List of people from South Shields

This is a list of notable people who were either born in, or have lived in, the town of South Shields, Tyne & Wear, in the UK. It includes current and historical residents.

Art and architecture

• John Chambers, artist
• Sheila Graber, animator, born South Shields,^[1] made an outstanding animation about the river Tyne.^[2]
• James Kirkup (born 1918), poet^[3]
• Tish Murtha, documentary photographer born in South Shields, best known for her work documenting marginalised communities, social realism and working class life in Newcastle upon Tyne and The North East England.
• Robert Olley born South Shields, painter of the Westoe Netty^[4][5]
• Alison Smithson, co-founder with husband Peter Smithson of New Brutalism movement in architecture

Business

• John Barbour (1849–1918) clothier, inventor and manufacturer of the Barbour jacket^[6]

Entertainment

• Charlie Drummond, a 2009 Big Brother contestant.^[7]
• Sir Ridley Scott (born 1937) film director and producer.
• Marnie Simpson, Reality Star.
• Kane Avellano, Guinness World Record for youngest person to circumnavigate the world by motorcycle (solo and unsupported) at the age of 23 in 2017. ^[8]

Military

• Richard Wallace Annand (1914–2004), first Victoria Cross recipient of the Second World War^[18]
• John Simpson Kirkpatrick (1892–1915), hero of the Gallipoli campaign in WWI.^{[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]}
• Henry Howey Robson (1894–1964), recipient of the Victoria Cross^[30]

Politics

• Billy Blyton, Baron Blyton (1899–1987) of South Shields, Labour Party politician^[31]
• Sir William Fox (1812–1893) four times Prime Minister of New Zealand^[32]
• Harold Heslop (1898–1983) trade unionist and writer^[33]
• John Erickson (1929–2002), professor of politics at Edinburgh. NATO adviser^[34]
• John Gray (born 1948), philosopher, formerly professor of European Thought at the LSE in London.^[35]

Religion

• Oswine of Deira died (651 AD), Northumbrian King and Saint, legend states that he was born at Caer Urfa, site of the excavated Roman fort of Arbeia situated on the Lawe Top.^[36]

Science/medicine

• Leo Kinlen, professor of epidemiology at Oxford.
• Ernest Thompson Seton (1860–1946), naturalist, writer and Chief Scout of the Boy Scouts of America^[37]
• Thomas Masterman Winterbottom (1766–1859), physician, abolitionist, Surgeon General of the Sierra Leone Company, originator of Winterbottom's sign, and founder of South Tyneside College.

Sport

Writers

• Elinor Brent-Dyer (1894–1969), author of the Chalet School stories^[47]
• Robert Colls, professor of English history at the University of Leicester
• Catherine Cookson (1906–1998), novelist
• J. Thomas Looney (1870–1944), Comtean and Shakespeare authorship theorist.
• Barry MacSweeney (1948–2000), poet^[48]
• Avro Manhattan (1914–1990), writer^[49]
• James Mitchell (1926–2002), TV script writer - Callan, The Avengers, etc.
• Alan Myers (1933–2010), literary translator.
• Dorothy Samuelson-Sandvid, also known as 'Dorfy,' born South Shields, a Geordie dialect writer and author of 'A Basinful O' Geordie'^[50]
• Francis Scarfe (1911–1986), poet and critic^[51]

Other

• William Downey, with his brother, pioneer photographer; royal photographers to Queen Victoria^[52]
• Lauren Luke (born 1981), make-up artist/cosmetics, best known for her YouTube celebrity makeover tutorials.
• Kevin Maguire, award-winning journalist
• Eileen O'Shaughnessy, wife of George Orwell^[53]
• Dolly Peel (1782–1857), fishwife, poet and legendary local character.
• George Stout (1860–1944), philosopher^[54]
• Lord Wright of Durley (1869–1964), Lord of Appeal^[55]
• William Wouldhave (1751–1821), inventor of the first functional lifeboat^[56]

References