#1Famous people · Totnes, Devon
18 famous people were born in Totnes, most of them in the 20th century
The best known is the English film producer Ian Bryce, with articles in 15 languages. The next two names are William John Wills and Emrhys Cooper. The list runs from John Blackaller, born in 1494, to Emrhys Cooper, born in 1985. For every 10,000 residents there are 19.5 on the list, well above the typical Devon town’s 4.7.
Born here
18
notable people
Best known
Ian Bryce
in 15 Wikipedia languages
First
1494
John Blackaller
Youngest
1985
Emrhys Cooper
Most common field
Film, TV & Stage
3 people
What stands out about Totnes’ famous people
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Totnes’s famous people were born
More were born in the 1960s than in any other decade: 5.
Film, TV & StageScience & MedicineWriting & ArtsMilitarySportsPolitics & LawFaithBusiness
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Totnes
Performers take two of the three places.
#1
#2Science & Medicine
William John Wills
1834–1861British surveyor (1834–1861)
14 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Known for
What Totnes is known for
No other field is as far above the usual share as soldiers and sailors, at 4.6 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Totnes
Another 15, the earliest born in 1494.
Ffyona Campbell
born 1967British woman who was the first woman to walk around the world
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Frederick Holberton
1821–1907Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly & Queensland Legislative Council
Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
Pegaret Anthony
1915–2000British artist, costume designer and theatre designer
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Of the towns nearby, Paignton lists the most people: 28.
Questions about famous people from Totnes
Who is the most famous person from Totnes?
Ian Bryce (English film producer) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 15 languages. Next come William John Wills and Emrhys Cooper.
How many famous people were born in Totnes?
18 people born in Totnes have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 24 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Totnes known for?
Among its famous people, performers: 3 of the 18. That is 17% of the town’s list, against 9% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Totnes?
John Blackaller, born in 1494. The youngest on the list was born in 1985.
Who counts as from Totnes?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Totnes’ 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 (11)
- Ian Bryce: Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class Steve Owsley, USN, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- William John Wills: Thomas Hill originally uploaded by users Diceman, Rocketfrog on en.wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Emrhys Cooper: Alissaladerer, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Edward Lye: Thomas Burke / Frances Reynolds, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Sydney Dacres: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Tamsin Dunwoody: Rathfelder, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Frederick Holberton: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- H. H. Couzens: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Sue Barker: Flickr user Steve Punter, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Richard Carlile: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Lettice Curtis: RAF, 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.