#1Famous people · Hersham, Surrey
6 famous people were born in Hersham from 1847 to 1955
Most widely known is Jimmy Pursey, the English singer and record producer, with articles in 8 languages. The British psychic researcher Edmund Gurney ranks second, ahead of Dorothy Hartopp Radcliffe. The largest group, 5, was born in the Victorian era. The list’s best known name, Jimmy Pursey, dates from 1955.
Born here
6
notable people
Best known
Jimmy Pursey
in 8 Wikipedia languages
First
1847
Edmund Gurney
Youngest
1955
Jimmy Pursey
Most common field
Politics & Law
2 people
The best known
Born in Hersham
Jimmy Pursey leads with articles in 8 languages, ahead of Edmund Gurney (5) and Dorothy Hartopp Radcliffe (4).
#1
#2Science & Medicine
Edmund Gurney
1847–1888British psychic researcher (1847–1888)
5 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Through the years
When Hersham’s famous people were born
The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 2 births.
Politics & LawSportsMusicScience & Medicine
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Hersham is known for
The largest field is Politics & Law, with 2 people.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Hersham
The other 3 span the years 1866 to 1885.
John Ward
1866–1934English Liberal Party politician, trade union leader, born 1866 (1866–1934)
Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
8 towns around it have someone on record.
West Molesey · 3 miChristian de Duve & 35 more
Sunbury-on-Thames · 3 miJohn Glen & 15 more
Shepperton · 3 miJohn Boorman & 7 moreKMCobham · 3 miKenneth McAlpine & 7 more
Addlestone · 4 miArnold Jackson & 6 more
Byfleet · 3 miTom Richardson & 5 more
Esher · 2 miCharles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha & 2 more
Weybridge · 2 miHenry Stuart, Duke of GloucesterQuestions about famous people from Hersham
Who is the most famous person from Hersham?
Jimmy Pursey (English singer and record producer) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 8 languages. Next come Edmund Gurney and Dorothy Hartopp Radcliffe.
How many famous people were born in Hersham?
6 people born in Hersham have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace.
What is Hersham known for?
Among its famous people, leaders: 2 of the 6. That is 33% of the town’s list, against 9% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Hersham?
Edmund Gurney, born in 1847. The youngest on the list was born in 1955.
Who counts as from Hersham?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Hersham’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 (11)
- Jimmy Pursey: Man Alive!, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Edmund Gurney: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Dorothy Hartopp Radcliffe: Anonymous. Presume Daily Chronicle photographer but no name, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John Ward: Unattributed, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Christian de Duve: Julien Doornaert, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- John Glen: The Conmunity - Pop Culture Geek from Los Angeles, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- John Boorman: Georges Biard, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Arnold Jackson: unkonwn, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Tom Richardson: Reinhold Thiele, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: A. Gimm, Gotha, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Henry Stuart, Duke of Gloucester: Adriaen Hanneman, 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.