Ipswich: Famous People

Ipswich is the county town of Suffolk, a county in eastern England. Although it is tucked away near the eastern coast, it has associations with many famous people.

1 The Mrs Simpson who, according to the old rhyme, "pinched our king" was divorced in Ipswich before marrying Edward VIII.

2 Dot Cotton in "EastEnders" - aka June Brown - went to school in Ipswich.

3 George Orwell, author of "1984" and "Animal Farm", used the Orwell - the river that flows past the town - as his pen name.

4 Carl Giles, the famous cartoonist who worked for the "Daily Express" newspaper, had a studio in Ipswich.

5 When Cary Grant ran away from home to become a member of an acrobatic troupe, his annoyed father finally tracked him down in Ipswich.

6 Cardinal Wolsey was the son of either an Ipswich butcher or cloth merchant (accounts vary). Wolsey was commanded by Henry VIII to secure an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry his then mistress, Anne Boleyn; Wolsey's failure to do so led to his fall from grace and his arrest for "treason".

7 Sir Henry Rider Haggard, author of the adventure story that founded the "Lost World" literary genre, "King Solomon's Mines", went to school in the town.

8 Trevor Nunn, former director of the Royal Shakespeare Company and director of many famous musicals such as "Cats", "Les Miserables" and "Starlight Express", was born and educated in Ipswich.

9 Ipswich was where the famous children's writer, Enid Blyton, once trained to be a kindergarten teacher.

10 Ipswich Football Club was once managed by both Bobbie Robson and Alf Ramsey.

11 The BBC's World Affairs Editor, John Simpson, spent some of his youth in Ipswich.

12 Former Ipswich member of parliament, John Gosnold III, had to advise whether or not Lady Jane Grey could legally succeed the throne.

13 Former England captain, Mick Mills, once played for Ipswich Town Football Club.

14 The designer of HMS Victory was Thomas Slade, who is buried in Ipswich.

This was submitted by Julie who owns flats in Ipswich: Ipswich rental flats and Ipswich rental flats pictures.