#1Sports
Mary Rand
1940–2026British track and field athlete and Olympic champion (1940-2026)
33 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Famous people · Wells, Somerset
Soldiers and sailors stand out among the 35 famous people born in Wells
With articles in 33 languages, Mary Rand is the most widely known. Second and third on the list are Elizabeth Goudge and James Keene. In the 20th century, 14 were born, the most of any period. Only 5 of the 100 towns in Somerset with anyone on record list more.
Born here
35
notable people
Best known
Mary Rand
in 33 Wikipedia languages
First
1150
Jocelin of Wells
Youngest
1995
Annie Campbell-Orde
Most common field
Sports
10 people
What stands out about Wells’ famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Wells is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is ministers and preachers, at 4.9 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Wells
By how many languages cover them, Mary Rand comes first (33), then Elizabeth Goudge (28) and James Keene (15).
#1EG#2
Writing & Arts
Elizabeth Goudge
1900–1984English fiction writer (1900-1984)
28 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Through the years
When Wells’s famous people were born
More of them were born in the 1940s than in any other ten years, 4 in all.
SportsWriting & ArtsMilitaryPolitics & LawFaithScience & MedicineFilm, TV & StageMusicNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Wells
Still to come: 32 more, from 1150 to 1995.
Charles George Orlando Bridgeman
1852–1933English barrister and historian (1852-1933)
Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
Harry George Crandon
1874–1953English soldier (1874–1953); recipient of the Victoria Cross
MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Ronald Corp
1951–2025Composer, conductor, artistic director, musical director, founder, Anglican priest
MusicWikipedia ↗
Albion Earnest Andrews
1877–1928MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Herbert E. Balch
1869–1958Archaeologist, naturalist, caver and geologist who explored the Mendips' underground labyrinths and pioneered many of the techniques used by modern cavers (1869–1958)
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Of the towns nearby, Glastonbury lists the most people: 21.
CKGlastonbury · 5 miCameron Kurle & 20 moreEAShepton Mallet · 5 miEdmund Adams & 10 more
Midsomer Norton · 9 miAnita Harris & 9 moreVSStreet · 7 miVictor Samuel Summerhayes & 6 moreDBWedmore · 7 miDickie Burrough & 1 more
Pilton · 4 miMichael EavisCGDraycott · 5 miCharles GoodallJPCheddar · 7 miJane R. Price
Midsomer Norton · 9 miAnita Harris & 9 moreVSStreet · 7 miVictor Samuel Summerhayes & 6 moreDBWedmore · 7 miDickie Burrough & 1 morePilton · 4 miMichael EavisCGDraycott · 5 miCharles GoodallJPCheddar · 7 miJane R. PriceQuestions about famous people from Wells
Who is the most famous person from Wells?
Mary Rand (British track and field athlete and Olympic champion (1940-2026)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 33 languages. Next come Elizabeth Goudge and James Keene.
How many famous people were born in Wells?
35 people born in Wells have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 51 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Wells known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 10 of the 35. That is 29% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Wells?
Jocelin of Wells, born in 1150. The youngest on the list was born in 1995.
Who counts as from Wells?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Wells’ 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 (16)
- Mary Rand: Eric Koch for Anefo, CC BY-SA 3.0 nl, Wikimedia Commons
- James Keene: Anders Henrikson, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Annie Campbell-Orde: National Lottery Good Causes, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- George Bull: Michael Vandergucht, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Michael George Henry Barker: Elliott & Fry, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Heathcote William Garrod: Bain News Service, publisher, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Luke Wilkinson: Mattythewhite, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- David Poore: Davidpoore, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Patrick Brownsey: Siobhan Leachman, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- George Stephen: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Harry George Crandon: Chapman, Swansea (no individual credited), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Patrick Webb: JeanRaymond2018!, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- James Scott: Vera de Kok, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Lodge Murray-Prior: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Anita Harris: SteVader, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Michael Eavis: User:Justinc, CC BY-SA 2.0, 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.