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Famous people · Kendal, Cumbria

73 famous people were born in Kendal, more of them ministers and preachers than in most towns

At the top of the list is the British astrophysicist Arthur Eddington, covered in 77 languages. Behind the leader come Ephraim Chambers and Steve Hogarth. In the 20th century, 23 were born, the most of any period. The oldest name on the list belongs to Richard Braithwaite, born in 1588, the newest to James Park-Johnson, born in 1998.

#1 best knownArthur EddingtonScience & Medicine · 1882–1944
+69more
Born here
73
notable people
Best known
Arthur Eddington
in 77 Wikipedia languages
First
1588
Richard Braithwaite
Youngest
1998
James Park-Johnson
Most common field
Sports
24 people

What stands out about Kendal’s famous people

★ What stands out · Known for

What Kendal is known for

Kendal has 3.9× the usual share of ministers and preachers.

The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.

The best known

Born in Kendal

Arthur Eddington has articles in 77 languages, Ephraim Chambers in 24 and Steve Hogarth in 20.

Arthur Eddington#1
Science & Medicine

Arthur Eddington

1882–1944

British astrophysicist (1882-1944)

77 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
EC#2
Writing & Arts

Ephraim Chambers

1680–1740

English writer and encyclopaedist

24 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Steve Hogarth#3
Music

Steve Hogarth

born 1956

English singer

20 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years

When Kendal’s famous people were born

No decade has more births than the 1950s, at 7.

Before the GeorgiansGeorgianVictorianThe 20th century16001700180019002000Steve HogarthEphraim Chambers
SportsScience & MedicineWriting & ArtsPolitics & LawMusicFaithBusinessFilm, TV & StageNotableMilitary

Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.

Everyone

Everyone else born in Kendal

70 more, 24 of them athletes.

DS

David Starkey

born 1945

British constitutional historian

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
DB

Desmond Bagley

1923–1983

British writer (1923-1983)

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
PM

Peter McDonnell

born 1953

English footballer (born 1953)

Richard Braithwaite

Richard Braithwaite

1588–1673

English poet

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
TS

Thomas Shaw

1692–1751

British cleric and traveller; (1694-1751)

RB

Richard Baron

1847–1907

British botanist and geologist (1847-1907)

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Mark Wilson

Mark Wilson

born 1989

English rugby union player, born 1989

EH

Edward Higginbottom

born 1946

English conductor

Edward Hughes Thompson

Edward Hughes Thompson

1810–1886

American politician (1810-1886)

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
EW

Edward Wakefield

1903–1969

British politician (1903-1969)

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
Joseph Bevan Braithwaite

Joseph Bevan Braithwaite

1818–1905

English Quaker minister

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
RE

Robert Edwards

born 1973

Welsh footballer (born 1973)

WD

William Dodd

born 1804

English writer and social activist

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
William Garnett Braithwaite

William Garnett Braithwaite

1870–1937

Military leader

WW

William Wood

1774–1857

English surgeon, zoologist and entomologist

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
AM

Andy Milner

born 1971

English footballer (born 1971)

GW

George Webster

1797–1864

English architect (1797-1864)

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
Isaac Crewdson

Isaac Crewdson

1780–1844

British abolitionist (1780-1844)

JD

John Charles Dent

1841–1888

UK-born Canadian journalist, author and historian (1841-1888)

Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
K

Komarudin

born 1995

Association football player (born 1995)

PC

Paul Cuddy

born 1959

English footballer (born 1959)

Ryan Robinson

Ryan Robinson

born 1982

British footballer (born 1982)

AS

Anthony Shepherd

1721–1796

British astronomer

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Next door

Famous people from the towns next door

Of the towns nearby, 8 have famous names listed.

Questions about famous people from Kendal

Who is the most famous person from Kendal?

Arthur Eddington (British astrophysicist (1882-1944)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 77 languages. Next come Ephraim Chambers and Steve Hogarth.

How many famous people were born in Kendal?

73 people born in Kendal have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 91 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.

What is Kendal known for?

Among its famous people, athletes: 24 of the 73. That is 33% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.

Who is the earliest-born famous person from Kendal?

Richard Braithwaite, born in 1588. The youngest on the list was born in 1998.

Who counts as from Kendal?

People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Kendal’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 (29)

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.