#1Famous people · Forres, Moray
Of the 23 famous people born in Forres, an unusual share are scientists and doctors
At the top of the list is the British actress Shirley Henderson, covered in 34 languages. The Scottish scientist Hugh Falconer ranks second, ahead of Sir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet. Forres ranks 2nd of the 4 towns in Moray with anyone listed. 8 of them were born in the 20th century, more than in any other period.
Born here
23
notable people
Best known
Shirley Henderson
in 34 Wikipedia languages
First
1772
James Grant
Youngest
2000
Donald Singer
Most common field
Science & Medicine
6 people
What stands out about Forres’ famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Forres is known for
Compared with the usual town, business people are the most over-represented field, at 6.8 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Forres
Shirley Henderson leads with articles in 34 languages, ahead of Hugh Falconer (21) and Sir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet (12).
#1
#2Science & Medicine
Hugh Falconer
1808–1865Scottish scientist (1808–1865)
21 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Film, TV & Stage
Sir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet
1824–1900British field marshal (1824–1900)
12 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years
When Forres’s famous people were born
Births peak in the 1820s, with 4 people born in that decade.
Science & MedicineSportsBusinessMilitaryPolitics & LawFilm, TV & StageNotableWriting & Arts
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Forres
20 more, best known first.
Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal
1820–1914Canadian businessman, politician and philanthropist (1820-1914)
BusinessWikipedia ↗
Sir William Gordon-Cumming, 4th Baronet
1848–1930Scottish landowner, soldier, adventurer and socialite
MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Anne Anderson
1937–1983Scottish reproductive physiologist, researcher, lecturer, and author (1937-1983)
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Alexander Campbell
1812–1891Merchant and politician from New South Wales, Australia (1812-1891)
BusinessWikipedia ↗
Sir Alexander Grant, 1st Baronet
1864–1937Scottish biscuit manufacturer and benefactor (1864-1937)
BusinessWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Close by, the fullest list is Elgin’s, at 58 names.
Questions about famous people from Forres
Who is the most famous person from Forres?
Shirley Henderson (British actress) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 34 languages. Next come Hugh Falconer and Sir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet.
How many famous people were born in Forres?
23 people born in Forres have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 28 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Forres known for?
Among its famous people, scientists and doctors: 6 of the 23. That is 26% of the town’s list, against 7% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Forres?
James Grant, born in 1772. The youngest on the list was born in 2000.
Who counts as from Forres?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Forres’ locality (the NRS 2022 locality 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 National Records of Scotland’s Census 2022 locality boundaries (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 (12)
- Shirley Henderson: nicolas genin, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Hugh Falconer: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Sir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet: Elliott & Fry, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Francis Jenkinson: John Singer Sargent, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- James Fraser: Australian Government, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Sir William Gordon-Cumming, 4th Baronet: Carlo Pellegrini, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Alexander Raff: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Charles Lumley: Jean-Charles Langlois, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Sir Alexander Grant, 1st Baronet: William Llewellyn, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Kevin McKidd: gdcgraphics, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- James Augustus Grant: Will update shortly, CC BY-SA 4.0, 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.