RB#1
Photo: Tigershrike · Public domainFamous people · Looe, Cornwall
Looe is the birthplace of 4 famous people
Articles in 10 languages make the English footballer Ray Bowden the best known. Second place goes to the British actress Anna Palk, third to Derek Parker. Half or more of the towns in Cornwall have no one on record, but this one has 7.5 for every 10,000 residents. Ray Bowden, born in 1909, is the earliest name and Richie Reynolds, born in 1948, the latest.
Born here
4
notable people
Best known
Ray Bowden
in 10 Wikipedia languages
First
1909
Ray Bowden
Youngest
1948
Richie Reynolds
Most common field
Sports
2 people
The best known
Born in Looe
Ray Bowden, Anna Palk and Derek Parker are written about in 10, 7 and 4 languages.
AP#2
DP#3
Writing & Arts
Derek Parker
1932–2025British writer and broadcaster (1932–2025)
4 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years
When Looe’s famous people were born
The 1940s saw the most births of any decade: 2.
SportsFilm, TV & StageWriting & Arts
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Looe is known for
Share of Looe’s famous people in each field.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Looe
1 more, best known first.
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Close by, Saltash counts 15 famous people, the most of its neighbours.
Questions about famous people from Looe
Who is the most famous person from Looe?
Ray Bowden (English footballer (1909-1998)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 10 languages. Next come Anna Palk and Derek Parker.
How many famous people were born in Looe?
4 people born in Looe have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 6 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Looe known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 2 of the 4. That is 50% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Looe?
Ray Bowden, born in 1909. The youngest on the list was born in 1948.
Who counts as from Looe?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Looe’s built-up area (the ONS 2022 boundary), a hospital or district within it included, whose English Wikipedia article agrees. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a bigger area (“London”), another town, or missing, or their article may give no birthplace. We only list people both sources agree on; editing Wikidata or Wikipedia changes this page at the next refresh.
From Wikidata (CC0: birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations) and English Wikipedia (each person’s article confirms the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are placed in the town by the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary (Office for National Statistics, Open Government Licence v3.0). Ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across UK towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (4)
- John Langdon Down: Sydney Hodges, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Andy Mackay: Jean-Luc, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Sheryll Murray: Chris McAndrew, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- William Beale: Charles John Robertson (born 1779?), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.