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People
With Tenuous Connections To The Area
People
Who Weren't Born In The Borough But Have Close Links To It Or A Claim To Fame
To It Are In Italics.
Chief
Constable Of Greater Manchester Police Force Until 1991, Making It One
Of The Largest Forces In The UK. Once The Best Known Policeman In't Country,
He Now Does Public Speechs.
Born: 1932; Northumberland Street, Wigan Died: Not Yet |
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Frontman
Of The Verve, Who Formed At Winstanley College Near Billinge In 1989.
He Now Has A Fairly Decent Solo Career... Of Sorts. He Doesn't Seem To
Have Any Plans To Follow Up His Last Release In 2000 Though...
Born: 11 Sept, 1971; Up Holland Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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In
1847 He Invented His Legendary Flu Remedies While Living On The Wiend
In Wigan Town Centre Where He Owned A Chemists in 1885 He Opened The Worlds
First Factory Built Specifically For Medicine Manufacturing.
Born: 3 Dec, 1820; Witney, Oxon Died: 6 April, 1907; Southport, Lancs |
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Mezzo-Soprano
Opera Star Of The 30s And 40s. Her High Social Standing And German Husband
Meant She Knew Many High Ranking Nazi's Including Hitler. She Performed
For Them During The War And Spied On Them For Britain.
Born: ? Died: ? |
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Colonel
William Cody Brought His Wild West Show To Leigh In 1904. People Were
Trampled In The Crowds To See It. Mark Twain First Persuaded Him To Come
To England To Perform For Queen Vic's Golden Jubilee In 1887.
Born: 26 Feb, 1846; LeClaire, Iowa Died: 10 Jan, 1917; Denver, Colorado |
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A Leading
Sky News Presenter. At 16 She Started To Work For The Wigan Evening Post
And Quickly Promoted. Voted The Most Desirable Woman In The World For
Three Years Running By Readers Of What Satellite TV Magazine.
Born: 19??; Beech Hill Died: Not Yet |
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A
Staunch Trade Unionist Of The 40s-60s He Became Disillusioned With The
Communist Party Left It In 1956. In 1961 He Finally Proved A Communist
Vote-Rigging Scandal In the ETU Trade Union Which He Became President
Of In 1963.
Born: 1920 Died: 1970 |
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A
Director Of Wigan Athletic FC And
Briefly
Manager During 1983!
Apparently He Was Also Manager Of England Too.
Born: 11 Oct 1937; Ashington Nthumb Died: Not Yet |
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June
Croft
|
Olympic
Swimmer Trained By The World Famous Wigan Wasps, At Wigan International
Swimming Pool. Record Breaker And Holder Of The 80's.
Born: 1963; Ashton-In-Makebelieve Died: Not Yet |
Passed
Through In Wigan A Few Times Chasing The Royalist-Scot Coalition Army
And Stayed Near Ashton Cross. The Jumped Up Little Sturmbahnführer
Had The Temerity To Complain About The Condition Of Our Roads!
Born: 25 April 1599; Huntingdon, Herefd Died: 3 Sept 1658; Whitehall, London |
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The
Current Composer And Conductor Of The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra Studied
At Leigh Grammar School And Grew Up In The Nearby Area.
Born: 8 Sept 1934: Salford, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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As
The Daughter Of A Tyldesleyian Doctor She Lived In Tyldesley For A While
But Moved Back To The Dark Side (Of The Pennines).
Born: 9 Dec 1934: York Died: Not Yet |
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He Played
For Wigan Warriors Since He Was 17 And Went On To Captain Great Britain
And England. Apparently One Of The Most Famous Rugby League Players Of
The 90's. He Retired In April 2000.
Born: 17 Oct 1966; Wigan Died: Not Yet |
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Born
As Clive Powell, His Family Moved To London In 1959. He Was A Massively
Famous Jazz Musician And 60's Pop Star With Many Number Ones To His Name
Even Managing To Knock The Beatles Off The Top Of The Chart.
Born: 26 June 1943; Leigh Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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Brian
Finch
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The Son
Of A Wigan He Still
Lives Local And Has (Co-)Written Many TV Programmes Including Coronation
Street, Heartbeat, Juliet Bravo, All Creatures Great And Small, Goodnight
Mister Tom And Best Of All Bergerac!
Born: 19?? Died: Not Yet |
Born
George Hoy Booth The Goofy Toothed Comic Played A Goofy Banjo/Ukulele,
But He Was Popular All The Same. He Wrote And Stared In Over 170 Songs
And 22 Films. He Was Buried In The Family Grave In Warrington.
Born: 26 May 1904; 3 Westminster St, Wigan Died: 6 Mar 1961 |
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Prominent
England And Middlesex Cricketer Of The 90s. He Suffered A Serious Hip
Injury Which Impinged On His Career. He Retired In The 2002 Season Once
Back On Form To Pursue A Media Career (I.e. Punditeering).
Born: 8th Aug 1965, Billinge, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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An
Alleged Wigan Athletics Fan. While Assistant Secretary To Russian Team
Metallist Kharkov In 1969 He Enjoyed A Match Against The Latics So Much
He Apparently Began To Follow The Team And Wore A Tie Sporting The Latics
Colours Quite Often.
Born: 2 Mar 1931; Privolnoye, USSR Died: Not Yet |
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Joe
Gormley
(Baron Of Ashton) |
Leader
Of The Massive 1977 National Miners Strike/Doss, Which Lead To The Winter
Of Discontent And The Collapse Of The Labour Government. For This The
Tories Mad Him A Baron 6 Years Later.
Born: 1921; Duke Street, Ashton-In-Makebelieve Died: 1993; Shevington |
The
Lead Singer Of 80s Pop Band 'Kajagoogoo'. He Went To Abraham Guest School
In Orrell. During His Music Career He Had 10 Top 3 Hits And Is Now A Fruit
Machine Whiz, Touring Local Pubs For A Living.
Born: 19 Dec 1958; Wigan, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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Born
Glen Trevor He Wrote 'Goodbye Mr Chips' And Loads Of Other Books Including
Lost Horizons and Shangri-La Which Became Big Hollywood Filems And ITV
Drama's. His First Novel Was Publish In 1920.
Born: 9 Sept 1900; Wilkinson Street, Leigh Died: 20 Dec 1954; Long Beach, California |
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William
Huskisson MP
|
The
Liverpudlian MP Was The First Man In The World To Be Mown Down By A Train
('The Rocket' In Fact) In 1830- It Occurred Just Outside Golborne On The
Manchester-Liverpool Line Opening Day.
Born: 11 March 1770; Moreton Court; Warwks Died: 15 Sept 1830 |
Famous
Contemporary Artist & Hailed As One Of The UKs Greatest 20th Century
Artist. Friend To Theodore Major, Another Wigan Artist. An LS Lowry Contemporary.
He Ran His Own Gallery In His Own Wigan Home, Which Was Gutted By Fire
In 1983.
Born: 1917; Wigan, Lancs Died: 1989 |
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Lynda
Lee-Potter
|
Born
Lynda Higginson And Labelled "Britain's Most Famous Woman Columnist"
She Writes For The Daily Mail And Is The Author Of A Book Or Two. Came
From Leigh, Doesn't Seem To Like Admitting To That Though.
Born: 1934; Leigh Road, Leigh Died: Not Yet |
Peter
Kane
|
He Was
A Local Blacksmith Who Became World Flyweight Champion From 1938-45, He
Won 127 Of All His 137 Matches. There Is A £120,000 Monument To
Him In Golbourne Town Centre.
Born: 1918; Golbourne Lancs Died: 1991 |
Radio
Comic And Starred In Many TV Shows And Films Like 'Willie Wonka And The
Chocolate Factory'. He Died Of A Heart Attack Whilst Filming 'Return Of
The Musketeers' In Spain.
Born: 8 Jan 1934; Wigan Lancs Died: 20 Sept 1988; Madrid, Spain |
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Film Critic
And Top BBC DJ, Currently On Radio's 2 And 6. He Was A Regular On Those
I Love The 70s/80s/90s And The Dozens Of Channel Four's Top Ten And Top
100s. He Has An Autobiography Out: Cider With Roadies.
Born: ? Died: Not Yet |
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Starred
In The New Lord Of The Rings & X-Men Films.
His Family Moved To Moved To Wigan When He Was A Few Weeks Old- He Grew
Up Opposite Mesnes Park And Lived In Bolton From 1951-1958.
Born: 25 May 1939; Burnley, Lancs Died: No Yet |
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Born
Eric Blair You've Got To Mention Him On A Wigan Website! He Brought Wigan
World Infamy With His Book 'The Road To Wigan Pier' Though He Only Ever
Spent A Few Weeks Here Researching In 1936.
Born: 25 June 1903; Motihari, India Died: 21 January 1950; London |
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King
Penda Of Mercia
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One
Of The Last Ancient Briton Pagan Kings Who Slew Oswald The Christian King
Of Northumbria And Saint Just Outside Golborne! Go Penda!!!
Born: 606-626? Died: 655; Battle Of Winwaed |
Mad And
Risqué Comic A Childhood Friend Of George Formby But They Became
Arch-Nemesis In The Local Musical Halls. He Wrote And Starred In His National
Service Satire Filem "It's A Grand Life". He Set Up His Own
Touring Company "Randle's Scandals".
Born: 1901; Standish, Lancs Died: 1957; Blackpool, Lancs |
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The Single
Mum Won On The Original Pop Stars Series, Member Of Former Band Hear'Say.
Now Married To Jack Ryder, They Split In 2003 But Are Back Together Again.
She Grew Up In Ashton-In-Makebelieve.
Born: 13 June 1976; Whiston, Lancs Died: No Yet |
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On The
Small And Big Screen For Over 30 Years She Was Most Recently The Grandma
In The "Royle Family".
Born: 11 Dec 1925; Parbold, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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Miles
Standish
|
His
Family Came From Standish (Well I Never!) He Was One Of The Pilgrim Fathers
And Cap'n Of The Mayflower Itself. He Apparently Uncovered An Indian Plot
To Attack The Pilgrims, Thus Making Him An American Hero.
Born: 20 Feb 1586; Lancashire Died: 3 Oct 1656; Duxbury, Massachusetts |
Born Claire Jackson She Went To St Peters High School In Orrell &
Winstanley College But Left For Corrie. Other Wiganers Once On Corrie
Include John Fillingham (Neil Mitchell), Eva Pope (Barmaid Tanya Pooley)
& Jennifer Moss (Lucille Hewitt).
Born: 26th February 1980; Billinge Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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On
The Keyboards For Cracking Band Starsailor.
The Band Met And Formed While At The Leigh Campus Of Wigan & Leigh
College- Well, You Can't Win All The Time. They Owe Their Success Largely
To Phil Spector's Support.
Born: 13 May 1977; Wigan, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
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In
1978 He Bought A Small Wigan Sports Store For £7,400. It Was Founded
In 1903 By A Rugby Player By The Name Of J J Broughton. He Sold The Company
On To A Gentleman Named J J Braddock, Who Later Sold It On To J J Bradburn.
Born: 24 Nov 1936; Bradford, Yorks Died: Not Yet? |
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Danny
Wilson
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Played
For Wigan Athletic And Was The Manager From 1998 Until He Was Sacked In
2000 To Make Way For Wonder Boy Paul Jewel. Currently Manager Of Division
Two Bristol City.
Born: 1st Jan 1960; Wigan, Lancs Died: Not Yet |
Gerrard
Winstanley
|
Leader
Of The Digger (Communist) Movement During The Civil War Era. He And Others
Squatted On Land Outside London Till The Army Booted Them Off. He Then
Wrote Lots Of Pamphlets. There's A Plaque Dedicated To Him In The Kremlin,
Moscow.
Born: 1609; Wigan, Lancs Died: 10 Sept 1676; London |
