#1Famous people · Chorley, Lancashire
The 60 famous people born in Chorley, led by Charles Lightoller
At the top of the list is the British sailor Charles Lightoller, covered in 27 languages. 25 of them were born in the 20th century, more than in any other period. The oldest name on the list belongs to Esther Roper, born in 1868, the newest to Lincoln McFayden, born in 2002. Births since 1970 account for 23 of the names.
Born here
60
notable people
Best known
Charles Lightoller
in 27 Wikipedia languages
First
1868
Esther Roper
Youngest
2002
Lincoln McFayden
Most common field
Sports
36 people
What stands out about Chorley’s famous people
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Chorley’s famous people were born
The busiest decade was the 1980s, with 11 births.
SportsFilm, TV & StageWriting & ArtsMilitaryMusicPolitics & LawFaithScience & MedicineNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Chorley
Languages with an article: 27 for Charles Lightoller, 25 for Joe Gilgun, 18 for Anna Hopkin.
#1
#2
#3Known for
What Chorley is known for
Compared with the usual town, soldiers and sailors are the most over-represented field, at 1.4 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Chorley
Another 57, 35 of them athletes.
Derek Draper
1967–2024British political lobbyist and psychotherapist (1967-2024)
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
William Mariner
1882–1916English soldier (1882–1916); recipient of the Victoria Cross
MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Steve Walsh
English football scout Leicester City and Special Advisor Charlotte MLS team
SportsWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The fullest list close by belongs to Leyland, with 26.
Questions about famous people from Chorley
Who is the most famous person from Chorley?
Charles Lightoller (British sailor (1874–1952)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 27 languages. Next come Joe Gilgun and Anna Hopkin.
How many famous people were born in Chorley?
60 people born in Chorley have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 71 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Chorley known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 36 of the 60. That is 60% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Chorley?
Esther Roper, born in 1868. The youngest on the list was born in 2002.
Who counts as from Chorley?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Chorley’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 (26)
- Charles Lightoller: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Joe Gilgun: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Anna Hopkin: Fédération Internationale du Sport Universitaire (FISU), CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- David Unsworth: https://www.flickr.com/photos/orange_wedge/, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- John Foxx: Grueslayer, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Phil Parkinson: https://www.flickr.com/photos/vagueonthehow/, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Esther Roper: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Bethany Black: Friend of subject, copyright transferred, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Vicky Foxcroft: Chris McAndrew, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Loui Batley: Whizz-Kidz UK Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Paul Grayson: Bob Bob, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Yrsa Daley-Ward: Simone Liliane, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Egerton Wright: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Josh Charnley: https://profiles.google.com/barrau.gerard/about, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Matt Taylor: Adam.P.Shaw, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Bert Fishwick: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Harold Edwards: Department of National Defence, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- Kevin Simm: Back ache, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- Roger Heywood: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- William Mariner: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Leonora Carrington: WendyAvilesR, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Lindsay Hoyle: ©House of Commons / photography by Roger Harris, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ivor Bolton: Benno Hunziker, Sinfonieorchester Basel, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, Wikimedia Commons
- John Rigby: Matthew, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ashley Slanina-Davies: Ian Smith, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Doug Hoyle, Baron Hoyle: Chris McAndrew, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
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