#1Famous people · Burnopfield, County Durham
7 famous people were born in Burnopfield, more of them athletes than in most towns
Most widely known is Eddie Chapman, the English spy, with articles in 18 languages. Second place goes to the English test and County cricketer Colin Milburn, third to Jim McConnon. More than half were born in the 20th century, 6 in all. The list comes to 23.3 for every 10,000 residents, against 12.7 in the typical town in County Durham.
Born here
7
notable people
Best known
Eddie Chapman
in 18 Wikipedia languages
First
1883
Ted Bell
Youngest
1941
Colin Milburn
Most common field
Sports
6 people
What stands out about Burnopfield’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Burnopfield is known for
Athletes stand out most, at 1.7 times the usual share.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Burnopfield
First, Eddie Chapman (18 languages), then Colin Milburn (7) and Jim McConnon (6).
#1CM#2
Sports
Colin Milburn
1941–1990English Test and County cricketer (1941-1990)
7 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Sports
Jim McConnon
1922–2003English Test and County cricketer (1922-2003)
6 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years
When Burnopfield’s famous people were born
More were born in the 1900s than in any other decade: 3.
SportsMilitary
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Burnopfield
Still to come: 4 more, from 1883 to 1909.
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Close by, Stanley counts 35 famous people, the most of its neighbours.
LMStanley · 3 miLewis Miley & 34 more
Blaydon · 4 miBill Kibby & 18 moreRCChopwell · 3 miRonnie Cairns & 12 more
Annfield Plain · 3 miAlun Armstrong & 10 more
Rowlands Gill · 1 miChris Ryan & 8 more
High Spen · 2 miStuart Bell & 8 more
Whickham · 3 miWilliam Shield & 6 moreJCDipton · 2 miJohn Craggs & 4 more
Blaydon · 4 miBill Kibby & 18 moreRCChopwell · 3 miRonnie Cairns & 12 moreAnnfield Plain · 3 miAlun Armstrong & 10 moreRowlands Gill · 1 miChris Ryan & 8 moreHigh Spen · 2 miStuart Bell & 8 moreWhickham · 3 miWilliam Shield & 6 moreJCDipton · 2 miJohn Craggs & 4 moreQuestions about famous people from Burnopfield
Who is the most famous person from Burnopfield?
Eddie Chapman (English spy (1914–1997)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 18 languages. Next come Colin Milburn and Jim McConnon.
How many famous people were born in Burnopfield?
7 people born in Burnopfield have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 8 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Burnopfield known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 6 of the 7. That is 86% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Burnopfield?
Ted Bell, born in 1883. The youngest on the list was born in 1941.
Who counts as from Burnopfield?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Burnopfield’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 (7)
- Eddie Chapman: Unknown British photographer., Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jim McConnon: Authorised by the New South Wales Cricket Association (edited by E.W. Murphy), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Bill Kibby: Nestor, F J, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Alun Armstrong: Garry Knight, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Chris Ryan: James English, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Stuart Bell: Steve Punter, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- William Shield: Unknown artist, 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.