Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It borders

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

to the north-west,

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

to the west and south-west, and

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

, with

The Wash The Wash is a rectangular bay and multiple estuary at the north-west corner of East Anglia on the East coast of England, where Norfolk, England, Norfolk meets Lincolnshire and both border the North Sea. One of Britain's broadest estuaries, it i ...

to the north-west. The

county town In the United Kingdom and Ireland, a county town is the most important town or city in a county. It is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county and the place where the county's members of Parliament are elect ...

is the city of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. With an area of and a population of 859,400, Norfolk is a largely rural county with a population density of 401 per square mile (155 per km²). Of the county's population, 40% live in four major built up areas:

(213,000),

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

(63,000),

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

(46,000) and Thetford (25,000). The Broads is a network of rivers and lakes in the east of the county, extending south into

. The area is protected by the Broads Authority and has similar status to a

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

History

The area that was to become Norfolk was settled in pre-Roman times, (there were Palaeolithic settlers as early as 950,000 years ago) with camps along the higher land in the west, where

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...

s could be quarried. A Brittonic tribe, the

Iceni The Iceni ( , ) or Eceni were a Brittonic tribe of eastern Britain during the Iron Age and early Roman era. Their territory included present-day Norfolk and parts of Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and bordered the area of the Corieltauvi to the we ...

, emerged in the 1st century BC. The Iceni revolted against the

Roman invasion The Roman conquest of Britain refers to the conquest of the island of Britain by occupying Roman forces. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by 87 when the Stane ...

in AD 47, and again in 60 led by

Boudica Boudica or Boudicca (, known in Latin chronicles as Boadicea or Boudicea, and in Welsh as ()), was a queen of the ancient British Iceni tribe, who led a failed uprising against the conquering forces of the Roman Empire in AD 60 or 61. She ...

. The crushing of the second rebellion opened the area to the Romans. During the

Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

roads and ports were constructed throughout the area and farming was widespread. Situated on the east coast, the homelands of the Iceni were vulnerable to attacks from continental Europe and other parts of Britain, and forts were built to defend against raids by the

Saxons The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

and the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ea ...

. A period of depopulation, which may have been due to these threats, seems to have followed the departure of the Romans. Soon afterward, Germanic peoples from the North Sea area settled in the region. Though they became known as Angles, they were likely not affiliated to any tribe in particular at the time of their migration. It is thought that the settlement here was early (possibly beginning at the start of the fifth century, thereby preceding the alleged date of Hengist and Horsa's arrival in Kent) and that it occurred on a large scale. By the 5th century the Angles had established control of the region and later became the "north folk" and the "south folk"; hence "Norfolk" and "

". Norfolk, Suffolk and several adjacent areas became the kingdom of East Anglia (one of the

heptarchy The Heptarchy were the seven petty kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England that flourished from the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain in the 5th century until they were consolidated in the 8th century into the four kingdoms of Mercia, Northumbria, Wess ...

), which later merged with

Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...

and then with Wessex. The influence of the early English settlers can be seen in the many place names ending in "-ham", "-ingham" and "-ton". Endings such as "-by" and "-thorpe" are also fairly common, indicating Danish toponyms: in the 9th century the region again came under attack, this time from

Danes Danes ( da, danskere, ) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. Danes generally regard t ...

who killed the king,

Edmund the Martyr Edmund the Martyr (also known as St Edmund or Edmund of East Anglia, died 20 November 869) was king of East Anglia from about 855 until his death. Few historical facts about Edmund are known, as the kingdom of East Anglia was devastated by t ...

. Several place names around the Fenland area contain Celtic elements; this has been taken by some scholars to represent a possibly significant concentration of Britons in the area. In the centuries before the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

the wetlands of the east of the county began to be converted to farmland, and settlements grew in these areas. Migration into East Anglia must have been high: by the time of the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

survey it was one of the most densely populated parts of the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

. During the high and late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

the county developed arable agriculture and woollen industries. Norfolk's prosperity at that time is evident from the county's large number of medieval churches: out of an original total of over one thousand some 659 have survived, more than in any other county in Britain and the greatest concentration in the world. The economy was in decline by the time of the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

, which dramatically reduced the population in 1349. Kett's Rebellion occurred in Norfolk during the reign of Edward VI, largely in response to the enclosure of land by landlords, leaving peasants with nowhere to graze their animals, and to the general abuses of power by the nobility. It was led by

Robert Kett Robert Kett (c. 1492 – 7 December 1549) was the leader of Kett's Rebellion. Kett was the fourth son of Thomas Kett, of Forncett, Norfolk and his wife Margery. He is thought to have been a tanner, but he certainly held the manor of Wymondha ...

, a yeoman farmer, who was joined by recruits from Norwich and the surrounding countryside. His group numbered some 16,000 by the time the rebels stormed Norwich on 29 July 1549 and took the city. Kett's rebellion ended on 27 August when the rebels were defeated by an army under the leadership of

John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Ja ...

at the Battle of Dussindale. Some 3,000 rebels were killed. Kett was captured, held in the Tower of London, tried for treason, and hanged from the walls of Norwich Castle. By the late 16th century Norwich had grown to become the second-largest city in England, but over one-third of its population died in the

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

epidemic of 1579, and in 1665 the

Great Plague The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

again killed around one-third of the population. During the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

Norfolk was largely Parliamentarian. The economy and agriculture of the region declined somewhat. During the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

Norfolk developed little industry, except in Norwich which was a late addition to the railway network. Early military units included the

Norfolk Militia The Norfolk Militia was formed under the Militia Act of 1757, replacing earlier less formal arrangements. From this date, better records were kept, and the men were selected by ballot to serve for longer periods. Proper uniforms and better weapo ...

. In the 20th century the county developed a role in aviation. The first development in airfields came with the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

; there was then a massive expansion during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

with the growth of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

and the influx of the American USAAF 8th Air Force which operated from many

Norfolk airfields This is a list of current or former military airfields within the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia. They may have been used by the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), Royal Air Force (RAF), Army Air Corps (AAC), Fle ...

The local

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

regiments included the Royal Norfolk Regiment (now the

Royal Anglian Regiment The Royal Anglian Regiment (R ANGLIAN) is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It consists of two Regular battalions and one Reserve battalion. The modern regiment was formed in 1964, making it the oldest of the Line Regiments now operating i ...

) and the

Norfolk Yeomanry The Norfolk Yeomanry was a volunteer cavalry (Yeomanry) regiment of Britain's Territorial Army accepted onto the establishment of the British Army in 1794. After seeing action in the Second Boer War, it served dismounted at Gallipoli, in Palest ...

. During the Second World War agriculture rapidly intensified, and it has remained very intensive since, with the establishment of large fields for growing cereals and

oilseed rape Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...

Economy and industry

In 1998 Norfolk had a

Gross Domestic Product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a money, monetary Measurement in economics, measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjec ...

of £9,319 million, which represents 1.5% of England's economy and 1.25% of the United Kingdom's economy. The GDP per head was £11,825, compared to £13,635 for East Anglia, £12,845 for England and £12,438 for the United Kingdom. In 1999–2000 the county had an unemployment rate of 5.6%, compared to 5.8% for England and 6.0% for the UK. Data from 2017 provided a useful update on the county's economy. The median hourly gross pay was £12.17 and the median weekly pay was £496.80; on a per year basis, the median gross income was £25,458. The employment rate among persons aged 16 to 64 was 74.2% while the unemployment rate was 4.6%. The Norfolk economy was "treading water with manufacturing sales and recruitment remaining static in the first quarter of the year" according to research published in April 2018. A spokesperson for the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce made this comment: "At a time when Norfolk firms face steep up-front costs, the apprenticeship system is in crisis, roads are being allowed to crumble, mobile phone and broadband 'not-spots' are multiplying, it's obvious that the key to improved productivity and competitiveness lies in getting the basics right". The solution was seen as a need for the UK government to provide "a far stronger domestic economic agenda ... to fix the fundamentals needed for business to thrive here..." In 2017, tourism was adding £3.25 billion to the economy per year and supported some 65,000 jobs, being the fifth most important employment in Norfolk. The visitor economy had increased in value by more than £500 million since 2012. Important business sectors also include energy (oil, gas and renewables), advanced engineering and manufacturing, and food and farming. Much of Norfolk's fairly flat and fertile land has been drained for use as

arable land Arable land (from the la, arabilis, "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the ...

. The principal arable crops are

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...

, wheat,

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...

(for brewing) and

oil seed rape Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...

. The county also boasts a

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

grower. Over 20% of employment in the county is in the agricultural and food industries. Well-known companies in Norfolk are

Aviva Aviva plc is a British multinational insurance company headquartered in London, England. It has about 18 million customers across its core markets of the United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada. In the United Kingdom, Aviva is the largest general ...

(formerly Norwich Union), Colman's (part of

Unilever Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...

Lotus Cars Lotus Cars Limited is a British automotive company headquartered in Norfolk, England which manufactures sports cars and racing cars noted for their light weight and fine handling characteristics. Lotus was previously involved in Formula One r ...

and

Bernard Matthews Farms Bernard Matthews Holdings Ltd., trading as Bernard Matthews Foods Ltd, is a British farming and food products business with its headquarters in Great Witchingham, Norfolk, England, which specialises in turkey products. Founded by Bernard Matt ...

. The Construction Industry Training Board is based on the former airfield of RAF Bircham Newton. The BBC East region is centred on Norwich, although it covers an area as far west as

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

; the BBC does however provide

BBC Radio Norfolk BBC Radio Norfolk is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Norfolk. It broadcasts on FM, AM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at The Forum in Norwich. According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly audience of 1 ...

solely for the county. Brewer Greene King, food producer Cranswick and feed supplier ForFarmers were seeing growth in 2016–2017. A Local Enterprise Partnership was being established by business leaders to help grow jobs across Norfolk and Suffolk. They secured an enterprise zone to help grow businesses in the energy sector, and established the two counties as a centre for growing services and products for the green economy. To help local industry in Norwich, the local council offered a wireless internet service but this was subsequently withdrawn as funding has ceased. The fishery business still continued in 2018, with individuals such as John Lee, a fifth generation crabman, who sells Cromer Crabs to eateries such as M Restaurants and the Blueprint Café. The problem that he has found is attracting young people to this small industry which calls for working many hours per week during the season. Lobster trapping also continued in North Norfolk, around

Sheringham Sheringham (; population 7,367) is an English seaside town within the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom.Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 252 - Norfolk Coast East''. . The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban Distr ...

and Cromer, for example.

Management of the shoreline

Norfolk's low-lying land and easily eroded cliffs, many of which are composed of chalk and clay, make it vulnerable to weathering by the sea. The most recent major erosion event occurred during the

North Sea flood of 1953 The 1953 North Sea flood was a major flood caused by a heavy storm surge that struck the Netherlands, north-west Belgium, England and Scotland. Most sea defences facing the surge were overwhelmed, causing extensive flooding. The storm and flo ...

. The low-lying section of coast between

Kelling Kelling (also known as ''Low Kelling'' and as ''Lower Kelling'') is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is west of Cromer, north of Norwich, and northeast of London. The village straddles the A149 Coast ...

and

Lowestoft Ness Ness Point, also known as Lowestoft Ness, is the most easterly point of England, Great Britain, the United Kingdom and the British Isles. It is located in Lowestoft in the East Suffolk district of the county of Suffolk. The site is located to ...

in Suffolk is currently managed by the British

Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...

to protect the Broads from sea flooding. Management policy for the North Norfolk coastline is described in the "North Norfolk Shoreline Management Plan" published in 2006, but has yet to be accepted by local authorities. The Shoreline Management Plan states that the stretch of coast will be protected for at least another 50 years, but that in the event of

sea level rise Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...

and post-glacial lowering of land levels in the South East, there may a need for further research to inform future management decisions, including the possibility that the

sea defences The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

may have to be realigned to a more sustainable position. Natural England have contributed some research into the impacts on the environment of various realignment options. The draft report of their research was leaked to the press, who created great anxiety by reporting that Natural England plan to abandon a large section of the Norfolk Broads, villages and farmland to the sea to save the rest of the Norfolk coastline from the impact of any adverse

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

Education

Primary and secondary education

Before 2011, Norfolk had a completely comprehensive state education or "maintained" system managed by

Norfolk County Council Norfolk County Council is the top-tier local government authority for Norfolk, England. Its headquarters are based in the city of Norwich. Below it there are 7 second-tier local government district councils: Breckland District, Broadland Distr ...

, with secondary school age from 11 to 16 or in some schools with

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

s, 18 years old. Since then,a number of schools formerly in the "maintained" system have left it to become academies, or members of academy groups. Others have become free schools. Both academies and free schools are still publicly funded by the Department of Education, but are not with County Council management. In many of the rural areas, there is no nearby sixth form and so

sixth form college A sixth form college is an educational institution, where students aged 16 to 19 typically study for advanced school-level qualifications, such as A Levels, Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) and the International Baccalaureate Di ...

s are found in larger towns. There are twelve

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

, or private schools, including

Gresham's School Gresham's School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent Day school, day and boarding school) in Holt, Norfolk, Holt, Norfolk, England, one of the top thirty International Bac ...

Holt Holt or holte may refer to: Natural world *Holt (den), an otter den * Holt, an area of woodland Places Australia * Holt, Australian Capital Territory * Division of Holt, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives in Vic ...

in the north of the county, Thetford Grammar School in Thetford which is Britain's fifth oldest extant school, Langley School in

Loddon Loddon may refer to: *Loddon, Norfolk in England, UK *Shire of Loddon in Victoria, Australia (since 1995) **Bridgewater On Loddon, Victoria in Australia *River Loddon, flows into the River Thames near Reading *Loddon River, flows north from south of ...

, and several in the city of Norwich, including

Norwich School Norwich School (formally King Edward VI Grammar School, Norwich) is a selective English independent day school in the close of Norwich Cathedral, Norwich. Among the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, it has a traceable history to 1096 as a ...

and Norwich High School for Girls. The King's Lynn district has the largest school population. Norfolk is also home to

Wymondham College Wymondham College is a coeducational day and boarding school in Morley, near Wymondham, Norfolk, England with academy status. A former grammar school, it is one of 36 state boarding schools in England and the largest of its type in the country, ...

, the UK's largest remaining state

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

Tertiary education

The

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

is located on the outskirts of Norwich and Norwich University of the Arts is based in seven buildings in and around St George's Street in the city centre, next to the River Wensum. The

City College Norwich City College Norwich is a college of further and higher education in Norfolk, England. It is one of the largest colleges in the country. The College has expanded in recent years following mergers with Easton College in 2020 and Paston Colleg ...

and the College of West Anglia are colleges covering Norwich and King's Lynn as well as Norfolk as a whole.

Easton & Otley College Easton College is a college of further and higher education in Norfolk, located on a campus in the village of Easton. The college has specialist facilities for training in agriculture, horticulture, arboriculture, countryside, animal studie ...

, west of Norwich, provides agriculture-based courses for the county, parts of

and nationally. The

University of Suffolk The University of Suffolk is a public university situated in Suffolk and Norfolk, England. The modern university was established in 2007 as University Campus Suffolk (UCS), the institution was founded as a unique collaboration between the Univer ...

also runs higher education courses in Norfolk, from multiple locations including

Great Yarmouth College East Coast College is a Further Education (FE) college which has campuses in Lowestoft, Suffolk and Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. Following a six-month pilot area review in 2014, it was proposed that the merger of Great Yarmouth College and Lowestoft C ...

Politics

Local

Norfolk County Council election 2013 map

Norfolk is administered by Norfolk County Council which is the top tier local government authority, based at County Hall in Norwich. For details of the authority click on the link

. Below Norfolk County Council the county is divided into seven second tier district councils: Breckland District, Broadland District, Great Yarmouth Borough, King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough, North Norfolk District, Norwich City and South Norfolk District. Below the second tier councils the majority of the county is divided into Parish and Town Councils the lowest tier of local government, (the only exceptions being parts of Norwich and King's Lynn urban areas). As of 2018 the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

control six of the seven District Councils: Breckland District, Broadland District, King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough, North Norfolk District, Great Yarmouth Borough and South Norfolk District while Norwich City is controlled by the Labour Party.

has been under Conservative control since 2017. There have been two periods when the council has not been run by the Conservative Party, both when no party had overall control, these were 1993–2001 and 2013–2017. For the full County Council election results for 2017 and previous elections click on the link Norfolk County Council elections.

National

The county is divided into nine parliamentary constituencies: In the 2010 General Election seven seats were held by the Conservatives and two by the Liberal Democrats. The Labour Party no longer held the urban constituencies they once held in Norwich North and Great Yarmouth, leaving them with no MP's in the whole of

; the former Labour

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

Charles Clarke was a high level casualty of that election. In the 2015 General Election seven seats were won by the

, with

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

winning Norwich South and the Liberal Democrats winning North Norfolk. In the 2017 General Election the 2015 result was repeated.

Norwich Unitary Authority dispute (2006–2010)

In October 2006, the Department for Communities and Local Government produced a Local Government White Paper inviting councils to submit proposals for unitary restructuring. In January 2007 Norwich submitted its proposal, but this was rejected in December 2007 as it did not meet the criteria for acceptance. In February 2008, the Boundary Committee for England (from 1 April 2010 incorporated in the

Local Government Boundary Commission for England The Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) is a parliamentary body established by statute to conduct boundary, electoral and structural reviews of local government areas in England. The LGBCE is independent of government and pol ...

) was asked to consider alternative proposals for the whole or part of Norfolk, including whether Norwich should become a

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

, separate from Norfolk County Council. In December 2009, the Boundary Committee recommended a single unitary authority covering all of Norfolk, including Norwich. However, on 10 February 2010, it was announced that, contrary to the December 2009 recommendation of the Boundary Committee, Norwich would be given separate unitary status. The proposed change was strongly resisted, principally by Norfolk County Council and the Conservative opposition in Parliament. Reacting to the announcement, Norfolk County Council issued a statement that it would seek leave to challenge the decision in the courts. A letter was leaked to the local media in which the Permanent Secretary for the Department for Communities and Local Government noted that the decision did not meet all the criteria and that the risk of it "being successfully challenged in judicial review proceedings is very high". The Shadow Local Government and Planning Minister,

Bob Neill Sir Robert James MacGillivray Neill (born 24 June 1952) is a British barrister and Conservative Party politician. He has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bromley and Chislehurst since a by-election on 29 June 2006, following the ...

, stated that should the

win the 2010 general election, they would reverse the decision. Following the 2010 general election,

Eric Pickles Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar (UK Parliament co ...

was appointed

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...

on 12 May 2010 in a Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government. According to press reports, he instructed his department to take urgent steps to reverse the decision and maintain the status quo in line with the Conservative Party manifesto. However, the unitary plans were supported by the Liberal Democrat group on the city council, and by Simon Wright, LibDem MP for

Norwich South Norwich South is a constituency in Norfolk represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, since 2015 by Clive Lewis, of the Labour Party. History The constituency was created by the Representation of the People ...

, who intended to lobby the party leadership to allow the changes to go ahead. The

Local Government Act 2010 The Local Government Act 2010 (c. 35) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It revokes structural change orders that would have established Exeter and Norwich as unitary authorities and prevents the implementation of the Suffolk uni ...

to reverse the unitary decision for Norwich (and Exeter and Suffolk) received Royal Assent on 16 December 2010. The disputed award of unitary status had meanwhile been referred to the High Court, and on 21 June 2010 the court (

Mr. Justice Ouseley Sir Duncan Brian Walter Ouseley (born 24 February 1950), styled The Hon. Mr Justice Ouseley, is a recently retired High Court judge (England and Wales), High Court judge in England and Wales, Queen's Bench Division. He is notable for involvement in ...

, judge) ruled it unlawful, and revoked it. The city has therefore failed to attain unitary status, and the two-tier arrangement of County and District Councils (with Norwich City Council counted among the latter) remains as of 2017.

Emergency services

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Norfolk in the east of England. The county consists of around 870,100 people, covering the 4th largest area in England with 2,074 square miles in ...

* East of England Ambulance Service *

East Anglian Air Ambulance The East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) is an air ambulance providing Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) across the English counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire. The appeal to fund the service was launched in t ...

Norfolk Constabulary Norfolk Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing Norfolk in East Anglia, England. The force serves a population of 908,000 in a mostly rural area of , including 90 miles of coastline and 16 rivers, including the B ...

* British Transport Police * HM Coastguard

Settlements

Norfolk's county town and only

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

, one of the largest settlements in England during the Norman era. Norwich is home to the

, and is the county's main business and culture centre. Other principal towns include the port-town of

and the seaside resort and Broads gateway town of

. Based on the 2011 Census the county's largest centres of population are:

(213,166),

(63,434),

(46,093), Thetford (24,883),

Dereham Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of the England, English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city ...

(20,651), Wymondham (13,587), North Walsham (12,463),

Attleborough Attleborough is a market town and civil parish located on the A11 between Norwich and Thetford in Norfolk, England. The parish is in the district of Breckland and has an area of . The 2001 Census recorded the town as having a population of 9 ...

(10,549), Downham Market (9,994), Diss (9,829), Fakenham (8,285), Cromer (7,749),

(7,367) and Swaffham (7,258). There are also several smaller

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

s: Aylsham (6,016),

Harleston Harleston may refer to: Places * Harleston, Devon *Harleston, Norfolk *Harleston, Suffolk People with the surname *Bernard W. Harleston (born 1930), American college administrator * Edward Harleston (1794–1826), American planter and politician ...

(4,458) and

(3,810). Much of the county remains rural in nature and Norfolk is believed to have around 200 lost settlements which have been largely or totally depopulated since the medieval period. These include places lost to coastal erosion, agricultural

enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

, depopulation and the establishment of the

Stanford Training Area Stanford Training Area (STANTA), originally known as Stanford Battle Area, is a British Army training area situated in the English county of Norfolk. The area is approximately in size; it is some north of the town of Thetford and south-west ...

in 1940.

Transport

Roads

Norfolk is one of the few counties in England that does not have a motorway. The A11 connects Norfolk to

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

and London, via the M11. From the west, there are only two routes from Norfolk that provide a direct link with the A1: the A47 to the

East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...

and

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, via

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

, and the A17 to the

, via

. These two routes meet at

, which is also the starting point of the A10, providing West Norfolk with a direct link with London, via

Ely Ely or ELY may refer to: Places Ireland * Éile, a medieval kingdom commonly anglicised Ely * Ely Place, Dublin, a street United Kingdom * Ely, Cambridgeshire, a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England ** Ely Cathedral Ely Cathedral, formal ...

, Cambridge and

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...

Railways

There are two main railway lines that link Norfolk with London. The

Great Eastern Main Line The Great Eastern Main Line (GEML, sometimes referred to as the East Anglia Main Line) is a major railway line on the British railway system which connects Liverpool Street station in central London with destinations in east London and t ...

hosts inter-city services from

to Liverpool Street, via

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

and

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

. The Fen line provides regular services between

and King's Cross, via

and

. In addition, the

Breckland line The Breckland line is a secondary railway line in the east of England that links in the west to in the east. The line runs through three counties: Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk. It takes its name from the Breckland region of Norfolk, a ...

provides access from Norwich and Thetford to destinations to the west including

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

and

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

Air

Norwich International Airport Norwich Airport is an international airport in Hellesdon, Norfolk, England, north of Norwich. In 2017, Norwich Airport was the 28th busiest airport in the UK and busiest in the East Anglia region. Norwich Airport has a CAA Public Use Aero ...

provides flights to various European destinations, including a link to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

which offers onward flights throughout the world.

Dialect, accent and nickname

The Norfolk dialect is also known as "Broad Norfolk", although over the modern age much of the vocabulary and many of the phrases have died out due to a number of factors, such as radio, TV and people from other parts of the country coming to Norfolk. As a result, the speech of Norfolk is more of an accent than a

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of Linguistics, linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety (linguisti ...

, though one part retained from the Norfolk dialect is the distinctive grammar of the region. People from Norfolk are sometimes known as Norfolk Dumplings, an allusion to the flour dumplings that were traditionally a significant part of the local diet. More cutting, perhaps, was the alleged pejorative medical slang term "Normal for Norfolk", alluding to the county's perceived status as a quirky rustic backwater due to a high level of

inbreeding Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

among residents.

Tourism

Norfolk is a popular tourist destination and has several major holiday attractions. There are many seaside resorts, including some of the finest British beaches, such as those at

, Cromer and Holkham. Norfolk contains the Broads and other areas of outstanding

natural Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...

beauty and many areas of the coast are wild bird sanctuaries and reserves with some areas designated as

s such as the Norfolk Coast AONB. File:ElmHill.jpg, File:Mundesleybeachnorth.jpg, File:WroxhamBridge.jpg, File:Peddars Way - Holkham Bay.jpg, The

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

's residence at Sandringham House in

Sandringham, Norfolk Sandringham is a village and civil parish in the north of the English county of Norfolk. The village is situated south of Dersingham, north of King's Lynn and north-west of Norwich.Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 250 - Norfolk Coast W ...

provides an all-year-round tourist attraction whilst the coast and some rural areas are popular locations for people from the

conurbation A conurbation is a region comprising a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ca ...

s to purchase weekend holiday homes.

Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...

first conceived the idea for ''

The Hound of the Baskervilles ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set i ...

'' whilst holidaying in Cromer with Bertram Fletcher Robinson, after hearing local folklore tales regarding the mysterious hound known as

Black Shuck In English folklore, Black Shuck, Old Shuck, Old Shock or simply Shuck is the name given to a ghostly black dog which is said to roam the coastline and countryside of East Anglia, one of many such black dogs recorded in folklore across the Bri ...

Amusement parks and zoos

Norfolk has several amusement parks and zoos. *Thrigby Hall near Great Yarmouth was built in 1736 by Joshua Smith Esquire and features a zoo which houses a large tiger enclosure, primate enclosures and the swamp house which has many crocodiles and alligators. *

Holkham Hall Holkham Hall ( or ) is an 18th-century English country house, country house near the village of Holkham, Norfolk, England, constructed in the Neo-Palladian style for the Thomas Coke, 1st Earl of Leicester (fifth creation), 1st Earl of Leicester ...

is an 18th-century stately home and visitor attraction, constructed in the

Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

style and at the centre of a 3,000 acre deer park on the

North Norfolk North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Cromer. The population at the 2011 Census was 101,149. History The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972. It was a ...

coast with a woodland play area, walled garden and farming exhibition. *Roarr! Dinosaur Adventure (formerly Dinosaur Adventure) is a

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

themed adventure park in

Lenwade Lenwade is a village in the civil parish of Great Witchingham, Norfolk, situated in the Wensum Valley adjacent to the A1067 road south-east of Fakenham and some north-west of Norwich. The River Ainse (or Eyn) joins the Wensum at Lenwade. In 20 ...

. It is set in 85 acres of parkland and has a dinosaur trail, indoor play area, high ropes course and outdoor water play area. *

Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach The Pleasure Beach Great Yarmouth is an amusement park located in the seaside resort town of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, on the English east coast. It opened in 1909. The largest and most popular ride at the park is the wooden Roller Coaster which o ...

is a free-entry theme park, hosting over 20 large rides as well as a crazy golf course, water attractions, children's rides and "white knuckle" rides. * BeWILDerwood is an adventure park situated in the Norfolk Broads and is the setting for the book ''A Boggle at BeWILDerwood'' by local children's author

Tom Blofeld Thomas Henry Calthorpe Blofeld (born 30 May 1964), known as Tom Blofeld, is a writer of children's books and the owner and CEO of Bewilderwood, an adventure park in Horning, Norfolk. The author of three books for children, '' A Boggle at Bewild ...

. *Britannia Pier on the coast of Great Yarmouth has rides which include a ghost train. Also on the pier is the famous Britannia Pier Theatre. *

Banham Zoo Banham Zoological Gardens is a zoo in Banham, Norfolk, England. The zoo itself, which today is home to more than 2,000 animals, opened to the public in 1968, became a charity in 2013, and has since been often awarded the prize of Norfolk's Top ...

is set amongst of parkland and gardens with enclosures for animals including big cats, birds of prey, siamangs and shire horses. Its annual visitor attendance is in excess of 200,000 people. *

Pensthorpe Nature Reserve Pensthorpe Natural Park is located in Pensthorpe, Norfolk, England and is approximately one mile from Fakenham and close to the A1067 road. The park covers . The River Wensum, which runs through the site, is a designated Special Area of Conserva ...

, near the town of Fakenham in north Norfolk, is a nature reserve with many captive birds and animals. Such species include native birds such as lapwing and Eurasian crane, to much more exotic examples like Marabou stork, Greater flamingo, and Manchurian crane. The site played host to BBC's 'Springwatch' from 2008 until 2010. A number of man-made lakes are home to a range of wild birds, and provide stop-off points for many wintering ducks and geese. *The

Sea Life Centre Sea Life is a chain of commercial marine life, sea life-themed aquarium tourism, attractions. there are 53 Sea Life attractions (including standalone Sea Life centres, mini Sea Life features within resort theme parks, and Legoland submarine ri ...

in Great Yarmouth is One of the biggest sea life centres in the country. The Great Yarmouth centre is home to a tropical shark display, one resident of which is Britain's biggest shark 'Nobby' the Nurse Shark. The same display, with its walk-through underwater tunnel, also features the wreckage of a World War II aircraft. The centre also includes over 50 native species including shrimps, starfish, sharks, stingrays and conger eels. *The Sea Life Sanctuary in

Hunstanton Hunstanton () is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, which had a population of 4,229 at the 2011 Census. It faces west across The Wash, making it one of the few places on the east coast of Great Britain where the sun sets over the sea. Hunstant ...

is Norfolk's leading marine rescue centre and works both as a visitor attraction as well as a location for rescuing and rehabilitating sick and injured sea creatures found in the nearby Wash and

. The attractions main features are similar to that of the Sea Life Centre in Great Yarmouth, albeit on a slightly smaller scale.

Theatres

The Pavilion Theatre (Cromer) is a 510-seater venue on the end of Cromer Pier, best known for hosting the 'end-of-the-pier' show, the Seaside Special. The theatre also presents comedy, music, dance, opera, musicals and community shows. The Britannia Pier Theatre (Great Yarmouth) mainly hosts popular comedy acts such as the Chuckle Brothers and Jim Davidson. The theatre has 1,200 seats and is one of the largest in Norfolk. The Theatre Royal (Norwich) has been on its present site for nearly 250 years, the Act of Parliament in the tenth year of the reign of George II having been rescinded in 1761. The 1,300-seat theatre, the largest in the city, hosts a mix of national touring productions including musicals, dance, drama, family shows, stand-up comedians, opera and pop. The

Norwich Playhouse The Norwich Playhouse is a theatre in St George's Street, Norwich, Norfolk, England. The theatre opened in 1995 in a nineteenth-century building that was once a maltings, and is a 300-seat receiving house for theatre arts including comedy, music ...

(Norwich) hosts theatre, comedy, music and other performing arts. It has a seating capacity of 300. The

Maddermarket Theatre The Maddermarket Theatre is a British theatre located in St. John's Alley in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It was founded in 1921 by Nugent Monck. Early history and conversion The theatre was originally built as a Roman Catholic chapel in 1794. In ...

(Norwich) opened in 1921 and was the first permanent recreation of an Elizabethan theatre. The founder was Nugent Monck who had worked with William Poel. The theatre has a seating capacity of 312. The

Norwich Puppet Theatre The Norwich Puppet Theatre is a nationally unique venue dedicated to puppetry housed in the medieval church of Saint James the Less a Grade 1 listed building, in the city of Norwich, England. It currently houses a 165-seat raked auditorium, a 5 ...

(Norwich) was founded in 1979 by Ray and Joan DaSilva as a permanent base for their touring company and was first opened as a public venue in 1980, following the conversion of the medieval church of St. James in the heart of Norwich. Under subsequent artistic directors – Barry Smith and Luis Z. Boy – the theatre established its current pattern of operation. It is a nationally unique venue dedicated to puppetry, and currently houses a 185-seat raked auditorium, 50 seat Octagon Studio, workshops, an exhibition gallery, shop and licensed bar. It is the only theatre in the Eastern region with a year-round programme of family-centred entertainment. The Garage studio theatre (Norwich) can seat up to 110 people in a range of different layouts. It can also be used for standing events and can accommodate up to 180 people. The Platform Theatre (Norwich) is in the grounds of

(CCN), and has a large stage with raked seating for an audience of around 200. The theatre plays host to performances by both student and professional companies. The

Sewell Barn Theatre Sewell Barn Theatre is located in the grounds of Sewell Park Academy (formerly the Blyth school, later the Blyth-Jex school and Sewell Park College) on Constitution Hill in Norwich, England. It is home to a popular amateur theatre company, wit ...

(Norwich) is the smallest theatre in Norwich and has a seating capacity of 100. The auditorium features raked seating on three sides of an open acting space. The

Norwich Arts Centre Norwich Arts Centre is a live music venue, theatre and art gallery located in St Benedict's Street in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It has a capacity of 260 for standing music concerts and 120 for seated events. In November 2014, it was named "Brita ...

(Norwich) theatre opened in 1977 in St. Benedict's Street, and has a capacity of 290. The Princess Theatre (Hunstanton) stands overlooking the Wash and the

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

in the East Coast resort of Hunstanton. It is a 472-seat venue. Open all year round, the theatre plays host to a wide variety of shows from comedy to drama, celebrity shows to music for all tastes and children's productions. It has a six-week summer season plus an annual Christmas pantomime. Sheringham Little Theatre (Sheringham) has seating for 180. The theatre programmes a variety of plays, musicals and music, and also shows films. The

Gorleston Pavilion Gorleston Pavilion or Pavilion Theatre is located near the mouth of River Yare in the town of Gorleston-on-Sea in the English county of Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Li ...

(Gorleston) is an original

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

building with a seating capacity of 300, situated on the Norfolk coast. The theatre stages plays, pantomimes, musicals and concerts as well as a 26-week summer season.

Demography

According to estimates by the

Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; cy, Swyddfa Ystadegau Gwladol) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible for th ...

, the population of Norfolk in 2018 was 903,680, split almost evenly between males and females. Roughly 24.3% of the population was aged 65 or older, compared to 18.2% for the whole of England. Source:

Notable people

From Norfolk

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

, King/Emperor of the United Kingdom. Born and died on the Sandringham Estate. * Joseph Ames, naval commander. Born and lived in Great Yarmouth * Joseph Ames, bibliographer and antiquary. Born in Great Yarmouth * Hannah Amond, pop singer from Norwich. * Diana Athill, literary editor and author, South Norfolk and

Ditchingham Ditchingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located across the River Waveney from Bungay, Suffolk.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map OL40 - The Broads''. . History Ditchingham's name is of Anglo-S ...

Alexander Baker (Jesuit) Alexander Baker (1582–1638), was an English Jesuit. Biography Baker was born in Norfolk in 1582. He entered the Society of Jesus about 1610 and was professed of the four solemn vows in 1627 and visited India twice as a missionary. Baker died on ...

, missionary to India *

Peter Bellamy Peter Franklyn Bellamy (8 September 1944 – 24 September 1991) was an English folk singer. He was a founding member of The Young Tradition and also had a long solo career, recording numerous albums and touring folk clubs and concert halls. He ...

, folk singer and musician, who was brought up in North Norfolk * Henry Blofeld,

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

commentator *

Henry Blogg Henry George Blogg"Henry Blogg, the Greatest of the Lifeboatmen", Jolly, C., Pub: Poppyland Publishing, new edition 2002, GC BEM (6 February 1876 – 13 June 1954) was a lifeboatman from Cromer on the north coast of Norfolk, England, and the ...

, the UK's most decorated lifeboatman, who was from Cromer *

Francis Blomefield Rev. Francis Blomefield (23 July 170516 January 1752), FSA, Rector of Fersfield in Norfolk, was an English antiquarian who wrote a county history of Norfolk: ''An Essay Towards a Topographical History of the County of Norfolk''. It includes ...

, Anglican rector, early topographical historian of Norfolk *

James Blunt James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount; 22 February 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. A former reconnaissance officer in the Life Guards regiment of the British Army, he served under NATO during the 1999 Kosovo War. After l ...

, English acoustic folk rock singer-songwriter who was raised in Norfolk during his childhood *

, scourge of the occupying

Roman Army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

in first century Britain and queen of the

, British tribe occupying an area slightly larger than modern Norfolk *

Martin Brundle Martin John Brundle (born 1 June 1959) is a British former racing driver, best known as a Formula One driver and as a commentator for ITV Sport from 1997 to 2008, the BBC from 2009 to 2011, and Sky Sports since 2012. Brundle contested the 19 ...

, former motor-racing driver and now a commentator was born in King's Lynn *

Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (25 May 180318 January 1873) was an English writer and politician. He served as a Whigs (British political party), Whig member of Parl ...

, writer, born at Heydon * George Russell (racing driver), Formula 1 driver, born in Kings Lynn, and educated at Wisbech grammar school. *

Dave Bussey Dave Bussey (born 4 October 1952), is an English radio disc jockey who, until March 2008, presented ''The Dave Bussey Show'' on BBC Radio Lincolnshire. Early life He was born in Drayton, Norfolk and grew up in Norwich, attending a secondary mo ...

, former

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

and current BBC Radio Lincolnshire presenter * Michael Carroll (29 March 1983–) lottery winner *

Howard Carter Howard Carter (9 May 18742 March 1939) was a British archaeologist and Egyptologist who discovered the intact tomb of the 18th Dynasty Pharaoh Tutankhamun in November 1922, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the K ...

, archaeologist who discovered

Tutankhamun Tutankhamun (, egy, twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn), Egyptological pronunciation Tutankhamen () (), sometimes referred to as King Tut, was an Egyptian pharaoh who was the last of his royal family to rule during the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ruled ...

's tomb; his childhood was spent primarily in Swaffham * Edith Cavell, a nurse executed by the Germans for aiding the escape of prisoners in World War I * Sam Claflin, actor, grew up in Norwich and studied at

Costessey High School Ormiston Victory Academy (formerly Costessey High School) is a secondary school and sixth form located in Costessey, Norfolk, England. The Academy has specialisms in Science and Applied Learning. The Academy catchment area covers Easton, Marl ...

Sam Clemmett Samuel Timothy Clemmett (born 1 October 1993) is a British actor. He is best known for his role as Albus Potter in the play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child''. Early life Clemmett is from Brundall near Norwich. He attended Thorpe St Andre ...

, actor, from Brundall known for starring in West End stage play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', Haribo Tangfastics television advert and the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

documentary ''Murder Games: The Life and Death of Breck Bednar'' where he played

Breck Bednar Breck David LaFave Bednar (17 March 1999 – 17 February 2014) was an English teenager of American descent from Caterham, Surrey, who was murdered by 18-year-old Lewis Daynes on 17 February 2014, at Daynes' flat in Grays, Essex. Bednar knew Day ...

the teen murdered by Lewis Daynes *

Edward Coke Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

, 17th-century jurist and author of the Petition of Right was born in

Mileham Mileham is a village approximately midway between East Dereham and Fakenham in Mid Norfolk with a population of 563 people in 2011. The village sits astride the B1145 Kings Lynn to Mundesley road that dissects Mid Norfolk west to east. It is ...

and educated at

Olivia Colman Sarah Caroline Sinclair ( Colman; born 30 January 1974), known professionally as Olivia Colman, is an English actress. Known for her comedic and dramatic roles in film and television, she has received various accolades, including an Academy A ...

, actress, born and educated in Norfolk * Jamie Cutter, co-founder of Cutter & Buck, America's largest golf apparel providers, born in Norwich * Cathy Dennis, singer and songwriter, from Norwich *

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, was born and grew up in Park House near the

Sandringham Sandringham can refer to: Places * Sandringham, New South Wales, Australia * Sandringham, Queensland, Australia * Sandringham, Victoria, Australia **Sandringham railway line **Sandringham railway station **Electoral district of Sandringham * Sand ...

estate * Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer brother of

and maternal uncle to H.R.H.

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. Born in London, William was educat ...

and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex *

Anthony Duckworth-Chad Anthony Nicholas George Duckworth-Chad (born 1942), of Pynkney Hall, in Tattersett near King's Lynn, Norfolk, England, is a landowner, City of London business man, and a senior county officer for Norfolk. Education Duckworth-Chad was educated ...

, landowner and Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk *

Sir James Dyson Sir James Dyson (born 2 May 1947) is a British inventor, industrial designer, farmer, and billionaire entrepreneur who founded Dyson Ltd. He is best known as the inventor of the dual cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner, which works on the princip ...

, inventor and entrepreneur, was born at Cromer, grew up at

and was educated at Gresham's School *

Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

(1916–1986), Brian (1922–2009), Eric (1914–1993), Geoff (1918–2004), John (1937–), and Justin (1961–)

Edrich Edrich is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bill Edrich (1916–1986), English cricketer, Middlesex and England batsman * Brian Edrich (1922–2009), English cricketer, Kent and Glamorgan batsman * Eric Edrich (1914–1993), En ...

, cricketers *

Nathan Fake Nathan Fake is an English electronic music artist from Necton in Norfolk, England, who has released singles as well as three albums on the label Border Community Recordings. In 2006, his debut album ''Drowning in a Sea of Love'' was released ...

, electronic dance music producer/DJ * Pablo Fanque, equestrian and popular Victorian circus proprietor, whose 1843 poster advertisement inspired

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

song, Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!, born in Norwich * Natasha and

Ralph Firman Ralph David Firman Jr. (born 20 May 1975) is a British-born former racing driver who raced under Irish citizenship (his mother Angela is from Ireland) and an Irish-issued racing licence. Earlier in his career he raced under a British licence. ...

, racing drivers, were both born and brought up in Norfolk and educated at Gresham's School *

Caroline Flack Caroline Louise Flack (9 November 1979 – 15 February 2020) was an English television and radio presenter and actress. She won the twelfth series of BBC’s ''Strictly Come Dancing'' in 2014 and presented ''The X Factor'' and later '' Love Isl ...

, television presenter, who grew up in

East Wretham Wretham is a civil parish in the Breckland district of Norfolk, England. The parish includes the village of East Wretham, which is about northeast of Thetford and southwest of Norwich. It also includes the villages of Illington and Stonebri ...

and went to school in Watton * Margaret Fountaine, butterfly collector, was born in Norfolk, and her collection is housed in Norwich Castle Museum * Elizabeth Fry, prominent 19th century

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

prison reformer pictured on the

Bank of England £5 note The Bank of England £5 note, also known as a fiver, is a sterling banknote . It is the smallest denomination of banknote currently issued by the Bank of England. In September 2016, a new polymer note was introduced, featuring the image of Qu ...

, born and raised in Norwich * Stephen Fry, actor, comedian, writer, producer, director and author who was born in London and was brought up in the village of Booton near Reepham. He now has a second home near King's Lynn *

Samuel Fuller Samuel Michael Fuller (August 12, 1912 – October 30, 1997) was an American film director, screenwriter, novelist, journalist, and World War II veteran known for directing low-budget B movie, genre movies with controversial themes, often ...

, signed the

Mayflower Compact The Mayflower Compact, originally titled Agreement Between the Settlers of New Plymouth, was the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the men aboard the ''Mayflower,'' consisting of separatist Puritans, adventurers, an ...

Claire Goose Claire Goose (born 10 February 1975) is a British actress. She played Tina Seabrook, a nurse in BBC One's ''Casualty'', DS Mel Silver in '' Waking the Dead'', and Sergeant (later Inspector) Rachel Weston in ITV's ''The Bill''. She also narrated ...

, actress who starred in ''Casualty'', was raised in Norfolk *

Ed Graham Edwin James Graham (born 20 February 1977) is an English musician who is best known as the original drummer of the rock band the Darkness, as well as the subsequent successor band Stone Gods fronted by guitarist and singer Richie Edwards. ...

, drummer of

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

band The Darkness, was born in Great Yarmouth * Sienna Guillory, actress, from north Norfolk, who was educated at Gresham's School * Sir

Henry Rider Haggard Sir Henry Rider Haggard (; 22 June 1856 – 14 May 1925) was an English writer of adventure fiction romances set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and a pioneer of the lost world literary genre. He was also involved in land reform t ...

, novelist, author of ''She'', ''King Solomon's Mines'', born Bradenham 1856 and lived after his marriage at

Lilias Rider Haggard Lilias Margitson Rider Haggard, MBE (9 December 1892 – 9 January 1968) was the fourth and youngest child of the British writer Sir Henry Rider Haggard and Mariana Louisa MargitsonDawson Haggard D.,''The History of the Haggard Family in England a ...

, daughter of Henry Rider Haggard and author of books about Norfolk *

Lauren Hemp Lauren May Hemp (born 7 August 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for FA WSL club Manchester City. She was named England Young Player of the Year in September 2016, 2017 and PFA Women's Young Player of the Ye ...

, footballer for England, part of the squad that won the UEFA Women's Euro 2022, was born in North Walsham and played for Norwich City Women FC * Jake Humphrey,

presenter, spent most of his childhood in Norwich * Andy Hunt,

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

, grew up in Ashill. *

Julian of Norwich Julian of Norwich (1343 – after 1416), also known as Juliana of Norwich, Dame Julian or Mother Julian, was an English mystic and anchoress of the Middle Ages. Her writings, now known as ''Revelations of Divine Love'', are the earlies ...

, mediaeval mystic, born probably in Norwich in 1342; lived much of her life as a recluse in Norwich *

, leader of Kett's Rebellion in East Anglia 1549, from Wymondham *

R. W. Ketton-Cremer Robert Wyndham Ketton-Cremer, (2 May 1906 – 12 December 1969) was an English landowner, biographer and historian. He bequeathed his family seat, Felbrigg Hall, to the National Trust. Early life Robert Wyndham Cremer was born in Plympton, Dev ...

, Norfolk historian and former owner of Felbrigg Hall *

Sid Kipper Chris Sugden is a Norfolk humorist, best known for his portrayal of fictional folk singer Sid Kipper, the younger half of the Kipper Family. Personal life Born in West Runton in 1952, Sugden initially studied pharmacy at Leicester Polytechnic befo ...

, Norfolk humourist, author, songwriter and singer * Myleene Klass, former Hear'Say singer, comes from Gorleston * Holly Lerski, singer and songwriter, former member of the band Angelou, grew up and resides in Norfolk * Henry Leslie, actor and playwright, born 1830 at Walsoken * Samuel Lincoln, ancestor of US President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

Matthew Macfadyen David Matthew Macfadyen (; born 17 October 1974) is an English actor. Known for his performances on stage and screen, he gained prominence for his role as Mr. Darcy in Joe Wright's ''Pride & Prejudice'' (2005). He currently stars as Tom Wambsgans ...

, actor who starred in '' Spooks'', was born in

Kenneth McKee George Kenneth McKee CBE (5 January 1906 – 18 July 1991) was an English orthopaedist, one of the pioneers of hip replacement surgery in the 1950s. He is now honoured with a bust at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. Early life ...

, surgeon who pioneered

hip replacement surgery Hip replacement is a surgical procedure in which the hip joint is replaced by a prosthetic implant, that is, a hip prosthesis. Hip replacement surgery can be performed as a total replacement or a hemi (half) replacement. Such joint replacement o ...

techniques, lived in Tacolneston * Danny Mills, footballer, born in Norwich * Sir

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

, actor, born in North Elmham * R. H. Mottram, author and former

Lord Mayor of Norwich This is a list of mayors and the later lord mayors of the city of Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north ...

* Horatio, Lord Nelson, Admiral and British hero who played a major role in the

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...

, born and schooled in Norfolk *

Nimmo Twins The Nimmo Twins are a sketch comedy duo from Norfolk, UK comprising Owen Evans and Karl Minns. First working together in 1996 in Norwich, they came to national attention after their show ''Posh Spice Nude'' was a sell-out success at the 1997 E ...

, sketch comedy duo well known in Norfolk *

King Olav V of Norway Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Nor ...

, born at

Flitcham Flitcham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is located north-east of King's Lynn and north-west of Norwich, along the River Babingley. Together with the villages of West Newton, Shernborne and Anmer, Fli ...

on the Sandringham estate *

Beth Orton Elizabeth Caroline Orton (born 14 December 1970) is an English musician, known for her "folktronica" sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit, Andrew Weatherall, ...

, singer-songwriter, was born in

and raised in Norwich *

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

, philosopher, born in Thetford *

Ronan Parke Ronan Parke (born 8 August 1998) is an English singer from Poringland, Norfolk, UK who came runner-up in the fifth series of ITV show ''Britain's Got Talent'' in 2011 when he was 12 despite being the bookies' favourite to win. Since appearing ...

, Britain's Got Talent 2011 finalist and runner up *

Margaret Paston The ''Paston Letters'' is a collection of correspondence between members of the Paston family of Norfolk gentry and others connected with them in England between the years 1422 and 1509. The collection also includes state papers and other impor ...

, author of many of the

Paston Letters The ''Paston Letters'' is a collection of correspondence between members of the Paston family of Norfolk gentry and others connected with them in England between the years 1422 and 1509. The collection also includes state papers and other impor ...

, born 1423, lived at Gresham * Barry Pinches,

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sports, cue sport played on a Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets, one at each corner and o ...

player who comes from Norwich * Matthew Pinsent, Olympic champion rower, was born in

Prasutagus Prasutagus was king of a British Celtic tribe called the Iceni, who inhabited roughly what is now Norfolk, in the 1st century AD. He is best known as the husband of Boudica. Prasutagus may have been one of the eleven kings who surrendered to Clau ...

, 1st-century king of the

, who occupied roughly the area which is now Norfolk * Philip Pullman, author, born in Norwich * Miranda Raison, actress, from north Norfolk, who was educated at Gresham's School *

Anna Sewell Anna Sewell (; 30 March 1820 – 25 April 1878)''The Oxford guide to British women writers'' by Joanne Shattock. p. 385, Oxford University Press. (1993) was an English novelist. She is known as the author of the 1877 novel ''Black Beauty'', her ...

, writer, author of ''Black Beauty'', born at

, lived part of her life at

Old Catton Old Catton is a suburban village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk which lies to the north-east of central Norwich. The parish is bounded by the Norwich International Airport at Hellesdon to the west and Sprowston to the east. T ...

near Norwich and buried at Lamas, near Buxton *

Thomas Shadwell Thomas Shadwell ( – 19 November 1692) was an English poet and playwright who was appointed Poet Laureate in 1689. Life Shadwell was born at either Bromehill Farm, Weeting-with-Broomhill or Santon House, Lynford, Norfolk, and educated at Bury ...

, playwright, satirist and

Poet Laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) ...

Allan Smethurst Allan Francis Smethurst (19 November 1927 – 22 December 2000), aka The Singing Postman was an English folk singer and postman. He is best known for his self-penned novelty song, "Hev Yew Gotta Loight, Boy?", which earned him an Ivor Novello Awa ...

, 'The Singing Postman' who sang songs in his Norfolk dialect, was from

* Hannah Spearritt, actress and former S Club 7 singer, who is from Gorleston *

Roger Taylor Roger Taylor may refer to: *Roger Taylor (Queen drummer) (born 1949), drummer for Queen *Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) (born 1960), drummer for Duran Duran *Roger Taylor (author), author of epic fantasy Hawklan series *Roger Taylor (college pr ...

, drummer of the rock band

was born in King's Lynn and spent the early part of his childhood in Norfolk *

Adam Thoroughgood Adam Thoroughgood horowgood'' (1604–1640) was a colonist and community leader in the Virginia Colony who helped settle the Virginia counties of Elizabeth City, Lower Norfolk and Princess Anne, the latter, known today as the independent city of ...

, colonial leader in Virginia, namer of New Norfolk County, which later became Norfolk, Virginia *

Peter Trudgill Peter Trudgill, FBA (; born 7 November 1943) is an English sociolinguist, academic and author. Trudgill was born in Norwich, England and grew up in the area of Thorpe St Andrew. He attended the City of Norwich School from 1955. Trudgill studie ...

sociolinguist Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any or all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used, and society's effect on language. It can overlap with the sociology of l ...

specialising in accents and dialects including his own native Norfolk dialect, was born and bred in Norwich *

George Vancouver Captain George Vancouver (22 June 1757 – 10 May 1798) was a British Royal Navy officer best known for his 1791–1795 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of what a ...

, born King's Lynn. Captain and explorer in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

Stella Vine Stella Vine (born Melissa Jane Robson, 1969) is an English artist, who lives and works in London. Her work is figurative painting, with subjects drawn from personal life, as well as from rock stars, royalty, and other celebrities. In 2001, she ...

, English artist, spent many of her early years in Norwich * Sir Robert Walpole, first

Earl of Orford Earl of Orford is a title that has been created three times. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1697 when the naval commander Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell was made Earl of Orford, in the County of Suffolk. He was cr ...

, regarded as the first British prime minister * Tim Westwood, rap DJ and

Radio 1 Radio 1 or Radio One most commonly refers to: *BBC Radio 1, a music radio station from the BBC ** BBC Radio 1Xtra, a digital radio station broadcasting black music *CBC Radio One, a talk radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporatio ...

presenter, grew up in and around Norwich * Parson Woodforde, 18th century clergyman and

diarist A diary is a written or audiovisual record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digital. A personal ...

* Nick Youngs (1959–) and his two sons,

Ben Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, � ...

(1989–) and

Tom Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

(1987–) were both raised close to the town of Aylsham on their father's farm Youngs is a former

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player for

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...

and

. Both sons went on to represent the national rugby union team. *

William Gooderham Sr. William Gooderham Sr. (August 29, 1790 – August 20, 1881) was a British-born Canadians, Canadian distiller, businessman, and banker. He was a founder of the Gooderham and Worts distillery. Life and career Born in Scole, Norfolk, England ...

(29 August 1790 – 20 August 1881) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

distiller, businessman, and banker. He was a founder of the Gooderham and Worts distillery in Toronto,Canada.

Associated with Norfolk

The following people were not born or brought up in Norfolk but are long-term residents of Norfolk, are well known for living in Norfolk at some point in their lives, or have contributed in some significant way to the county. *

Verily Anderson Verily Anderson (12 January 1915 – 16 July 2010) was a British author, best known for writing the screenplay of the 1960 film '' No Kidding'',Eloise Miller"Verily Anderson obituary" ''The Guardian'' (London), 29 July 2010. based on her 1958 book ...

(1915–2010), writer, lived in North Norfolk *

Stuart Ashen Dr Stuart Clive Ashen (born 16 December 1976), commonly known by his online alias Ashens ( ), is a British comedian, critic and YouTuber known for reviewing various products; his reviews usually include toys, video games and food. , his main Y ...

, comedian, animator, actor and online reviewer, born and lives in Norfolk *

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. WikiLeaks came to international attention in 2010 when it published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army inte ...

, Australian publisher, journalist, writer, computer programmer, Internet activist and editor in chief of

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international Nonprofit organization, non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous Source (journalism), sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activism, Internet acti ...

, lived since 16 December 2010 in Ellingham Hall, the mansion of

Vaughan Smith Henry Vaughan Lockhart Smith (born 22 July 1963) is an English restaurateur, sustainable farmer, and freelance video journalist. He ran the freelance agency Frontline News TV and founded the Frontline Club in London. ''The Guardian'' has des ...

, under house arrest whilst fighting extradition to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, before relocating to

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

in December 2011 * Peter Baker (1921–1966), British Conservative MP for South Norfolk *

Mary Bristow Mary Bristow of Quidenham Hall, Norfolk (??? - 1805) was best known for developing and designing the woodland, known as Miss Bristow’s Wood, from the agricultural land surrounding Castle Fraser she was also known as the close friend of Elyza F ...

(1781–1805), landscape gardener, owner of

Quidenham Hall Quidenham Hall is a country house at Quidenham in Norfolk, England. History A dwelling is known to have existed on the site as far back as the year 1000, which passed to the Bedingfeld family around 1400. In 1572 the manor was bought by John Hol ...

Bill Bryson William McGuire Bryson (; born 8 December 1951) is an American–British journalist and author. Bryson has written a number of nonfiction books on topics including travel, the English language, and science. Born in the United States, he has b ...

, writer, has lived in the county since 2003 * Adam Buxton, comedian and one half of Adam and Joe, moved to Norfolk in 2008 *

Richard Condon Richard Thomas Condon (March 18, 1915 – April 9, 1996) was an American political novelist. Though his works were satire, they were generally transformed into thrillers or semi-thrillers in other media, such as cinema. All 26 books were writte ...

(1937–1991), Theatre Royal, Norwich and Pavilion Theatre, Cromer Pier manager * Revd Richard Enraght (1837–1898), 19th century clergyman, religious controversialist, Rector of St Swithun,

Bintree Bintree is a village and civil parish in Norfolk, England, about nine miles (14 km) south-east of Fakenham. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 300, increasing to 329 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government ...

* Liza Goddard TV and stage actress, lives in the village of Syderstone * Trisha Goddard, TV personality, lives in Norwich and writes a column in the local newspaper the '' Eastern Daily Press'' *

Roderick Gordon Roderick Gordon (born November 1960) is the author of ''Tunnels'', a bestselling children's book and the first book in the ''Tunnels'' series by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams. Biography Born in November 1960, Roderick grew up in Highgate ...

, writer of ''Tunnels'' series, lives in North Norfolk *

Adriana Hunter Adriana Hunter is a British translator of French literature. She is known for translating over 60 French novels, such as ''Fear and Trembling'' by Amélie Nothomb or ''The Girl Who Played Go'' by Shan Sa. She has been short-listed for the Indepen ...

, translator of French novels, lives in Norfolk *

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament ...

, British Prime Minister from 1990 to 1997, has a holiday home in Weybourne * Alan Partridge, fictional tongue-in-cheek media personality portrayed by

Steve Coogan Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is most known for creating original characters such as Alan Partridge, a socially inept and politically incorrect media personality, which ...

. His feature film '' Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa'' was set, filmed and had its world premiere in Norwich in 2013 * Pocahontas (c. 1596–1617), who lived at

Heacham Heacham is a large village in West Norfolk, England, overlooking The Wash. It lies between King's Lynn, to the south, and Hunstanton, about to the north. It has been a seaside resort for over a century and a half. History There is evidence o ...

Hall for part of her life when she was married to John Rolfe * Martin Shaw, stage, television and film actor, is based in Norfolk * Delia Smith, cookery writer and major Norwich City Football Club shareholder * John Wilson (1943–2018),

angler Angler may refer to: * A fisherman who uses the fishing technique of angling * ''Angler'' (video game) * The angler, ''Lophius piscatorius'', a monkfish * More generally, any anglerfish in the order Lophiiformes * '' Angler: The Cheney Vice Presi ...

, writer and broadcaster

Gallery

File:Wells-next-the-Sea 1.jpg, Wells-next-the-Sea File:The Wensum under trees.JPG, River Wensum, Norwich File:Norwich Cathedral 2015.jpg, Norwich Cathedral: spire and south transept File:NorwichRCC.JPG,

St John the Baptist Cathedral, Norwich The Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist is the Roman Catholic cathedral of the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. History The cathedral, located on Unthank Road, was constructed between 1882 and 1910 to designs by George Gilbert Scott, Jr. ...

References

External links

*
Norfolk County Council

Norfolk tourism (official site)

Photos of Norfolk

Norfolk E-Map Explorer – historical maps and aerial photographs of Norfolk

– Government agency that collects and preserves records of historical significance for Norfolk and makes them publicly accessible – useful for genealogical research
Guide to the Norfolk County, Collection of English Deeds ca. 1409-ca.1826
at th
University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center
{{coord, 52, 40, N, 1, 00, E, region:GB_type:adm1st, display=title Kingdom of East Anglia Non-metropolitan counties Counties of England established in antiquity