise)
• Alison King (actress, Coronation Street)
• Michael Kitchen (actor, Foyle's War)
• McKenzie Lee (pornography actress)
• John Leeson (actor, voice of K-9 in Doctor Who and Bungle in Rainbow and narrator for the children's hospital radio series, The Space Gypsy Adventures)
• Barry Letts (actor, television director, writer and producer)
• Bill Maynard (actor, Coronation Street, Heartbeat)
• Parminder Nagra (actor, Bend It Like Beckham, ER)
• David Neilson (actor, Coronation Street)
• Andy Nyman (actor)
• Kate O'Mara (actress, Howards' Way)
• John Payne (Canadian voice actor who was born in town and raised in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire but he was now moved to Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Helen Pearson (actress, Hollyoaks)
• Josette Simon (actress)
• Una Stubbs (actress, Till Death Us Do Part, Sherlock)
• Rakhee Thakrar (actress, EastEnders)
• Mark Wingett (actor, The Bill)

Broadcasting and journalism

• David Attenborough (broadcaster and naturalist)
• Karl Beattie (Living TV presenter, Most Haunted and Most Haunted Live)
• Biddy Baxter (editor, Blue Peter)
• Manish Bhasin (BBC sports presenter, Football Focus)
• O.J. Borg (radio and TV presenter)
• Martine Croxall (TV newsreader, BBC)
• Sara Dhada (The Apprentice candidate, 2008)
• Julie Etchingham (TV newsreader, Sky News, ITN)
• Derrick Evans (TV fitness instructor, Mr Motivator)
• Martin Gillingham (sports commentator and journalist)
• Clare Hollingworth (foreign correspondent)
• David Icke (sports reporter, conspiracy theorist)
• Oliver Kamm (Times leader writer and columnist)
• Kevin Myers (journalist, Irish Independent)
• Sir Henry Norman, 1st Baronet (journalist and politician who revealed the truth about the Dreyfus affair)
• Jon Tickle (Leicester University graduate, Brainiac: Science Abuse presenter)
• Tony Wadsworth (broadcaster, BBC)
• Gok Wan (fashion stylist and presenter of How to Look Good Naked, Channel 4)
• Arlo White (broadcaster, BBC)

Music

• Aetherfx (Jacob Tugby, industrial electronic musician)
• Laurel Aitken (singer, the "godfather of ska"; born in Cuba, lived on the St. Mark's Estate 1971–2005)
• Sam Bailey (winner of The X Factor 2013)
• Frank Benbini (drummer, Fun Lovin Criminals)
• Blab Happy (band)
• Black Widow (band)
• The Bomb Party (band)
• Grace Burrows (English violinist and orchestra conductor)
• Felix Buxton (half of Basement Jaxx)
• Cornershop (band)
• Crazyhead (band)
• John Deacon (bassist, Queen)
• The Deep Freeze Mice (band)
• Diesel Park West (band)
• The Displacements (band)
• Family (band)
• Gaye Bykers on Acid (band)
• Gemini (DJ)
• Robert Gotobed (drummer, Wire)
• Davy Graham (folk musician)
• Ric Grech (violinist, bassist, writer, producer, member of Blind Faith, Traffic)
• H "Two" O (band who produced the 2008 song "What's It Gonna Be?")
• Kevin Hewick (singer)
• Engelbert Humperdinck (singer, Release Me, Misty Blue)
• The Hunters Club (band)
• John Illsley (bassist, Dire Straits)
• Kasabian (band)
• Tony Kaye (keyboard player, Yes)
• Lisa Lashes (DJ)
• Jon Lord (organist, Deep Purple)
• Paul Martinez (bassist, guitarist, writer)
• Tom Meighan (vocalist, Kasabian)
• Mark Morrison (singer, "Return of the Mack")
• Perfume (band)
• Sergio Pizzorno (musician, Kasabian)
• Po! (band)
• Prolapse (band)
• KAV (former Happy Mondays guitarist, solo artist, musician, co-launched UK festival Getloaded in the Park)
• Scum Pups (band)
• Showaddywaddy (band)
• Molly Smitten-Downes (2014 Eurovision entrant)
• DJ SS (DJ and producer)
• Stunt (band)
• Nancy Whiskey Folk singer most famous for "Freight Train". Lived in Leicestershire from 1958 and died in Leicester in 2003.
• Yeah Yeah Noh (band)
• The Young Knives (band)

Painters

• Lemuel Francis Abbott (portrait artist)
• Duncan Fegredo (comic book artist)
• John Flower (artist)

Writing (except journalism)

• Lemuel Abbott (clergyman and poet)
• James Allen (author)
• Elizabeth Arnold (children's writer)
• Julian Barnes (author)
• David Campton (playwright, actor)
• Thomas Cooper (poet)
• J. T. Edson (author)
• Anne Fine (author)
• Martin Goodman (novelist, biographer and travel writer)
• Hal Iggulden (author)
• E. Phillips Oppenheim (most prolific author of 1st half of 20th century, inventor of "Rogue Male" genre)
• Joe Orton (playwright)
• Lynda Page (author)
• John Barclay Pick (journalist, writer, The Last Valley)
• Bali Rai (author)
• C. P. Snow (author)
• Sue Townsend (author, Adrian Mole books)
• Colin Wilson (author)

Others

• Mary Linwood (needlewoman)

Business

• Charles Bennion (shoe machinery manufacturer, philanthropist, bought Bradgate Park for the 'quiet enjoyment of the people of Leicestershire')
• Thomas Cook (travel agent)
• Nathaniel Corah (textile manufacturer)
• Henry Curry (founder of Currys)
• Thomas Fielding Johnson (worsted spinner, philanthropist, founding benefactor of Leicester University)
• William Inman (shipping company owner)
• Frank Jessop (In 1935 founded The Jessop Group Limited, photographic retailers and suppliers. "Jessops of Leicester")
• Harry Peach (furniture manufacturer and social campaigner)
• Henry Walker (founder of Walkers Crisps)
• Thomas White (merchant, philanthropist)
• William Wyggeston (merchant, philanthropist)

Exploration

• Henry Bates (naturalist and explorer)
• Ed Stafford (explorer and author)
• Alfred Russel Wallace (naturalist, explorer, evolutionist and author, who briefly taught at Collegiate school)

Politics and royalty

• Alastair Campbell (journalist and political advisor)
• Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester (founder of the English Parliament)
• Lady Jane Grey ("Queen for Nine Days")
• Kelvin Hopkins (MP)
• Greville Janner (MP and barrister)
• Richard III of England
• Peter Soulsby (Mayor of Leicester, former MP)

Religion

• William Carey (missionary and translator)
• Charles Henry Carter (Baptist missionary and translator of the first English-Singhalese dictionary)
• George Fox (founder of the Religious Society of Friends, otherwise known as Quakers)

Science

• Alf Adams (physicist, inventor of the strained quantum-well laser)
• William Henry Bragg (physicist, chemist and mathematician)
• William Lawrence Bragg (physicist)
• Harold Hopkins
• Harold Edwin Hurst (Hydrologist whose study of the Nile led to a better understanding of statistics with applications in dam design and finance.)
• Sir Alec Jeffreys (geneticist and developer of genetic fingerprinting) (DNA)
• Roger Mason
• Benjamin Ward Richardson (physician)
• Cedric Smith (statistician and geneticist)

Sport

Boxing

• George Aldridge (former British middleweight champion)
• Pat Butler (former British welterweight champion)
• Errol Christie (former European middleweight champion)
• Martin Concepcion (Commonwealth light-middleweight boxing title challenger)
• Shaun Cummins (fought for British and European titles)
• Tony McKenzie (former British light welterweight champion)
• Rendall Munroe (EBU and Commonwealth super bantamweight boxing champion)
• Chris Pyatt (former World Champion middleweight boxer)
• Tony Sibson (former professional boxer)
• Len Wickwar (holds the record for highest number of professional fights)
• Tim Wood (former British light heavyweight champion)

Cricket

• James Barnfather (played first-class cricket for Essex in 1924)
• Samit Patel (England international cricketer)
• M. J. K. Smith (England cricket captain)

Football

• Ian Baraclough (football manager)
• Ashley Chambers (English footballer)
• Dion Dublin (England International footballer)
• Emile Heskey (England international footballer)
• Chris Kirkland (England international footballer)
• Gary Lineker (England international footballer, World Cup 1986 Golden Boot Winner, sports presenter)
• Joe Mattock (English footballer)
• Norman Plummer (Leicester City footballer, captain 1949 FA Cup Final, decorated World War II veteran)
• Levi Porter (English footballer)
• Michael Robinson (footballer, Spanish TV presenter)
• Peter Shilton (England's most capped footballer)
• Luke Varney (footballer)

Rugby Union

• Martin Corry (retired rugby player, former Leicester captain and former England captain)
• Louis Deacon (Leicester Tigers captain, England International)
• Martin Johnson (CBE, rugby player, Leicester and England's World-Cup winning captain)
• Steve Redfern (rugby player, Leicester Tigers walk of legends)
• Dean Richards (rugby player and coach, Leicester Tigers and England captain)
• Ollie Smith (Rugby Union international)
• John Wells (Leicester Tigers rugby captain, head coach and England Forwards coach)

Snooker

• Shailesh Jogia (snooker player)
• Mark Selby (snooker player; the 2013/2014 and 2015/2016 World Snooker Champion and eight ball pool world champion 2007)
• Willie Thorne (snooker player and commentator)
• Ben Woollaston

Speedway

• Geoff Bouchard
• Ivor Brown
• Cyril "Squib" Burton
• Bruce Forrester
• David Howe
• Paddy Mills
• Graham Plant
• Fred Wilkinson
• Len Williams (Sheffield, Leicester and England)
• Stan Williams (Sheffield, Coventry and England)

Others

• Tony Allcock (fourteen-time bowls world champion, now Chief Executive of Bowls England)
• Henry Ernest Atkins (chess master, nine-time British champion; the H.E. Atkins tournament is run annually in Leicester)
• Andrew Betts (Great Britain Basketball player)
• Roger Clark (rally driving champion)
• Mark Cox (English professional tennis player)
• Glenn Flear (chess grandmaster)
• Jamie Green (race car driver in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters championship)
• Bert Harris (first professional cycling champion of England)
• John Arthur Jarvis (swimmer, 1900 Olympic medallist)
• Ken Johnson (Olympic athlete)
• John Merricks (sailor, 1996 Olympic medallist)
• Roger Williamson (Formula One driver)
• Fred Wood (multi World Cycling Champion, 1880s)

Miscellaneous

• M. E. Clifton James (actor trained to impersonate Bernard Montgomery in World War II)
• Donald Hings (1907–2004), inventor of the Walkie-Talkie
• General Sir Patrick Howard-Dobson (former Vice-Chief of Defence Staff)
• Daniel Lambert (1770–1809) (heaviest man in England)
• Sydney Lucas (1900–2008) (last soldier to serve in both World Wars)
• Kim McLagan (model and cosmetologist)
• Joseph Merrick (1862–1890) ("The Elephant Man")
• Charles Killick Millard (1870–1952) (Medical Officer for Health and founder of the Voluntary Euthanasia Legalisation Society)
• Phil Shaw (inventor of extreme ironing)