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Swindon Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...
is a large town in
Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
, England; its residents are called Swindonians and many have achieved notability throughout its history. *
Heidi Alexander Heidi Alexander (born 17 April 1975) is a British politician who served as Deputy Mayor of London for Transport from 2018 to 2021. A member of the Labour Party, she was Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewisham East from 2010 to 2018. Alexander ...
– former Labour Party MP for
Lewisham East Lewisham East is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since the by-election on 14 June 2018 by Janet Daby of the Labour Party. History Lewisham East was created for the 1918 general election. ...
* Sam Allen – football manager at
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...
* Joseph Armstrong – engineer and the second locomotive superintendent of the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
lived, worked and is buried in Swindon *
Dean Ashton Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...
– Premiership footballer, played for
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
, born in Swindon * Colin Bailey – drummer *
Ralph Bates Ralph Bates (12 February 1940 – 27 March 1991) was an English film and television actor, known for his role in the British sitcom '' Dear John'' and the original ''Poldark''. Biography Bates was born in Bristol, England. His parents were bo ...
– writer *
Carl Benjamin Carl Benjamin (born 1979), also known by his online pseudonym Sargon of Akkad, is a British far-right anti-feminist YouTuber and political commentator. A former member of the Eurosceptic right-wing UK Independence Party (UKIP), he was one ...
– YouTuber, political commentator better known as Sargon of Akkad *
Billy Bodin Billy Paul Bodin (born 24 March 1992) is a professional association football, footballer who plays for EFL League One, League One club Oxford United F.C., Oxford United. He plays as a forward (association football), forward or as an attacking mi ...
– footballer, born in Swindon * Mark A. Brennan – Canadian landscape painter, born in Swindon, 1968 *
Jazz Carlin Jazmin Roxy "Jazz" Carlin (born 17 September 1990) is a former British competitive swimmer, who previously represented Wales and the Great Britain swimming team. She competed primarily in endurance freestyle events, and was based at the Universi ...
– swimmer, World Champion in 400m and 800m freestyle *
Lucy Cohu Lucy Ann Cohu (born 2 October 1970) is an English stage and film actress, known for portraying Princess Margaret in ''The Queen's Sister'', Evelyn Brogan in ''Cape Wrath'' and Alice Carter in ''Torchwood'': ''Children of Earth''. Background Lu ...
– actress, born in Swindon, 1968 *
Julian Clary Julian Peter McDonald Clary (born 25 May 1959) is an English actor, comedian, novelist and presenter. He began appearing on television in the mid-1980s. Since then he has also acted in films, television and stage productions, numerous pantomim ...
– comedian, formerly a resident of
Rodbourne Rodbourne is a suburb of Swindon in Wiltshire, England, north of the town centre and about northwest of Swindon railway station. It includes an area formerly called Even Swindon. Northern area Land to the north of the Wilts and Berks Canal a ...
, but not born in Swindon. His family still lives in the area. *
Jamie Cox Jamie Cox (born 15 October 1969) is an Australian cricketer and former opening batsman for Tasmania in Australia's domestic competitions. He then played county cricket in England where he captained Somerset. He is a former member of the Cricke ...
– boxer, ABA light-welterweight champion. Won a gold medal for the England team at the
2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006 (Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm 2006'' or ''Naarm 2006''), was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth held ...
in Melbourne, Australia. *
Jack Dangers Jack Dangers (born John Stephen Corrigan, 11 January 1965) is an English electronic musician, DJ, producer, and remixer best known for his work as the primary member of Meat Beat Manifesto. He lives in San Francisco. Career Prior to founding ...
– musician, producer, founder of electronic band
Meat Beat Manifesto Meat Beat Manifesto, often shortened as Meat Beat, Manifesto or MBM, is an electronic music group originally consisting of Jack Dangers and Jonny Stephens that was formed in 1987 in Swindon, United Kingdom. The band, fronted by Dangers (the only ...
*
Rick Davies Richard Davies (born 22 July 1944) is an English musician, singer and songwriter best known as founder, vocalist and keyboardist of the rock band Supertramp. Davies was its only constant member, and composed some of the band's best known songs ...
– founder and member of the band
Supertramp Supertramp were an English rock band that formed in London in 1969. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards, and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), they are distinguished for blending pro ...
*
Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Mamie Van Doren. Dors was pr ...
– actress, born in Swindon; celebrated by a larger-than-life-statue outside the West Swindon cinema complex *
John Eatwell John Leonard Eatwell, Baron Eatwell, (born 2 February 1945) is a British economist who was President of Queens' College, Cambridge, from 1996 to 2020. A former senior advisor to the Labour Party, Lord Eatwell sat in the House of Lords as a non- ...
, Baron Eatwell, economist and Labour peer *
Harold Fleming (footballer) Harold John Fleming (30 April 1887 – 23 August 1955) was an English footballer who played as an inside forward for Swindon Town and the England national team. He is the only Swindon Town player to have featured for England. Club career Flem ...
– Swindon Town footballer 1907–1924, capped nine times for England *
John Francome John Francome (born 13 December 1952) is a retired 7 time British Champion Jump Jockey. In addition to being a successful jockey, Francome was previously a racing trainer, broadcaster with Channel 4 and an author. Racing career Francome fir ...
– novelist, sports commentator and former jockey * Sam Fuller - drummer for punk rock band
Peter and the Test Tube Babies Peter and the Test Tube Babies are an English punk rock band, formed in the small town of Peacehaven, England in 1978, by Derek "Strangefish" Greening and Peter Bywaters. Due to their humorous tongue-in-cheek lyrics, they have been considered ...
*
Charlie George Frederick Charles George (born 10 October 1950) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. George began his career as a youngster with Arsenal and was part of their 1970–71 League and FA Cup Double-winning team ...
- comedian and comedy writer *
Mark Harper Mark James Harper (born 26 February 1970) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Transport since 2022. A member of the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party, he has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Me ...
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 ...
politician was born in Swindon *
Tommy Hatto Thomas Hatto ( th, ทอมมี่ แฮตโต้ and born August 1995) is an English people, English actor and model, probably best known for his roles in the Hollywood movie ''Thor: The Dark World'' (2013) and the documentary ''The Youth ...
– actor, most notable in the films '' Thor: The Dark World'' and ''
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
:
Dance Again "Dance Again" is a song recorded by American singer Jennifer Lopez for her first greatest hits album, '' Dance Again... the Hits'' (2012). It features guest vocals from American rapper Pitbull. The song was written by Enrique Iglesias, Bilal "The ...
3D''. Born in Swindon. *
Justin Hayward David Justin Hayward (born 14 October 1946) is an English musician best known as the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of the rock band the Moody Blues. Hayward became the group's principal lead guitarist and vocalist over the 1967–1974 ...
– lead guitarist, vocalist and composer for
The Moody Blues The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1964, initially consisting of keyboardist Mike Pinder, multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas, guitarist Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge and bassist Clint Warwick. The group came to ...
*
David Hempleman-Adams Sir David Kim Hempleman-Adams, (born 10 October 1956 in Swindon, Wiltshire) is an English industrialist and adventurer. He is the first person to complete the Adventurers Grand Slam, by reaching the Geographic and Magnetic North and South Po ...
– explorer * Alex Henshall – footballer for
Manchester City 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 tw ...
. Born in Swindon. *
Nick Hewer Nicholas Radbourn Hewer (born 17 February 1944) is a retired English television presenter, company director (2010) and former public relations consultant. From 2005 to 2014, he appeared as Alan Sugar's adviser in the British television series ' ...
– public relations officer and businessman. One of Alan Sugar's advisers on ''
The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a Reality competition, reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with variou ...
''. Born in the town. * David Howell – Ryder Cup golfer and five-time winner on the
European Tour The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
*
Richard Jefferies John Richard Jefferies (6 November 1848 – 14 August 1887) was an English nature writer, noted for his depiction of English rural life in essays, books of natural history, and novels. His childhood on a small Wiltshire farm had a great influ ...
– Victorian nature writer, born at Coate *
David Murray John The history of local government in Swindon has its origins in the Middle Ages. After a long period of very little change, there followed a new era, beginning in the 19th century, of constant redevelopment and re-adjustment. Parliamentary repres ...
– Swindon's town clerk 1938–1974 and a driving force behind Swindon's development and growth *
Bob Kilby Robert Stanley "Bob" Kilby (23 September 1944 – 11 January 2009) was a British motorcycle speedway rider for the Swindon Robins, Oxford Rebels and Exeter Falcons. Speedway career From the start of his career in 1964 to its end in 1983, he rod ...
– speedway rider * Samuel Knaggs – British colonial administrator born in Swindon *
Josh Kumra Josh Kumra (born 20 April 1991) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2011, Kumra co-wrote and provided vocals for English rapper Wretch 32's highest-charting single to date, " Don't Go", which reached number one in the UK Singles Chart. B ...
– singer and songwriter *
Mark Lamarr Mark Lamarr (born Mark Jones, 7 January 1967) is an English comedian, writer, radio DJ, and television presenter. He was a team captain on '' Shooting Stars'' from 1995 to 1997, and hosted ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' from 1996 to 2005. Early li ...
– TV presenter, comedian, and radio DJ. Grew up in Park South. * Jon Lewis – England and Gloucestershire cricketer *
Melinda Messenger Melinda Jane Messenger (born 23 February 1971) is an English television presenter and former glamour model and Page Three girl. She presented the magazine programme ''Live from Studio Five'' and was formerly the co-presenter of the reality show ...
– former glamour model and television presenter * Antony Micallef – artist * Hannah Miley – swimmer, 400m medley champion at the World Short Course Championships *
Desmond Morris Desmond John Morris FLS ''hon. caus.'' (born 24 January 1928) is an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology. He is known for his 1967 book ''The Naked Ape'', and for his televisi ...
– zoologist, ethologist and artist, born just outside Swindon and moved to the town as a child *
Levi Lapper Morse Levi Lapper Morse (24 May 1853 – 10 September 1913) was an English grocer and draper and Liberal Party politician. Family and education Morse was the son of Charles Morse from Stratton St Margaret, near Swindon in Wiltshire. He was educated ...
– grocer and draper and
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
politician who was 2nd mayor of Swindon and an MP. * William Ewart Morse – Son of Levi Lapper Morse, Liberal Party politician, mayor of Swindon for 2 years and an MP. *
Edith New Edith Bessie New (17 March 1877 – 2 January 1951) was an English suffragette. She was one of the first two suffragettes to use vandalism as a tactic. She and Mary Leigh were surprised to find their destruction was celebrated and they were pu ...
– suffragette, born in Swindon *
Gilbert O'Sullivan Raymond Edward "Gilbert" O'Sullivan (born 1 December 1946) is an Irish singer-songwriter who achieved his most significant success during the early 1970s with hits including "Alone Again (Naturally)", " Clair", and " Get Down". O'Sullivan's s ...
– Irish born, Swindon raised, singer/songwriter * William Overton – cricketer *
Charlie Paynter Charlie Paynter (28 July 1879 in Swindon – 1 December 1971) was the manager of West Ham United from 1932 to 1950. He moved to Plaistow with his family as a child. He played for the local teams Victoria Swifts and South West Ham, but while ...
– manager of
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
, 1932–1950 * Bob Peart – football player with
Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
,
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...
,
Headington United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and t ...
,
Cheltenham Town Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. From the 2021–22 season, the club compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league syst ...
*
Billie Piper Billie Paul Piper (born Leian Paul Piper; 22 September 1982) is an English actress and former singer. She initially gained recognition as a singer after releasing her debut single "Because We Want To" at age 15, which made her the youngest woman ...
– actress and former pop singer, played Rose in the 2005/2006 seasons and the 2008 season final of BBC Sci-Fi TV programme ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
'' * Don Rogers – Swindon Town footballer * Leonard Rwodzi (known professionally as S1mba) – rapper, born in
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
but grew up in Swindon *
Rachel Shelley Rachel Shelley (born 25 August 1969) is an English actress and model. She is best known for playing Helena Peabody in the Showtime series ''The L Word'' and Elizabeth Russell in the Oscar-nominated Bollywood epic ''Lagaan''. Early life Rachel ...
– actress (''
The L Word ''The L Word'' is a television drama that aired on Showtime from January 18, 2004 to March 8, 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated with Ilene Ch ...
'', ''
Ghost Whisperer ''Ghost Whisperer'' is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010. The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon ( Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has the ability to see and communicate with ...
''), born in Swindon *
Tim Smith Tim, Timothy or Timmy Smith may refer to: Musicians *T. V. Smith (born 1956), British singer and songwriter *Tim Smith (Cardiacs) (1961–2020), English singer-songwriter and frontman of Cardiacs *Timmy Trumpet (born 1982), Australian DJ and produ ...
Radio 2 broadcaster and co-presenter of Radio 2's " Steve Wright in the Afternoon" * Sir William Arthur Stanier – Chief Mechanical Engineer of the
London, Midland and Scottish Railway The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally u ...
, member of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
, designed
Princess Coronation Class The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) Coronation Class is a class of express passenger steam locomotives designed by William Stanier. They were an enlarged and improved version of his previous design, the LMS Princess Royal Class, and ...
engines, born in Wellington Street, Swindon in 1876 *
Ben Thatcher Benjamin David Thatcher (born 30 November 1975) is a former professional footballer who played as a left-back. He played for a number of English clubs, and has featured in more than 300 English league games, all of which were in the top two ...
– football player with
Ipswich Town F.C. Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in EFL League One, League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not ...
* Mark G. Thomas – scientist *
Alfred Williams Alfred Hamilton Williams (born November 6, 1968) is a former American football player. He was a linebacker and defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos. His nicknames ...
– hammerman at the GWR works 1892–1914, author, poet and collector of folk songsAlfred Williams Heritage Society
/ref> *
Tom Wisdom 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 ...
– actor (''
300 __NOTOC__ Year 300 (Roman numerals, CCC) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, ...
'', ''
The Boat That Rocked ''The Boat That Rocked'' (titled ''Pirate Radio'' in North America) is a 2009 British comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis about pirate radio in the United Kingdom during the 1960s. The film has an ensemble cast consisting of Phi ...
'') *
XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (guitars, vocals) and Colin Moulding (bass, vocals), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing in ...
– pop rock band from Swindon **
Terry Chambers Terry Peter Chambers (born 18 July 1955) is an English drummer who was a member of the band XTC from 1972 to 1982 and the popular Australian-New Zealand group Dragon between 1983-5. He appears on all of XTC's albums between ''White Music'' (197 ...
– founding member, drummer from 1972 to 1982. Born in Swindon. ** Dave Gregory – lead guitarist from 1979 to 1999. Born in Swindon. **
Colin Moulding Colin Ivor Moulding (born 17 August 1955) is an English bassist, singer, and songwriter who was one of the core members of the rock band XTC. Though he was less prolific a songwriter than his bandmate Andy Partridge, Moulding wrote their first th ...
– founding member, second songwriter, vocalist, and bassist for the band. Born in Swindon. **
Andy Partridge Andrew John Partridge (born 11 November 1953) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer who founded the rock music, rock band XTC. He and Colin Moulding each acted as a songwriter and frontman for XTC, with Partridge writi ...
– founding member, guitarist and chief songwriter. Born in Malta, raised in Swindon, where he lives. *
Thaila Zucchi Thaila Lucia Zucchi (; born 19 January 1981) is a British singer and actress of English and Italian descent. She began her career as a member of the British band allSTARS* before transitioning into acting, appearing in '' Big Brother 8'' in the ...
– Italian/British singer and actress, starred in '' Balls of Steel''


References

{{reflist
Swindon Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...
People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...