List of people from the Borough of Woking

This is a list of famous or notable people born in, or associated with, the Borough of Woking in England, who have a Wikipedia page.

Woking is a town and borough in Surrey, around 23 mi (37 km) southwest of central London. In addition to the town of Woking, the borough also includes the settlements of Brookwood, Knaphill, Pyrford, Byfleet and West Byfleet.

The first surviving record of the settlement is from Domesday Book of 1086, in which the manor appears as Wochinges.[1] The "monastery at Wocchingas" is mentioned in a c. 1200 copy of an early 8th-century letter from Pope Constantine to Hedda, Abbot of Bermondsey and Woking.[2][note 1]

List of notable people

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Image	Name	Residence Period	Notes
—	Michael Axworthy	-	Academic, historian and commentator with special interest in Iran	[4]
—	Arthur Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour	1929 to death	Politician, Prime Minister 1902-05, author of Balfour Declaration; lived at Fisher's Hill, Hook Heath Road	[5]
Gerald Balfour 2nd Earl of Balfour	Gerald Balfour 2nd Earl of Balfour	–	Politician, lived at Fisher's Hill, Hook Heath Road	[6]
—	Elizabeth Balfour, Countess of Balfour		Politician, suffragette, lived at Fisher's Hill, Hook Heath Road
Lady Margaret Beaufort	Lady Margaret Beaufort	–	Mother of King Henry VII, lived in Woking Palace for 5 years	[7]
—	Sir Alec Bedser	–	Surrey County and England Cricketer	[7][8]
—	Eric Bedser	–	Surrey County Cricketer	[7]
Richard Benson	Richard Benson	–	Singer and guitarist born at Woking
George Bernard Shaw	George Bernard Shaw	1901–1903	playwright, critic, political activist	[9]
—	Martin Birch	–	Rock music producer/engineer for Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden (1948)	[7]
—	John Braine	–	Novelist	[10]
—	Thomas Breakwell	–	First Englishman to be a convert to the Baháʼí Faith	[11]
—	Rick Buckler	–	drummer with The Jam, (1955)	[7][12]
—	Sonya Butt	1940–1943	WW2 Special Operations Executive agent	[13]
James Cracknell	James Cracknell	–	Olympic rower, from Pyrford	[7]
Claire Darke	Claire Darke	–	The 161st Mayor of Wolverhampton, grew up in Woking
Peter Davison	Peter Davison	–	actor, former lead in Doctor Who attended The Winston Churchill School (Woking)	[7]
Ron Dennis	Ron Dennis	–	CEO/Chairman of the McLaren Group	[7]
Susie Dent	Susie Dent	–	a lexicographer and the dictionary expert on Countdown	[14]
Emilia Dilke	Emilia Dilke	–	art historian, feminist and trade unionist, lived at Pyrford Rough	[15]
Ben Charles Edwards	Ben Charles Edwards	–	photographer/filmmaker	[16]
Bruce Foxton	Bruce Foxton	–	bass player with The Jam, (1955)	[7][12]
John Paul Getty	John Paul Getty	–	Lived in Sutton Green	[7]
Robert Freke Gould	Robert Freke Gould		Soldier, barrister and historian of Freemasonry	[17]
—	Derek Griffiths	–	children's entertainer, born in Woking	[7]
Rupert Guinness, 2nd Earl of Iveagh	Rupert Guinness, 2nd Earl of Iveagh	1906–1967	businessman, lived at Pyrford	[18]
Lady Emma Hamilton	Lady Emma Hamilton	–	lover of Horatio Nelson. Hamilton lived in Pyrford	[7]
Harry Hill	Harry Hill	–	comedian, was born in Woking (1964)	[7]
—	Bob Hiller	–	former England international rugby union player, was born in Woking (1942)	[19]
—	Brian Hooper	–	Olympic pole vaulter	[7]
—	Marmaduke Hussey, Baron Hussey of North Bradley	–	newspaper executive, was born at Worplesdon Hill (1923)	[20]
Chris Ingram	Chris Ingram		Businessman, Entrepreneur and Former Chairman of Woking F.C.
Albert Jack	Albert Jack		Bestselling author from Winston Churchill School
—	Jentina	–	rapper	[21]
Kazuo Ishiguro	Kazuo Ishiguro	–	novelist, attended Woking County Grammar School	[7][22]
Adelina de Lara	Adelina de Lara	–	concert pianist, lived and worked in Woking.	[7]
—	Rowland Lee	–	composer, pianist, conductor and music arranger born in Woking (1960), attended Sheerwater Secondary School, Woking Boys Grammar School and Woking VI Form College.	[7]
Sean Lock	Sean Lock	–	comedian, was born in Woking (1963)	[7]
—	Peter Lord	–	co-founder of Aardman Animations, attended Woking Grammar school	[7]
Liz Lynne	Liz Lynne	–	Liberal Democrat politician	[23]
—	Tom Mison	–	actor	[24]
—	Iain Morris	–	Co-Writer of The Inbetweeners, born in Woking	[7]
—	Robert Ogilvie	-	England footballer, captain of Clapham Rovers team who won 1880 FA Cup Final, died at Golf Cottage, St John's (1938)	[25]
Ian Ogilvy	Ian Ogilvy	–	actor, 1943	[26]
Rick Parfitt	Rick Parfitt	–	guitarist for Status Quo went to school in Sheerwater and had family in the area,	[7][27]
Francis Henry Salvin	Francis Henry Salvin	–	naturalist and writer, lived at Sutton Place and Whitmoor House	[28][29]
Delia Smith	Delia Smith	–	best-selling cook was born in Woking	[7]
Ethel Smyth	Ethel Smyth	–	composer and the first woman suffragette	[7][30]
The Spice Girls	The Spice Girls	–	pop group, started their careers at a Knaphill studio	[7]
David Sproxton	David Sproxton	–	co-founder of Aardman Animations, attended Woking Grammar school	[7]
—	Laurretta Summerscales	–	Ballerina, principal dancer with Bayerisches Staatsballett in Munich and formerly with the English National Ballet, grew up in Woking	[31]
Alan Turing	Alan Turing	–	mathematician, Cremated at Woking Crematorium	[32]
—	Sam Underwood	–	actor	[33]
—	Tony Wakeford	–	neo-folk musician, co-founder of Death in June, founder and vocalist of Sol Invictus, & L'Orchestre Noir	[7]
Paul Weller	Paul Weller	–	guitarist and singer-songwriter, The Style Council, The Jam. "Town Called Malice", which was written by Paul Weller and recorded by his band, The Jam, is about Woking. The song reached No. 1 in the UK Charts.	[7][12]
H. G. Wells	H. G. Wells	1895-1898	author who used the town as a setting for his novel The War of the Worlds and was staying in the town when he wrote it. A large sculpture of a (Wellsian) Martian Fighting Machine (above) was installed in the town centre to commemorate Woking's links with the story.	[34][35][36]
Matt Willis	Matt Willis	–	musician, singer-songwriter, television presenter and actor, who was a founding member of pop rock band Busted and was the winner of I'm A Celebrity... in 2006, lived in Woking and attended Woking High School	[7]
—	Ken Wood	–	founded the Kenwood company in Woking	[7][37]

Notes

1. There is some doubt as to the accuracy and authenticity of Medieval copies of earlier Anglo-Saxon documents.[3]

References

1. Gover, Mawer & Stenton 1969, p. 156
2. de Gray Birch 2012, pp. 196–197
3. de Gray Birch 2012, pp. xx–xxi
4. Abrahamian, Ervand (4 April 2013). "Revolutionary Iran: A History of the Islamic Republic by Michael Axworthy". Times Higher Education. Archived from the original on 14 June 2015. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
5. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Volume 3. Oxford University Press. 2004. p. 512. ISBN 0-19-861353-9.Article by Ruddock Mackay and H.C.G. Matthew.
6. Oppenheimer, Janet. "Balfour, Gerald William, second earl of Balfour". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30556. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
7. "Hall of fame". Woking Borough Council. Archived from the original on 15 April 2010. Retrieved 21 May 2008.
8. Steen, Rob. "Bedser, Sir Alec Victor". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/102513. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
9. Field 2012, p. 77
10. Amis, Kingsley. "Braine, John Gerard". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/39825. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
11. Hainsworth, Philip. "Breakwell, Thomas". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/52579. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
12. O'Brien, Christy (30 May 2022). "Paul Weller's quiet life in Woking and the time he fell into a pond". Surrey Live. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
13. Bailey, Roderick. "D'Artois [née Butt], Sonia Esmée Florence [Toni]". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.108203. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
14. "Biography". Susiedent.awardspace.com. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
15. Fraser, Hilary. "Dilke [née Strong; other married name Pattison], Emilia Francis, Lady Dilke". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/32825. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
16. Wells, Dominic (14 August 2008). "Heels before swine in Ben Charles Edwardss The Town That Boars Me". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 22 January 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
17. Rylands, W.H; Songhurst, W.J. Ars Quatuor Coronatorum. Рипол Классик. ISBN 9785873023493. Archived from the original on 22 January 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
18. Wilson, R.G. "Guinness, Rupert Edward Cecil Lee, second earl of Iveagh". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/33604. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
19. "Robert Hiller". ESPN scrum. Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
20. Fred, Emery. "Hussey, Marmaduke James [Duke], Baron Hussey of North Bradley". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/97522. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
21. "Dreams are unfolding for Jentina". Surrey Live. 2 July 2013 [30 September 2004]. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
22. McKeon, Christopher (5 October 2017). "Guildford man wins Nobel Prize in literature". Surrey Live. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
23. "Elizabeth Lynne - European Parliament MEPs". Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
24. Wolf, Matt (23 May 2012). "Rising London Star Tom Mison on Juggling Movies, TV and the Timely West End Comedy Posh". Broadway.com. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
25. Warsop, Keith (2004). The Early FA Cup Finals and the Southern Amateurs. SoccerData. p. 109. ISBN 1-899468-78-1.
26. "Ian Ogilvy". Ian Ogilvy. Archived from the original on 22 August 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
27. "Rick Parfitt". The Times. No. 72103. London. 26 December 2016. p. 51.
28. Norgate, G. Le G. "Salvin, Francis Henry". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35922. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
29. White, Stephen (19 June 2022). "Woking war hero that had pet pig he used to take for walks and taught to 'fly'". Surrey Live. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
30. Kertesz, Elizabeth. "Smyth, Dame Ethel Mary". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/36173. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
31. "Lauretta Summerscales: the rising star of English ballet". standard.co.uk. 10 April 2012. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
32. Hodges, Andrew. "Turing, Alan Mathison". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/36578. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
33. "Sam hits the big time in New York". Guildford: GetSurrey. 20 March 2009. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
34. "Woking Surrey Online: War of the Worlds". Wokingsurrey.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
35. "Woking – Surrey town". Surrey-online.co.uk. Archived from the original on 22 December 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
36. Crosby 2003, pp. 110–111
37. Pimlott Baker, Anne. "Wood, Kenneth Maynard". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/68849. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

Bibliography

• Crosby, Alan (2003). Woking. Chichester: Phillimore. ISBN 978-1-86-077262-7.
• de Gray Birch, Walter, ed. (2012). Cartularium Saxonium. Vol. I. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139177313. ISBN 978-1-13-917731-3.
• Field, Marion (2012). Woking : A history and celebration. Salisbury: Francis Frith. ISBN 978-1-84-589667-6.
• Gover, J.E.B; Mawer, A.; Stenton, F.M. (1969). The place-names of Surrey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

External links

• Woking Borough Council Archived 16 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine