List of people from Northumberland

This list is of people who were born or raised in the County of Northumberland, in England. The area covered is the ceremonial county, hence the exclusion of places traditionally regarded as being in Northumberland which are now in Tyne and Wear for administrative and ceremonial purposes. The list is intended to complement Category:People from Northumberland.

Art and architecture

Pauline Bewick (born 1935), watercolour painter
Thomas Bewick (1753–1828), wood engraver, born at Cherryburn, Mickley
Glenn Brown (born 1966), painter and Turner Prize nominee
Lancelot "Capability" Brown (1716–1783), landscape architect
John Clayton (1792–1890), antiquarian and town clerk of Newcastle upon Tyne
Luke Clennell (1781–1840), engraver
Archibald Matthias Dunn (1832–1917), Catholic architect, born in Wylam
Mark Fiennes (1933–2004), photographer
Noel Forster (1932–2007), abstract painter
John and Benjamin Green (1789–1852; c. 1807 – 1868), architects
Hermione Hammond (1910–2005), painter
John Jackson (1801–1848), wood engraver, born at Ovingham, apprenticed to Thomas Bewick
Mason Jackson (1819–1903), wood engraver, born at Ovingham
John Martin (1789–1854), influential English Romantic painter of the nineteenth century, born in Haydon Bridge, his dramatic The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah can be seen in the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne
Vanessa Raw (born 28 September 1984), artist, born in Hexham
Willey Reveley (1760–1799), architect
T. J. Cobden Sanderson (1840–1922), Arts and Crafts Movement artist
Imogen Stubbs (born 1961), actress and playwright, born in Rothbury
Stella Vine (born 1969), English contemporary artist (figurative painting), born in Alnwick

Business

William George Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong (1810–1900), Tyneside industrialist who was the effective founder of the Armstrong Whitworth manufacturing empire
Emerson Muschamp Bainbridge (1817–1892), founder of Bainbridge Department Store in Newcastle upon Tyne, the first such store in the world (still the largest John Lewis outside London)
John Hall (born 1933), property developer and chairman of Newcastle United
Peter Horbury (born c.1950), car designer
Charles Algernon Parsons (1854–1931), engineer known for his invention of the steam turbine, buried at Kirkwhelpington
Lewy Pattinson (1852–1944), Australian businessman, born in Hexham
John Urpeth Rastrick (1780–1856), steam locomotive builder
John Wigham Richardson (1837–1908), shipbuilder

Entertainment

Acting

Daniel Ainsleigh (born 1976), British actor and acting coach, born in Hexham
Robson Green (born 1964), television actor and singer
Jean Heywood (born 1921), British actress, appearing in films and television programmes
Alexander Knox (died 1995), Canadian actor; died at Berwick
Darren Newton (born 1969), actor and theatre director
Ben Roberts, television actor
Ray Stevenson (born 1964), Northern Irish film and television actor; grew up in Cramlington
Tip Tipping (1958–1993), actor, died in a parachuting accident at Alnwick
Henry Travers (1874–1965), born in Prudhoe; character actor best known for his roles in Hollywood film productions, most famously as Clarence the angel in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
Kevin Whately (born 1951), English television actor, starring in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Peak Practice, Inspector Morse, and Lewis

Broadcasting

Tony Bastable (1944–2007), children's television presenter and producer
Ian Peacock, radio presenter
Sid Waddell (born 1940), English sports commentator and television personality

Comedy

Alexander Armstrong (born 1970), comedian, actor and television personality

Music

Darren Allison (born 1968), record producer and musician with The Divine Comedy, Spiritualized and others
Graham Bell (1948–2008), singer with Skip Bifferty and as a solo artist
Dave Cliff (born 1944), British jazz guitarist
Pete Doherty (born 1979), musician with The Libertines and Babyshambles
China Drum (fl. 1981–2001), punk rock band
Mark Elder (born 1947), British conductor, currently the music director of The Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, England
Wilfred Gibson (born 1945), violinist with the Electric Light Orchestra
John Peacock (c. 1756 – 1817), Northumbrian smallpipes player
Sting (born 1951), singer with The Police and multi-Grammy Award winning solo artist

Military

William Wilson Allen (1844–1890), recipient of the Victoria Cross
Henry Askew (1775–1847), general
Joe Baker-Cresswell (1901–1997), aide-de-camp to King George VI and High Sheriff of Northumberland
Sam Browne (1824–1901), British Indian Army general
Hugh Cairns (1896–1918), recipient of the Victoria Cross
Francis Crake (1893–1920), soldier and Royal Irish Constabulary officer
Frederick William Dobson (1886–1935), recipient of the Victoria Cross
James Bulmer Johnson (1889–1943), recipient of the Victoria Cross
David Murray-Lyon (1890–1975), British Indian Army general
James Robb (1895–1968), senior Royal Air Force commander (Air Chief Marshal), and was Commander-in-Chief of Fighter Command from 1945 to 1947
Richard Been Stannard (1902–1977), recipient of the Victoria Cross
Tod Sweeney (1919–2001), platoon commander at the Normandy Landings
Patrick Tonyn (1725–1804), general and colonial governor
Adam Herbert Wakenshaw (1914–1942), recipient of the Victoria Cross

Nobility

Æthelfrith of Northumbria (died c. 616), King of Bernicia from c. 593 until c. 616; he was also, beginning c. 604, the first Bernician king to also rule Deira; can be considered, in historical terms, the first Northumbrian king
Arthur Bigge, 1st Baron Stamfordham (1849–1931), private secretary to Queen Victoria and George V; born at Linden Hall, near Morpeth
Robert de Ros (1177–1226)
Margaret Douglas (1515–1578)
Waltheof, Earl of Dunbar (died 1182)
Gospatric II, Earl of Lothian (died 1138)
Gospatric III, Earl of Lothian (died 1166)
Forster baronets (established 1620)
Ida of Bernicia (died 559), Ida or Ida the Flamebearer, was a ruler (probably the founder) of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Bernicia between 547 and 559
Malcolm III of Scotland (died 1093), died at Alnwick
Henry 'Hotspur' Percy (c. 1364 – 1403), son of the 1st Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland (1341–1408)
Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland (1392–1455)
Henry Percy, 5th Earl of Northumberland (1477–1527)
William Widdrington, 1st Baron Widdrington (1610–1651)

Politics

Peter Atkinson (born 1943), Conservative MP for Hexham
Gordon Banks (born 1955), Labour MP for Ochil and South Perthshire
Alan Beith (born 1943), currently the Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed
Josephine Butler (1828–1906), feminist activist, born at Milfield
Ronnie Campbell (born 1943), Labour MP for Blyth Valley
John Candlish (1816–1874), Liberal MP for Sunderland
Hilton Dawson (born 1953), Labour MP for Lancaster and Wyre
William Elliott, Baron Elliott of Morpeth (born 1920), Conservative politician
Charles Fenwick (1850–1918), Lib-Lab MP for Wansbeck and Trades Union Congress leader
Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (1764–1845), Whig Prime Minister (1830–1834)
Antony Lambton (1922–2006), Viscount Lambton, was the controversial Tory Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed from 1951 until 1973
Denis Murphy (born 1940), Labour MP for Wansbeck
Jeremy Purvis (born 1974), Liberal Democrat MSP, and youngest person in Scottish Parliament at time of election
John Campbell Renton (born 1814), Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed
Joseph Richardson (1755–1803), Whig activist
Ralph Widdrington (1640–1718), MP for Berwick-upon-Tweed

Religion

Martin of Alnwick (d. 1336), Franciscan friar and theologian
William Bickerton (1815–1905), founder of The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite)
Bolton Stafford Bird (1840–1924), clergyman
Benedict Biscop (628–690), abbot
Charles Lisle Carr (1871–1942), Church of England bishop
Cedd (c. 620 – 664), evangelist and saint
John Farrar (1802–1884), Methodist clergyman and writer
John of Hexham (c. 1160 – 1209), English chronicler, known to us merely as the author of a work called the Historia XXV. annorum, which continues the Historia regum attributed to Symeon of Durham, and contains an account of English events from 1130 to 1153
Edward Knott (1581–1656), most important English Jesuit of his day
William Turnbull Leach (1805–1886), clergyman and academic
Chad of Mercia (died 672), abbot, bishop and saint
Robert Morrison (1782–1834), missionary in China
Joseph Parker (1830–1902), Congregationalist preacher and writer
Richard of Hexham (fl. 1141), English chronicler, who became prior of Hexham about 1141, and died between 1163 and 1178
Nicholas Ridley (1500–1555), bishop and martyr of the Marian Persecutions
Ailred of Rievaulx (1110–1167), writer and saint
Robert of Holy Island (died 1283), Bishop of Durham
Joseph Stevenson (1806–1895), archivist and Jesuit
Rowland Taylor (1510–1555), martyr of the Marian Persecutions
Henry Baker Tristram (1822–1906), clergyman and Bible scholar
John of Trokelowe (fl. 14th century), Benedictine and chronicler
Keith Ward (born 1938), Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford, born in Hexham
William of Alnwick (c. 1275 – 1333), Franciscan theologian and Bishop of Giovinazzo
N. T. Wright (born 1948), Bishop of Durham

Science and medicine

George Biddell Airy (1801–1892), mathematician and Astronomer Royal
Martyn Amos (born 1971), Senior Lecturer in Computing and Public Engagement Fellow at Manchester Metropolitan University; expert on natural computation and DNA computing; born in Hexham
Charles Baring, 2nd Baron Howick of Glendale (born 1937), arboriculturalist and plant collector
Thomas Gibson (died 1562), printer and physician, born in Morpeth
Timothy Hackworth (1786–1850), steam locomotive engineer
William Hewson (1739–1774), 18th-century surgeon, anatomist and physiologist; sometimes referred to as the 'father of haematology'
Andrew Karney (born 1942), electrical engineer
Frank Lees (1931–1999), chemical engineer; professor at Loughborough University; noted for his contribution to the field of industrial safety
Prideaux John Selby (1788–1867), ornithologist
James Calvert Spence (1892–1954), paediatrician
George Stephenson (1781–1848), steam locomotive engineer
Ralph Tate (1840–1901), botanist
William Turner (1508–1568), pioneer of ornithology and botany as sciences
Donald I. Williamson (born 1922), zoologist

Sport

Athletics

Jim Alder (born 1940), Commonwealth Games gold medal winning marathon runner
Vanessa Raw (born 1984), professional English triathlete, and member of the British Olympic Triathlon Academy Squad, born in Hexham

Cricket

Norman Graham (born 1943), cricketer who played for Kent, born at Hexham
Ken Graveney (born 1924), English cricketer who played for and captained Gloucestershire, born in Hexham
Tom Graveney (born 1927), former English cricketer; President of the Marylebone Cricket Club for 2004-5; played for England in 79 Tests; a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1953; born in Riding Mill
Steve Harmison (born 1978), Durham and England cricketer
John Wake (born 1953), Bedfordshire cricketer

Football

NB: Clubs listed are those at which the player made 100 or more League appearances or, if not applicable, club at which they made most appearances.

Chris Adamson (born 1978), played for St Patrick's Athletic
Jimmy Adamson (born 1929), played for and managed Burnley
Jimmy Allen (1913–1979), played for Queens Park Rangers
Ben Alnwick (born 1987), played for Sunderland
John Angus (1938–2021), played for Burnley
Colin Ayre (born 1956), played in the English, Dutch and Austrian football leagues
Bob Bearpark (1943–1996), Canada men's national soccer team coach
Paul Boertien (born 1979), played for Derby County
Martin Brittain (born 1984), plays for Gateshead
John Brodie (born 1947), played for Port Vale
Alan Brown (1914–1996), played for and managed Burnley, managed Sunderland
James Brown (born 1987), Hartlepool United F C striker, born in Cramlington
Joe Brown (born 1929), played for A.F.C. Bournemouth
Steve Bruce (born 1960), manager of Sunderland, played for Gillingham, Norwich City & Manchester United, born in Corbridge
James Bumphrey (1885–?), played for Birmingham
Mick Buxton (born 1943), managed Huddersfield Town and Sunderland
Jack Callender (1923–2001), played for Gateshead
John Callender (1903–1980), played for Gateshead
Tom Callender (1920–2002), played for Gateshead
Graham Carr (born 1944), played for and managed Northampton Town
William Carrier (1887-after 1911), played for Birmingham
Tony Carss (born 1976), played for Huddersfield Town
Stuart Chapman (born 1951), played for Port Vale
Bobby Charlton (born 1937), played for Manchester United
Jack Charlton (born 1935), played for Leeds United
George Cook (born 1904), played for Torquay United
Billy Cowell (born 1902), played for Huddersfield Town and Hartlepool United
Jack Coxford (1901–1978), played for Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic
Steve Davis (born 1968), played for Burnley and Luton Town
Andy Duncan, played for Cambridge United
Shaun Elliott (born 1957), played for Sunderland
David Fairhurst (1906–1972), played for Newcastle United
Ian Ferguson (born 1968), Scottish, played for Raith Rovers, ended his professional career in 2004 with Berwick Rangers
Steve Finney (born 1973), played for Swindon Town
Bobby Flavell (born 1956), played for Halifax Town
Fraser Forster (born 1988), plays for Newcastle United
Bill Fraser (1907-?), played for Southampton
Allan Gauden (born 1944), played for Sunderland
Robert Gordon (1917–1940), played for Huddersfield Town
Wilf Grant (1920–1990), played for Cardiff City
Kevin Henderson (born 1974), played for Hartlepool United
Peter Henderson (born 1952), played for Chester
Bob Hewitson (1884–1957), played for Crystal Palace
Rob Hindmarch (1961–2002), played for Sunderland and Derby County
Jimmy Isaac (born 1916), played for Hartlepools United
Derek Jefferson (born 1948), played for Ipswich Town
Jimmy Kelly (1931–2003), played for Watford and Blackpool
Ray Kennedy (born 1951), played for Arsenal and Liverpool
George King (born 1923), played for Gillingham
Ray King (born 1924), played for Port Vale
Dan Kirkup (born 1988), plays for Workington
Joe Kirkup (born 1939), played for West Ham United and Southampton
Mel Lintern (born 1950), played for Carlisle United
Joe Lynn (born 1925), played for Rochdale
Jamie McClen (born 1979), played for Gateshead
William McCourty (1884-after 1909), played for Birmingham
Billy McGlen (1921–1999), played for Manchester United and Lincoln City
George Milburn (1910–1980), played for Leeds United and Chesterfield
Jack Milburn (1908–1979), played for Leeds United
Jackie Milburn (1924–1988), played for Newcastle United
Jim Milburn (1919–1985), played for Leeds United and Bradford Park Avenue
Stanley Milburn (born 1926), played for Chesterfield, Leicester City and Rochdale
Harry Mills (born 1922), played for Huddersfield Town
Bob Morton (1906–1990), played for Port Vale
Malcolm Musgrove (1933–2007), played for West Ham United
Brian O'Neil (born 1944), played for Burnley and Southampton
Graeme Owens (born 1988), played for Middlesbrough, born in Cramlington
John Potts (born 1904), played for Port Vale
Peter Ramage (born 1983), played for Newcastle United
Jimmy Richardson (1911–1964), played for Newcastle United and Huddersfield Town
Joe Richardson (1908–1977), played for Newcastle United
John Ritchie (born 1944), played for Port Vale
Joe Robinson (1919–1991), played for Hartlepools United
Jock Rutherford (1884–1963), played for Newcastle United and Woolwich Arsenal
John Shiel (born 1917), played for Huddersfield Town
Andy Sinton (born 1966), played for Brentford and Queens Park Rangers
George Stephenson (1900–1971), played for Aston Villa
Trevor Steven (born 1963), played for Everton and Rangers
Bob Stokoe (1930–2004), played for Newcastle United and later managed Sunderland A.F.C.
Eric Tait (born 1951), played and managed for Berwick Rangers
Martin Taylor (born 1979), plays for Birmingham City
Steven Taylor (born 1986), plays for Newcastle United
David Thompson (born 1968), played for Millwall
Joe Tulip played for Queen of the South F.C.
Shaun Vipond (born 1988), plays for Workington
Tommy Walker (1923–2005), played for Oldham Athletic
Dave Walton (born 1973), played for Shrewsbury Town and Crewe Alexandra
Jimmy Wardhaugh (1929–1978), played for Heart of Midlothian
Norman Wilkinson (born 1931), played for York City
Billy Wilson (born 1946), played for Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth

Horse racing

Jonathan E. Pease (born 1952), Thoroughbred racehorse trainer
Nicky Richards (born 1956), National Hunt racehorse trainer

Other

Kenneth Ferrie (born 1978), golfer
Gavin Kerr (born 1977), lived in Berwick for most of his childhood; played professional rugby, a regular in the Scotland rugby team, has 36 caps and 1 try
Gary Robson (born 1967), World Darts Trophy winning darts player
Craig Smith (born 1978), lived in Berwick for most of his childhood and attended Berwick County High School; played professional rugby union for the Scotland rugby team with 18 caps
Matthew Wells, Olympic rower, brother of Peter Wells
Peter Wells, Olympic rower, brother of Matthew Wells

Writers

Kate Adie (born 1945), print and broadcast journalist
Ruth Ainsworth (1908–1984), children's writer of the Rufty Tufty Golliwog series
Richard Armstrong (1903–1986), novelist and historian
John Blackburn (1923–1993), novelist who wrote thrillers, horror novels, including The Flame and the Wind (1967)
Robert Blakey (1795–1878), radical journalist and philosopher born in Manchester Street, Morpeth
John Brown (1715–1766), religious writer and playwright
Richard Burridge (born 1951), screenwriter
Ann Cook (fl. 1760), innkeeper and author of Professed cookery, see Hannah Glasse
Samuel Edward Cook (died 1856), travel writer
Catherine Cookson (1906–1998), author, resided at Corbridge
Gabriel Fielding (1916–1986), pen name of Alan Gabriel Barnsley, British novelist whose works include In the Time of Greenbloom, The Birthday King, Through Streets Broad and Narrow and The Women of Guinea Lane
John Gardner (1926–2007), creator of Boysie Oakes series and author of James Bond books
Wilfrid Wilson Gibson (1878–1962), British poet, associated with World War I, born in Hexham
Hannah Glasse (1708–1770), cookery writer
M. B. Halbeck (1936–1989), poet
Nigel Hamilton (born 1944), biographer and academic
John Cuthbert Hedley (1830–1915), religious writer
John Hodgson, wrote his History of Northumberland during his incumbency at Kirkwhelpington, 1823–34
Gordon Parker (born 1940), novelist and playwright
Eric Pringle, children's writer
James Runciman (1852–1891), journalist
Steven Runciman (1903–2000), historian of the Middle Ages
William M. Timlin (1892–1943), author and architect
Hugh Trevor-Roper (1914–2003), historian of Early Modern Britain and Nazi Germany
Veronica Wedgwood (1910–1997), historian of the English Civil War

Other people

John Ashenden (d. in or before 1368?), astrologer, born Northumberland
Bernard Bosanquet (1848–1923), philosopher and political theorist
John Busby (1765–1867), surveyor and civil engineer
Ned Coulson, celebrity of Haydon Bridge, noted for his wonderful swiftness of foot
Grace Darling (1815–1842), heroine of a celebrated maritime rescue
Richard Duncan (died 1819), judge and politician in Upper Canada
Matthew Festing (born 1949), Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Philip Hunter (born 1940), Schools Adjudicator for England
Robert Huntley (1920–2001), first Head of Scotland Yard's Bomb Squad
Ralph Hush (1779–1860), convict sent to Australia
Jonathan Martin (1782–1838), arsonist of York Minster
John Minto (1822–1915), American pioneer, sheep farmer, and Republican representative in the state legislature, born in Wylam
William Peel (born 1875), British colonial administrator who became the Governor of Hong Kong
Natalie Pike (born 1983), FHM High Street Honey winner and subsequent glamour model; used to live in Berwick
William Smith (1775–?), mariner and explorer
Edward Stamp (1814–1872), mariner and colonialist
John Stevens, Baron Stevens of Kirkwhelpington (born 1942), whose career included head of the Metropolitan Police Service, and Chancellor of Northumbria University
Robert Whinham (1776–1861), nurseryman; around the 1830s, bred the red gooseberry Whinham's Industry, which was given the RHS Award of Garden Merit in 1915 and 1993