7 famous people from York and North Yorkshire
We've got some big names in our county!
Last updated 22nd Jul 2021
York and North Yorkshire is not just home to many a celebrity, but actually the birthplace of quite a few stars.
Famous people from York and North Yorkshire include a comedian, chef, many an actor and an award-winning composer.
How many of these famous faces did you know were from round here?
Take a look at the famous people from York and North Yorkshire:
James Martin
TV Chef James Martin grew up in the countryside near Castle Howard and went to school in Malton. He studied catering at Scarborough Technical College. After early appearances on "Ready Steady Cook", he's since presented "Saturday Kitchen" and "Saturday Morning with James Martin". He finished fourth on "Strictly" back in 2005.
Judi Dench
Multi-award-winning acting royalty and national treasure Dame Judi Dench was born in Heworth and went to The Mount School. Her parents worked at York Theatre Royal and she performed in the city's outdoor Mystery Plays in the 1950s.
Mark Addy
Famous for his roles as Dave in "The Full Monty" and King Robert Baratheon in "Game of Thrones", Mark Addy was born in York and went to The Joseph Rowntree School. He has an honorary doctorate from The University of York.
David Bradley
Another of the cast of "Game of Thrones" to hail from York is David Bradley. If you don't know him as Walder Frey, you might know him Argus Filch from the "Harry Potter" movies. He went to St George's School and performed with the Rowntree Youth Theatre.
James Norton
Actor James Norton was actually born in London, but he makes our list because his family moved to Malton when he was very young! He went to Bramcote School in Scarborough, then on to Ampleforth College. He did work experience at The Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. He's best known for shows "Happy Valley", "Grantchester" and "McMafia". He's rumoured to be in the running to be the next James Bond!
Frankie Howerd OBE
Born in York's City Hospital in 1917, it was after the Second World War that Frankie Howerd's career took off on stage and screen. Best known for comedies "Up Pompeii" and "Carry On Doctor", he was awarded an OBE in 1977.
John Barry OBE
Oscar-winning John Barry was born in York and went to St Peter's School. His mother was a pianist and his father a cinema projectionist, so it's maybe not surprising he grew up to write music for movies. He composed the scores for 11 James Bond films between 1963 and 1987, and also arranged and performed the iconic "James Bond Theme".
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