Stourbridge () is a

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 rura ...

in the

Metropolitan Borough of Dudley The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley is a metropolitan borough of West Midlands, England. It was created in 1974 following the Local Government Act 1972, through a merger of the existing Dudley County Borough with the municipal boroughs of Stou ...

in the West Midlands, England. Situated on the River Stour, the town lies around west of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, at the southwestern edge of the

Black Country The Black Country is an area of England's West Midlands. It is mainly urban, covering most of the Dudley and Sandwell metropolitan boroughs, with the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall and the City of Wolverhampton. The road between Wolverhampto ...

conurbation. Historically in

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, it was the centre of British

glass making Glass production involves two main methods – the float glass process that produces sheet glass, and glassblowing that produces bottles and other containers. It has been done in a variety of ways during the history of glass. Glass container pr ...

during the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

. The

2011 UK census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...

recorded the town's population as 63,298.

Geography

Stourbridge is about west of

. It is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley at the southwestern edge of the

and the

West Midlands conurbation The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation in the West Midlands region of England. The area consists of two cities and numerous towns: to the east, the city of Birmingham, along with adjacent towns of Solihull and Sutton Coldfield; a ...

, Stourbridge includes the villages and suburbs of

Amblecote Amblecote is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It lies immediately north of the historic town of Stourbridge on the southwestern edge of the West Midlands conurbation. Histori ...

Lye Lye is the common name of various alkaline solutions, including soda lye (a solution of sodium hydroxide) and potash lye (a solution of potassium hydroxide). Lyes are used as cleaning products, as ingredients in soapmaking, and in various other c ...

, Norton,

Oldswinford Oldswinford or Old Swinford is an area south of the centre of Stourbridge, in the Dudley district, in the county of the West Midlands, England. History Originally, Oldswinford was an extensive ancient parish, covering the whole of the former M ...

Pedmore Pedmore is a residential suburb of Stourbridge, in the Dudley district of the West Midlands, England, bordering Lye, Wollescote and Oldswinford. It was originally a village in the Worcestershire countryside until extensive housebuilding during ...

Stambermill, Stourton, Wollaston,

Wollescote Wollescote is a residential area of Stourbridge, in the Dudley district, in the county of the West Midlands, England. It falls within the ward of Cradley and Wollescote and the parliamentary constituency of Halesowen. It is situated three mil ...

and Wordsley. Much of Stourbridge consists of residential streets interspersed with green spaces.

Mary Stevens Park Mary Stevens Park is a public park located in Norton, Stourbridge, West Midlands, England. Opened to the public in 1931, it attracts 1.3 million visitors per year and is approximately . It was given to the town of Stourbridge by local industr ...

, opened in 1931, has a lake, a bandstand, a cafe, and open spaces. There are two other large parks also gifted to Stourbridge people by the Stevens family, one in Lye/Wollescote and the other in Quarry Bank. Bordered by

green belt A green belt or greenbelt is a policy, and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wilderness, wild, or agricultural landscape, land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts ...

land, Stourbridge is close to countryside with the

Clent Hills The Clent Hills are a hill range in Clent, Worcestershire, England. The closest towns are Stourbridge and Halesowen. The Clent Hills range consists of, in order from north-west to south-east: Wychbury Hill, Clent Hill (and Adams Hill), and Wal ...

to the south and southwest

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

and Kinver Edge to the west.

Closest cities, towns and villages

History

Stourbridge was listed in the 1255

assize roll as Sturbrug or Sturesbridge. The medieval township was named for a bridge which crossed the River Stour. The settlement was originally known as Bedcote and was likely

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

in origin. It lay within the manor of Swynford or Suineford (now

), which appears in

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

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 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

of 1086. ''Pigot and Co.'s National Commercial Directory for 1828-9'' describes Stourbridge as a "populous, wealthy, and flourishing market town" and gives its population in 1821 as 5,090. In 1966, the Stourbridge border between Worcestershire and

, which for centuries had been marked by the River Stour, was moved a couple of miles north when

was incorporated into the Borough of Stourbridge. Following the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, Stourbridge was amalgamated into the

and became part of the wider West Midlands county in 1974.

Glass Making in Stourbridge

The town gives its name to local glass production, which has been manufactured since the early 1600s. The local clay proved particularly suitable for the industry, taken up predominantly after the immigration of French coal miners in the

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

diaspora. However, most of the glass industry was actually located in surrounding areas including Wordsley, Amblecote and Oldswinford. The rich natural resources of coal and fireclay for lining furnaces made it the perfect location for the industry. Glass making peaked in the 19th century, encouraged by the famous glass-making family, the Jeavons. The 1861 census identified that 1,032 residents of Stourbridge were involved in the glass trade in some way. Of these, 541 were glass workers - an increase from 409 in 1851, believed to be partly caused by the collapse of the glass industry in nearby

Dudley Dudley ( , ) is a market town in the West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically part of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. In the ...

in the 1850s. The vast majority of those involved in the glass trade came from

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

and

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

. 9% came from other parts of England and 0.2% had come from abroad. Of particular note are glass cutters, as 8.1% had come from Ireland, believed to be as a result of the decline of the Irish glasscutting industry in the first half of the 1800s. The houses inhabited by glassworkers were of a much better quality in comparison to the slums in which the nailmakers of

and

lived. However, only a few glassworkers owned their own houses. The Red House Cone, thought to be the only complete remaining glass cone of its kind, stands on the Stourbridge Canal at Wordsley. It is the site of the Red House Glass Museum and there are regular demonstrations of traditional glass blowing.

Present

The town centre has seen major regeneration in recent years. In 2014, Lion Health medical centre opened in the renovated former foundry of Foster, Rastrick and Company – where the Stourbridge Lion locomotive was manufactured. The next phase of regeneration on the foundry site will create parkland next to Stourbridge Canal with a "heritage and community hub" named Riverside House. Crown Centre Shopping Mall at the bottom of Stourbridge High Street opened in 2013 at the site of the old Crown Centre and Bell Street multi-storey car park, which were demolished between 2012 and 2013. Costing £50m, the new mall is home to a

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

anchor store, a two-level underground car park, six retail stores and a central food court. Stourbridge Bus Station underwent substantial redevelopment and re-opened as Stourbridge Interchange in April 2012. In 2010, Stourbridge was awarded Fairtrade Town status
Stourbridge Farmers' and Craft Market
takes place on the first and third Saturday of every month in the Clock Square. Throughout the summer,

hosts outdoor live music. In the 2011 Census, the average age of people in Stourbridge was 42.

Margot James Margot Cathleen James (born 28 August 1957) is a British politician who served as Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Minister of State for Digital and Creative Industries from 2018 to 2019. She was Member of Parliament (United Kin ...

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

held the Stourbridge parliamentary constituency 2010–2019. She was succeeded in

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

by Suzanne Webb of the same party. After the 2024 General Election, Cat Eccles, Labour, became MP.

Transport

Three main roads meet in Stourbridge, these being the A451, the A458 and the A491, the last forming the one way Stourbridge Ring Road. Stourbridge has two railway stations, the main one being Stourbridge Junction. From here, it is around 30 minutes to Birmingham, 30 minutes to Worcester and between two and 2.5 hours to London. The other station, Stourbridge Town, is served only by a shuttle to and from Stourbridge Junction. At just over , the Stourbridge Town Branch Line is believed to be the shortest railway

branch line A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Branch lines may serve one or more industries, or a city or town not located ...

in Europe. The former main line to

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

via

, and branches to Wombourne and

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

closed in the 1960s. However the line towards Dudley remains open for freight as far as the Round Oak Steel Terminal north of

Brierley Hill Brierley Hill is a town and Ward (electoral subdivision), electoral ward in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands (county), West Midlands (originally in Staffordshire), England. It is located south of Dudley and north of Stourbr ...

. In January 2021, proposals were made to reopen the line to Brierley Hill to passengers using a light rail vehicle similar to that used on the Stourbridge Branch Line. Stourbridge Interchange is the main bus station, located in the town centre next to Stourbridge Town railway station. The Interchange opened in 2012 at a cost of £7 million. Most services are operated by

National Express West Midlands National Express West Midlands (NXWM) is bus operator in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. It is a subsidiary of Mobico Group (formerly National Express Group) and is the largest bus operator in the region, as well as one of ...

and Diamond Bus which offer links to local areas such as Wollaston and Pedmore, and further destinations like

and

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a market town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester, England, Worcester. Located north of the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour and east of the River Severn, in th ...

. Diamond Bus operate the tendered service 242 to Kinver which was previously operated by The Green Bus Company but more recently Select Bus Services and added additional journeys. By bike, National Route 54 of the

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout the United Kingdom, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million N ...

links Stourbridge with Dudley via the canal towpaths. The Stourbridge Canal links the town to the

Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a navigable narrow canal in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in the The Midlands, England, Midlands of England. It is long, linking the River Severn at Stourport in Worcestershire with the Trent a ...

and the Dudley No. 1 Canal. This places Stourbridge on the Stourport Ring, navigable by

narrowboat A narrowboat is a particular type of Barge, canal boat, built to fit the narrow History of the British canal system, locks of the United Kingdom. The UK's canal system provided a nationwide transport network during the Industrial Revolution, b ...

and popular with holidaymakers.

Education

There is one college in Stourbridge. King Edward VI College was founded in 1552, becoming a sixth form college in 1976. Stourbridge College, south of the town centre, was formed in 1958 and specialised in art and design, but was closed in 2019. There is also a

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

Old Swinford Hospital Old Swinford Hospital is a Secondary school, secondary boarding school in Oldswinford, Stourbridge, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England that has been in continuous operation since the 17th century. It is one of 36 state boarding sch ...

school, which was founded in 1667 by the Stourbridge-born politician Thomas Foley. The boarding school was named the best secondary school in Dudley, closely followed by Redhill School, an academy also in Stourbridge. Elmfield Rudolf Steiner School is an independent school which follows the international Steiner Waldorf Education curriculum."Elmfield Rudolf Steiner School"

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

, 4 October 2006

Culture

Festival of Glass

The International Festival of Glass is held at Ruskin Mill in Stourbridge every two years. The British Glass Biennale is the festival's flagship exhibition, featuring contemporary work by glass makers in the UK.

Music

In the late-1980s and early 1990s, three Stourbridge indie bands –

The Wonder Stuff The Wonder Stuff are a British alternative rock musical ensemble, band. Originally based in Stourbridge in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England, the band's first lineup released four albums and nearly 20 singles and EPs, enjoying ...

Pop Will Eat Itself Pop Will Eat Itself are an English alternative rock band formed in 1986 in Stourbridge in the West Midlands of England with members from Birmingham, Coventry and the Black Country. Initially known as a grebo act, they changed style to incorpo ...

and

Ned's Atomic Dustbin Ned's Atomic Dustbin is an English rock band formed in Stourbridge, West Midlands, in November 1987. The band took their name from an episode of radio comedy programme ''The Goon Show''. The band is unusual for using two bass-players in their ...

– all had chart success, selling millions of albums between them and gracing the covers of NME and Melody Maker. Pop Will Eat Itself's former frontman Clint Mansell has since composed musical scores for films including

Black Swan The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large Anatidae, waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent ...

and Requiem for a Dream. The 80s metal bands Diamond Head, Witchfinder General and 80s pop band Kayran Dache also came from Stourbridge and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band Led Zeppelin from its founding in 1968 until their breakup in 1980. Since then, he has had a successful solo ca ...

once attended King Edward VI College (then King Edward VI Grammar School for Boys).

Media

Stourbridge is covered by these newspapers: the '' Stourbridge News'' (weekly), and the ''Stourbridge Chronicle'' (weekly). From the 1860s until the early 1980s, Stourbridge was covered by the ''County Express'' newspaper. The archives are now on microfilm in Stourbridge Library.

Sport

Stourbridge Football Club, founded in 1876 and nicknamed "The Glassboys", shares the War Memorial Athletic Ground in Amblecote with Stourbridge Cricket Club. Stourbridge Rugby Club play at Stourton Park in nearby Stourton. Dudley and Stourbridge Harriers have trained at the Dell Stadium since 1964. Other teams include Redhill Volleyball Club, which plays at Redhill School.br>Stourbridge Running Club
also train at the

War Memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

in Amblecote.

Places of interest

Black Country Living Museum The Black Country Living Museum (formerly the Black Country Museum) is an open-air museum of rebuilt historic buildings in Dudley, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is located in the centre of the Black Country, west of Birming ...

Hagley Hall Hagley Hall is a Listed building#Categories of listed building, Grade I listed 18th-century house in Hagley, Worcestershire, the home of the Lyttelton family. It was the creation of George Lyttelton, 1st Baron Lyttelton, George, 1st Lord Lytte ...

* Kinver Edge Rock Houses *

* Red House Cone * Stambermill Viaduct * Stourbridge Canal * Stourbridge Town Hall * Wychbury Hill * River Stour ( Stambermill Woods )

Places of worship

According to the 2011 Census, the majority of people living in Stourbridge identify as

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

(65%). Almost a quarter of people said they had no religion. Less than 1% of people identified as

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, or

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

. 43 people identified as a Jedi Knight. *Chawn Hill Church, Stourbridge *Ghausia Jamia Mosque, Lye *Holy Trinity Church, Amblecote *Hope Baptist Church, Stourbridge *Our Lady and All Saints Catholic Church, Stourbridge *Presbyterian Unitarian Chapel, Stourbridge. *Quaker Meeting House, Stourbridge *St James' Church, Wollaston *St Mary's, Oldswinford * St Thomas' Church, Stourbridge *St Peter's, Pedmore * Church of Latter Day Saints , Stourbridge

Notable residents

;Business * James Foster, ironmaster, mine operator and banker. He was instrumental in bringing the first commercial steam locomotive into the Midlands * Thomas Webb, founder of Thomas Webb & Sons ;Entertainment *

Kenton Allen Kenton Allen is a British television producer and executive. He became Chief Executive of Big Talk Studios in September 2008. He is a multi-award–winning programme-maker with credits including the BAFTA Award-winning sitcoms '' The Royle Fam ...

, television producer and executive ( The Royle Family, ''Six Shooter''), attended King Edward VI College * Peter Powell, former BBC Radio 1 disc jockey and ex-husband of Anthea Turner. ;Performing arts * Walter Braithwaite, composer, pianist, teacher * Johnny Briggs, actor, ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...

'' * Dave Cartwright, singer-songwriter, broadcaster and author * Clint Mansell, English musician, composer, and former lead singer and guitarist of the band

, attended King Edward VI College *

Jan Pearson Jan Pearson (born 12 April 1959) is an English actress. Pearson grew up in Wollaston, West Midlands, and began her career in various stage productions. She yearned to work in television and was soon cast as Kath Fox in the BBC medical drama '' ...

, actress, ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'', ''

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

'', born in Wollaston * Jonn Penney, musician -

, singer with

, attended King Edward VI College * Esther Smith, actress known for her work in the television series ''

Uncle An uncle is usually defined as a male relative who is a sibling of a parent or married to a sibling of a parent, as well as the parent of the cousins. Uncles who are related by birth are second-degree relatives. The female counterpart of an un ...

'' and ''

Cuckoo Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae ( ) family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes ( ). The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals, and anis. The coucals and anis are somet ...

'' * Anthony Bate, actor known for his role as Oliver Lacon in BBC adaptations of '' Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'' and '' Smiley's People'', was born in Stourbridge. * Trevor Harrison, actor best known for his role as Eddie Grundy in the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

, ''

The Archers ''The Archers'' is a British radio soap opera currently broadcast on BBC Radio 4, the corporation's main spoken-word Radio broadcasting, channel. Broadcast since 1951, it was famously billed as "an everyday story of country folk" and is now pr ...

'' * Lyndsie Holland, opera singer born in Pedmore *

, indie music group based in Stourbridge ;Science and academia *

Kathleen Booth Kathleen Hylda Valerie Booth ( Britten, 9 July 1922 – 29 September 2022) was a British computer scientist and mathematician who wrote the first assembly language and designed the assembler and autocode for the first computer systems at Birkbe ...

, inventor of the first computer

assembly language In computing, assembly language (alternatively assembler language or symbolic machine code), often referred to simply as assembly and commonly abbreviated as ASM or asm, is any low-level programming language with a very strong correspondence bet ...

* Kay Davies, geneticist * David Trotman, pure mathematician, attended King Edward VI College * Clement Lindley Wragge, meteorologist ;Sports and games * Don Kenyon, cricketer, captain of Worcestershire *

Matt Neal Matthew Stephen Phillip Neal (born 20 December 1966) is a British motor racing driver. Neal is a triple BTCC Champion having won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. Neal is also a record 6 time BTCC Independents Champio ...

, motor racing driver * Dan O'Hagan, BBC ''

Match of the Day ''Match of the Day'' (abbreviated to ''MOTD'') is a Association football, football highlights programme, typically broadcast on BBC One on Saturday nights during the Premier League season. ''Match of the Day'' is one of the BBC's longest-runn ...

'' football commentator *

Ronnie O'Sullivan Ronald Antonio O'Sullivan (born 5 December 1975) is an English professional snooker player. Widely recognised as one of the most talented and accomplished players in snooker history, he has won the World Snooker Championship seven times, a m ...

, snooker player, born in Wordsley Hospital in 1975 *

Jude Bellingham Jude Victor William Bellingham (born 29 June 2003) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid and the England national football team, England national team. Finis ...

, professional footballer who currently plays for

Real Madrid CF Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

, born in Stourbridge * Jobe Bellingham, professional footballer who currently plays for

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, often known simply as Borussia Dortmund () or by its initialism BVB (), or just Dortmund by International fans, is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is ...

, born in Stourbridge * Alf Bishop, born in Stourbridge, professional footballer

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

Matthew Round-Garrido Matthew Round-Garrido (born 20 April 2000) is a Spanish-British racing driver who most recently competed in the 2022 Indy Pro 2000 Championship, Indy Pro 2000 Championship with Exclusive Autosport. Round-Garrido previously competed in the U.S. ...

, motor racing driver * Maria Catalano, snooker player * Tony Marsh,

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

racing driver * Dean Headley, cricketer for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, Middlesex and Kent * Hannah Payton, UCI women's road racing cyclist * George Robson rugby union player for Harlequins * Alex Nicholls, former professional footballer for teams including

and

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish professional association football, football club based in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923. United are nickname ...

* Steve Cooper, former professional footballer * Tom Milnes, cricketer *

Colin Gordon Colin Gordon (27 April 1911 – 4 October 1972) was a British actor. Although primarily a stage actor he made numerous appearances on television and in cinema films, generally in comedies. His stage career was mainly in the West End, but he w ...

, former professional footballer, manager and football agent * Joy Beasley, former swimmer who competed at the 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympic Games * Reece Devine, professional footballer * Richard Hancox, former professional footballer * David McDermott, former professional footballer * Sam Austin, professional footballer * Max Stelling, former professional Rugby Union player for

Worcester Warriors Worcester Warriors are a professional rugby union club based in Worcester, England. They most recently played in Premiership Rugby, the top division of English rugby union, before being suspended by the Rugby Football Union, RFU in September 2 ...

attended

* Sam Field (footballer), professional footballer ;Writers * Jerome K. Jerome, author ''

Three Men in a Boat ''Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)'',The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: ''Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog!'' published in 1889, is a humorous novel by English writer Jerome K. Jerome describing ...

'', lived at Stourbridge in childhood before his family moved to London *

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson ( – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

lived and worked in Stourbridge for a time * David Massey, author of ''Torn'' and ''Taken'' published worldwide by The Chicken House * S. J. Watson, author of ''Before I Go to Sleep'' * Brett Westwood, radio presenter and author ;Others * William Henry Bury, murderer and

Jack the Ripper Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer who was active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer was also ...

suspect * Frank Foley, the relatively little-known "British Schindler" retired to Stourbridge. There is a memorial to him in Mary Stevens Park * Rachel Trevor-Morgan, milliner to the

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

In popular culture

*The fictional

Middle-earth Middle-earth is the Setting (narrative), setting of much of the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy. The term is equivalent to the ''Midgard, Miðgarðr'' of Norse mythology and ''Middangeard'' in Old English works, including ''Beowulf'' ...

world of

Mordor In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional continent of Middle-earth, Mordor (; from Sindarin ''Black Land'' and Quenya ''Land of Shadow'') is a dark realm. It lay to the east of Gondor and the great river Anduin, and to the south of Mirkwood. Mount ...

in ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...

'' trilogy is believed to have been inspired by the

of the Victorian era. Author

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

grew up in the area.

References

External links

Internet Guide To Stourbridge
{{authority control Towns in the West Midlands (county) Unparished areas in the West Midlands (county) Former civil parishes in the West Midlands (county) Metropolitan Borough of Dudley