NEW DAME EILEEN ATKINS |
Born Stamforfd Hill, 16th June 1934 |


|
Eileen Atkins
was born in the Mothers' Hospital in Lower Clapton, a Salvation Army
maternity hospital near Stamford Hill. Her mother, Annie Ellen (née Elkins),
was a barmaid who was 46 when Eileen was born, and her father, Arthur Thomas
Atkins, was a gas meter reader who was previously under-chauffeur to the
Portuguese Ambassador. She was the third child in the family and when she
was born the family moved to a council home in Tottenham.
Eileen studied dancing from age 3 to 15 or 16.
From age 7 to 15, which covered the last four years of WW2, she danced in
local working men’s clubs as "Baby Eileen".
Another of our contacts, Sheila Brimmer (nee
Frost), went to the same dance school as Eileen in Tottenham and kindly sent
the following photograph. (Eileen pictured extreme right).
Eileen was educated at
Parkside Preparatory School in Tottenham. Eileen Atkins has since publicly
credited the Principal, Miss D. M. Hall, for the wise and firm guidance
under which her character developed. From Parkside she went on to The
Latymer School in Edmonton.
Eileen’s early claim to fame was when she
co-created the television dramas Upstairs-Downstairs (1971–1975) and The
House of Elliot with Jean Marsh.
She was appointed Commander of the Order of the
British Empire (CBE) in 1990 and Dame Commander of the Order of the British
Empire (DBE) in 2001.
Note: I worked for a major Pharmaceutical Company
and my Director was Fred McNeice. His son, Ian McNeice, became a well-known
actor and he now co-stars alongside Eileen Atkins in the TV show ‘Doc
Martin’ with Martin Clunes Alan
Swain |
DAVE CLARK |
Born Tottenham, 15th December 1942 |

|
Dave was born in Tottenham and lived in Philip Lane above what was then
Williams Brothers the grocers on the corner with Durham (later Kitchener)
Road. A founder member and drummer for the pop group The Dave Clark Five he
was to enjoy huge success in both the UK and USA with hits such as Glad all
Over and Bits and Pieces. Prior to hitting the big time Dave and his
band played at the Tottenham Royal a popular dance hall in Tottenham during
the 1960s. In 2008 the band were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. |
BRIAN HANRAHAN |
Born Tottenham, 22nd March 1949 - Died London 20th December
2010 age 61 |

|
Brian
Hanrahan was born in Tottenham and he was the son of Thomas and Kathleen Hanrahan (nee
McInerney). The family lived at 436 West Green Road, Tottenham. Brian attended Belmont
Junior school and then St Ignatius College at Stamford Hill, Tottenham. After taking a
degree in Politics at Essex University, and a year teaching in West Africa with VSO, he
joined the BBC in 1970.
Brian was the Diplomatic Editor for BBC News and a well-known correspondent perhaps best
remembered for his coverage of the Falklands War of 1982, His most memorable report from
the campaign included his comments:
Im not allowed to say how many planes joined the
raid but I counted them all out and I counted them all back
As the BBC's Far East, and then Moscow correspondent, he watched dramatic changes
unfolding in China and Russia. He covered Tiananmen Square and the fall of the Berlin
Wall. In more recent years, the correspondent had covered ceremonial and state events such
as the anniversaries of D-Day and the funerals of Diana, Princess of Wales and the Queen
Mother.
Following the terrorist attacks on the United States on 11th September 2001, Brian
Hanrahan flew to New York to anchor special programmes.
At the time of his death, BBC director-general, Mark Thompson, said, Brian was a
journalist of unimpeachable integrity and outstanding judgment, but his personal kindness
and humanity also came through. That is why audiences and everyone who knew him here will
miss him very much. |
SHANI WALLIS |
Born Tottenham, 14th April 1933 |

|
Shani was born in Tottenham and on leaving school she studied at the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA, She is perhaps best known for her role as Nancy in the classic screen adaptation of Oliver
Twist in the musical Oliver
by Lionel Bart when she starred alongside Ron Moody - Harry Secombe Oliver Reed- Jack Wild and Mark Lester.
Shani now lives in the USA
|
LESLIE PHILLIPS |
Born Tottenham -
20th April 1924 |

|
Leslie was born in Welbourne Road, Tottenham in rather humble beginnings.
His father was employed at Glover & Main in Edmonton who manufactured cookers.
Following the early death of his father in 1931 the family moved to Chingford. It was his mother who decided that Phillips should
be sent to the Italia Conti Academy to receive elocution lessons in order to lose
his natural cockney accent as at that time a strong regional accent from any city was a
major impediment to an aspiring actor. It proved to be an astute move and by the age of 14
Phillips was the family's main breadwinner, saving his mother from squalor. His suave,
seductive voice is his trademark as well as his catchphrases, "I say, Ding Dong" He has played numerous roles on both stage
and screen but is perhaps best known for the parts he played in the Carry on
series of films.
Phillips has been a
lifelong fan of Tottenham Hotspur and makes mention of the fact in his 2006 Autobiography
Hello: I was born in Tottenham just before the team scored a goal and they said my
scream was louder than those in the ground. I supported Tottenham Hotspur and have done
until this day. |
LESLIE WELSH |
Born
Edmonton 1907 later lived in Cornwall Road, Tottenham Died Feb 1980 |

|
Perhaps best
known as Leslie Welch The Memory Man
His talent for memorising and then being able to recall accurately the smallest of
sporting detail, was discovered almost by accident while he was serving with the 8th Army
in the Western Desert in WW2. He overheard two officers arguing over the result of a
football match; Leslie was not only able to settle the dispute but name the two teams as
well. His fame spread and he was a popular star on post-war radio. Millions tuned in their
radio sets in the 1950s to listen to his warm cockney tones. Known as The
Memory Man he could recall the most obscure sporting detail from as many as 37
different sports as part of his radio and stage act but one day in 1963 he just vanished
from the professional theatre.. |
TED WILLIS |
Born Tottenham - 13th
January 1914-Died 22nd Dec 1992 |

|
He was born
Edward Henry Willis in Stanley Road in the West Green area of Tottenham. Commonly known as
Ted Willis he was politically active in support of the Labour party. However it was his
passion for drama that was to bring him fame. He was best known for writing the television
series Dixon of Dock Green starring Jack Warner. He later wrote many other TV
series including Sergeant Cork, Mrs Thursday and The
Adventures of Black Beauty.
In 1963 he was awarded a life peerage as Baron Willis of Chislehurst, Kent.
The memories of his Tottenham childhood are splendidly captured in his wonderful book
Whatever happened to Tom Mix? The story of one of my lives |
ARNOLD LYNCH |
Born
Tottenham3rd June 1914 - Died 13th Nov 2004 |

|
Arnold
Lynch, scientist and engineer, made a significant contribution to the development of what
many regard as the first electronic computer. The Colossus machine was used from 1943 to
1945 by the code-breakers at Bletchley Park to break the Lorenz cypher; a cypher much more
complex than Enigma. Arnold was the son of Albert John Lynch, the headmaster at West Green
School, champion of the Dalton system of education and later Mayor of Tottenham. After
graduating from Emmanuel College Cambridge, Arnold worked at the Post Office Research
Station at Dollis Hill. In 1943 Tommy Flowers, Colossuss designer, commissioned
Arnold to develop the vital high-speed optical paper tape reader. By D-day 1944 the
Colossus machines at Bletchley Park were enabling the reading of the Nazi hierarchys
unbreakable messages faster than the Nazis themselves. In 1995 Arnold Lynch
helped the volunteers at Bletchley Park rebuild Colossus machines where they can now be
viewed as working exhibits. |
BILL NICHOLSON |
Born Scarborough - 26th January 1919-Died Tottenham 23rd
October 2004 |

|
Bill
Nicholson was one of family of 9 and moved from his native Yorkshire to join Tottenham
Hotspur as a 17 year old in March 1936. A distinguished player in his own right Bill
played for Spurs from 1936 until 1954 and was part of the famous 'Push & Run ' team of
the 1950's. It should of course be mentioned that Bill lost a large part of his playing
career during the outbreak of WW2. However,
it was perhaps as a Manager of Spurs that Bill really gained world-wide recognition as one
of the finest football managers of his day. He was appointed Manager in 1958 and on his
very first match in charge Spurs recorded a famous 10-4 win over Everton. He went on to
manage the famous Spurs 'Double winning Team' in the 1960-61 season and became the first
British manager to win a European trophy when winning the European Cup-Winners Cup in
1963. Under Bill's guidance Spurs were to win the FA Cup 3 times - The League Cup twice
and the UEFA Cup on a further two occasions. Bill retired as the Spurs Manager in 1976.
Bill continued to work as a consultant until 1991 when
he was awarded the title of Club President. Bill continued to attend every match at his
beloved Tottenham Hotspur played at White Hart Lane until shortly before his death in 2004
aged 85 years
Bill was a true man of Tottenham and arguably the finest
manager in Football never to be Knighted. The entrance to today's Stadium has been named
'Bill Nicholson Way' in his memory. |
PAUL TREVILLION |
Born
Tottenham, 11th March 1934 |

|
Born in Love
Lane Tottenham, Paul Trevillion is a highly acclaimed British comic/sports artist whose
career spans over fifty years. Paul Trevillion used to draw his Spurs Heroes while he
stood on the terraces at White Hart Lane as a boy. He later produced artwork for
publications like the 'Eagle' and TV21 while still at school. For many years
he also had a weekly feature in the 'Tottenham & Edmonton Weekly Herald' with his
stories and illustrations for his beloved 'Spurs' football team. For over 50 years he has produced his comic strip ' You Are The Ref' in
national newspapers and other of his many cartoons have featured in famous football
publications such as 'Roy of the Rovers' and 'Shoot' magazine.
Paul has also met and drawn many of the world's greatest
sports stars such as Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Pele, Bobby Moore, George Best,
Michael Jordan and Franz Beckenbauer to name just a few. He also famously sketched Sir
Winston Churchill in 1955 and it is the only portrait Churchill ever signed and the
drawing now hangs in the 'Churchill Museum'.
His other achievements include the introduction of a
revolutionary new putting technique for Golf and his collaboration with former Spurs
player, Alan Mullery, in the writing of their book 'Double Bill' about the legendary Spurs
manager Bill Nicholson. |
JOSEPH SILK |
Born Tottenham - December 1942 |

|
Prof
Joseph Ivor Silk is
the Savilion Chair of Astronomy at the University of Oxford. He came back to the UK in
1999 to take up the position, following a nearly 30-year career at the University of California, Berkeley. He once lived in
the Park View Road area of Tottenham and was educated at Tottenham County School
(1954-1960) and Cambridge University (1960-1963) He held distinguished positions in Munich, Paris Groningen and Baltimore. Professor Silk, a post-graduate of Harvard, has
given more than two hundred invited conference lectures, primarily on galaxy formation and
cosmology. He
is a Fellow of New College Oxford and a Fellow of the Royal Society (elected May 1999)
He was awarded the 2011 Balzan Prize for his works on
the early Universe |
DAVID TRIESMAN |
Born Tottenham -
30th October 1943 |

|
David
Triesman was educated at the Stationers Company school in London and later at
the University of Essex and Kings CollegeCambridge . An
active trade unionist he later became a lecturer and a fellow of Cambridge University. He
was made a life peer in January 2004 as Baron Triesman of Tottenham and was later to serve
as Parliamentary Secretary of State for Innovation and then Parliamentary Under Secretary
in the Foreign Office.
However, a lifelong fan of Tottenham Hotspur, he is perhaps best known today as being the
first independent Chairman of the Football Association when appointed in 2008Resigned in Feb 2011 following his allegations of bribery within FIFA
relating to Englands bid for the 2018 World Cup |
LEMAR OBIKA |
Born Tottenham -
4th April 1978 |

|
Lemar Obika,
professionally known as Lemar was born in Tottenham from Nigerian parents.
Lemar had some musical success supporting various artists such as Destinys Child,
Total, Uncle Sam and Usher Raymond on their UK club tours and after some years, managed to
secure a recording contract of his own. Lemar was most notably brought to public attention
on the BBCs Fame Academy show in 2002. Lemar has also won two Brit Awards and three MOBO Awards to date[1] and
released his fifth studio album in 2012. |
ADELE |
Born Tottenham -
5th May 1988 |

|
Adele Laurie
Blue Adkins was born in Tottenham London, England, UK, although better known
professionally by her single name 'Adele'. She was born to a single teenage mother named
Penny on 5th May 1988. Adele's father split from Adele's mother when Adele was 3 years
which as of 2012 Adele had not forgiven him for. She began singing at age four and asserts
that she became obsessed with voices. Adele has cited the 'Spice Girls' as a major
influence in regard to her love and passion for music, stating the "they made me what
I am today." At the age of 9,
Adele and her mother, a furniture-maker and adult learning activities organiser, relocated
to Brighton. At the age of 11, Adele and her mother moved to Brixton, and then to
neighbouring district West Norwood in South London.
At the annual 'Grammy Awards' in 2012, Adele was
presented with 6 Grammy Awards including "Record of the Year", "Song of the
Year" and "Album of the Year" tying the record held by 'Beyonce' for most
Grammy Awards won by a female artist in a single year.
In January 2013, for her song "Skyfall",(James
Bond soundtrack) she won the Golden Globe award for the Best Original Song. In
February 2013 she won an 'Oscar' for the 'Best Original Score' for 'Skyfall', which means
she pulled off an amazing hat-trick having won a Golden Globe, a Grammy, and now an Oscar,
and she's only 24 years old.
Although she moved away from North London aged 9, Adele
remains an ardent fan of her hometown Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur.
|
BRITNEY SPEARS |
Born Louisiana - 2nd
December 1981 |

|
OK ! Perhaps
a stretch of the truth but few people I am sure would be aware that Britneys Great
Grandparents originated from Tottenham.
George Anthony Portell and Lillian Esther Lewis married at St Johns Church in
Tottenham in 1923. Their daughter, Britneys grandmother Lillian Woolmore-Portell ,
met and married a US Navy sailor Barnett OField Bridges in London during the second
world war. They subsequently moved to New Orleans and had 3 children including Britney
Spears mother Lynne.
Britney Spears...or should that be 'Britney Spurs', as records reveal her family
connections with Tottenham |
RON MOODY |
Born Tottenham -
8th January 1924 |

|
Ron was born
Ronald Moodnick and his parents were of Russian/Jewish descent. Moody originally trained
to be an accountant at the London School of Economics but began appearing in shows and
later decided to become a professional actor. Ron Moody has worked in a variety of genres,
but is perhaps best known for his starring role as the villainous yet loveable
Fagin in Lionel Barts famous stage and film musical Oliver
which was based on the Charles Dickenss novel Oliver Twist. On 30 June 2010, Moody appeared on stage at the end of a performance of
Cameron Mackintosh's revival of Oliver! (50th Anniversary reprise) |
TREVOR PEACOCK |
Born Tottenham -
19th May 1931 |

|
Trevor Peacock was born in Tottenham the son of Alexandria and Victor
Edward Peacock. He is an English character actor who is perhaps best known for his role as
Jim Trott in the TV series The Vicar of Dibley. His catchphrase
NO..NO..NO...NO...YES! will
I am sure be familiar to many viewers of the programme.
Trevor has appeared in many other popular TV programmes and feature films.
He made his film debut as an actor in the little know film The Barber of Stamford Hill (1963), another
local connection ?
Many will be surprised to learn that Trevor is also an accomplished
songwriter. He wrote the 1960s pop classic
"Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter", which was recorded by Herman's
Hermits. Other hit songs to his credit include "Mystery Girl" (recorded by Jess
Conrad), "Made You" (Adam Faith), "Gossip Calypso" (Bernard Cribbins),
"That's What Love Will Do" and "Nature's Time For Love" (both recorded
by Joe Brown). He wrote the lyrics for the musical show, "Passion Flower Hotel"
(music by John Barry), and for a musical based on the popular newspaper cartoon strip,
Andy Capp (music by Alan Price). |
MIKE REID |
Born
Hackney 19th January 1940 Died 29th July 2007 Marbella |

|
Mike Reid
moved with his family to Tottenham in the early years of WW2 as a result of devastation
caused by German bombers in the Blitz and experienced a childhood of scrimping and saving.
"I remember asking my dad if I could have tuppence," he recalled. "He said,
'Son, if battleships were worth two a penny, I couldn't buy a rowing boat.'" On
leaving Rowland Hill School, Tottenham, Reid worked as a plasterer's mate, scrap-iron
dealer, coalman and lorry driver.
The gravel voice and cockney tones of Mike Reid first came to the attention of Television
audiences in 1971 when 'The Comedians',which featured stand-up comics who were popular on
the northern club circuits and working men's venues across Britain, first appeared on our
screens. Then came the role that was to change his working life when in 1987 he landed the
part of 'Frank Butcher' in the popular BBC soap 'Eastenders' which, with exception to a
few years in the mid 1990's, was a part he played until 2000.
Mike Reid tragically died from a heart attack in Marbella Spain in July 2007 |
GEORGE SEWELL |
Born
Hoxton 31st August 1924 - Died 2nd April 2007 |

|
George was
born in Hoxton but his family later moved to South Tottenham and they lived near
Tewkesbury Road, off Seven Sisters Road. His mother's family were flower sellers and run
their business nearby. George left school at 14 and was apprenticed in his father's trade
as a printer. But when war broke out in 1939 and printing was soon restricted by the
shortage of paper, he switched to building work, specifically the repair of bomb-damaged
houses. Later in the war he joined the RAF and trained as a pilot, though too late to see
action. George was a self-made actor
who successfully auditioned for Joan Littlewood's Workshop where he appeared an 'Fings
Aint Wot They Used T'Be' and 'Sparrers Cant Sing'. He excelled in strong, sometimes
sinister, often shifty, supporting roles and, though he was best known and most at home on
television, in series such as Z Cars and Special Branch, he had a solid grounding in the
theatre and in the cinema he lent his talents to such acclaimed action movies as Get
Carter (1971), playing Con Mc Carty, one of the London Villains sent up to Tyneside to
carry out that task. |
LAURENCE PAYNE |
Born
Tottenham 5th June 1919 - Died 23rd February 2009 |

|
Laurence was born in Tottenham and attended Belmont School and later
Tottenham Grammar School. Perhaps best known for his role as the detective Sexton
Blake which was screen on TV from the late 60s to the early 1970s. One of his
major film parts was when he played the role of Joseph opposite Charlton Heston in the
epic film BEN HUR in 1959. In 1944 Laurence married the actress Sheila
Burrell, who was also the cousin of Laurence Olivier, Their married was later dissolved.
Laurence Payne died in 2009 age 89 years |
MIKE & BERNIE WINTERS |
Mike
Winters Born Islington 15th November 1930 - Died 24th August 2013 Bernie Winters Born Islington 6th Sept 1932 - Died 4th May 1991 |


|
Mike and
Bernie Winters were born as Mike & Bernie Weinstein in Islington but the family moved
to Tottenham in 1935 when they lived opposite George Marks who was later to become the
glamour photographer Harrison Marks. A close school friend of Bernie Weinstein
was Danny Sewell, brother of actor George Sewell, the actor and another famous son of
Tottenham,
Mike & Bernie formed their comedy double act in the early 1950s and changed
their surname to Winters. Mike was the straight man to the mildly gormless and goofy
character played by Bernie. They were famous throughout the 1950s to the late
1970s when they split up and decided to go their separate ways. Bernie was later to
pursue a solo career perhaps best remembered alongside his comedy partner, a large St
Bernard dog named SCHNORBITZ.
Bernie died in 1991 aged 59 and Mike died in 2013 aged 82 years. |
ROSAMUNDE JOHN |
Born Nora Rosamund Jones -Tottenham - 19th October1913 |

|
She was
brought up in Tottenham and was educated at the Tottenham Drapers' College, then attended
the Embassy School of Acting.
She became a popular film and stage actress who was known for playing gentle mannered
women. Rosamund was twice married, first to film editor Russell Lloyd, from 1943-1949, and
then to the politician John Silkin (19501987). They had one son, Rory (born 1954).
She died from natural causes in London 1998 aged 85. |
GERTIE GITANA |
Born Gertrude Astbury -Stoke on Trent -27th December1887 |

|
Gertie was a
famous Music Hall star who started her career in the very early 1900s.and continued
as a top line artist for over 30 years. At the 1901 Census Gertrude Astbury
was living at 83 The Crescent, High Cross Tottenham.
During the 1914-18 war she was the Forces' sweetheart and often entertained the war
wounded in hospitals. However Gertie once lived in West Green Road, Tottenham and also
appeared regularly at the old Wood Green Empire.
Perhaps her most famous song was Sweet Nellie Dean which was often heard
imitated by patrons of Pubic Houses throughout the land.
In 1928 she married the dancer, Don Ross, and retired from the stage in 1938. Gertie
Gitana died on the 5th January 1957 at Wigston Magna, Leics. |
GEOFF
LOVE |
Born
Todmorden ,Yorkshire 4th September 1916 Died London 8th July 1991 |

|
Geoff Love was a musical director, arranger, composer and one of the UK's
most popular easy-listening music personalities. After performing with several top bands
of the era, in 1955, Geoff Love formed his own band for the television show On The Town,
and soon afterwards started recording for EMI/Columbia with his Orchestra and Concert
Orchestra. In 1959, Geoff Love started to release some recordings under the pseudonym,
Manuel and His Music Of The Mountains, which proved to be immensely successful.
Besides his own orchestral records, Love provided the accompaniment and arrangements on
record, and in concert, for many popular artists such as Connie Francis, Russ Conway, Paul
Robeson, Judy Garland, Frankie Vaughan, Johnny Mathis, Des O'Connor, Ken Dodd, Marlene
Dietrich and Gracie Fields. He recorded at least two albums with Shirley Bassey in 1959
and 1960
He was consistently popular on radio, and on television, where, besides conducting the
orchestra, he was especially effective as a comic foil to Max Bygraves on his
Singalongamax, and similar series.
Geoff Love was born in Todmorden, Yorkshire in 1917. His father was a mixed race American
born guitarist and dancer, and his mother an actress. We understand that the family first
moved to Tottenham in the 1930s and were resident at 76, St. Margarets Road
during the war years. We further understand that, from an inspection of the electoral
rolls, Geoff Love is first listed there in 1945. The family continued to live at this
address until about 1956.
Geoff Love saw military service during the
Second World War. Geoff Love was married to Joy and had two sons, Adrian and Nigel. We
know from the Tottenham Grammar School website that Adrian was a pupil at the Grammar
School from 1955 to 1960. Adrian Love was a popular disc jockey and presenter with
LBC and Capital Radio who later enjoyed a very successful career with the BBC. Sadly
Adrian died in 1999 having never fully recovered from a terrible car crash in 1997.
Geoff Love died in London on 8th July 1991 age 73. |
ARNOLD
LUCY |
Born Tottenham 8th August 1865 Died Los Angeles 15th December
1945 |

|
Arnold
Lucy was a British actor claimed to have performed on the fabled London West End
stage over 1,200 times before making his early film debut in the early 1910s during the
Golden Era of the Hollywood system. He is known for his role as the professor Kantorek in
All Quiet on the Western Front.
He was the youngest of the six sons of architect and surveyor Donald Campbell (1830-1900)
and his wife Lucy Elizabeth (née Speak; 1828-1922) of Church Lane, Hornfield Lodge,
Tottenham. They married in 1853. Their youngest child and only daughter, Rose Lucy, was
born in 1871. |
ALAN MOSS |
Born Tottenham - 14th November 1930 |

|
Alan
Edward Moss is a former English cricketer who played in 9 Tests from 1954 to
1960. Following his retirement from first-class cricket in 1963, he ran a printing
business. He later reappeared in three limited-over matches. He has been a loyal member of
the Middlesex CCC General Committee for over thirty years. He has served as Treasurer,
Chairman (19951999) and President (20032005). He is currently a member of the
ECB Disciplinary Commission. |
FAMOUS
PEOPLE FROM TOTTENHAM ALREADY FEATURED ON THE SUMMERHILL ROAD WEBSITE
REFER TO 'TOTTENHAM HISTORY SNIPPETS'
FROM MAIN MENU FOR MORE DETAILED BIOGRAPHIES |
LUKE HOWARD |
Born London - 28th
November 1772 - Died 20th March 1864 |

|
It was Luke
Howard who invented the terms for types of clouds, such as cirrus, stratus and cumulus
that are in common usage today. Each time we look out the window and remark on the
billowing cumulus, the dull stratus or lacy cirrus, we further honour the name of Luke
Howard. He truly deserves the title bestowed by Dr John Day: Godfather of the
Clouds. He was
a British manufacturing chemist and an amateur meteorologist with broad interests in
science. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1821. Luke Howard died, aged 92, in 1864.
In April of 2002, the British Meteorological Office honoured the memory of Luke Howard by
posting a plaque at his former home, 7 Bruce Grove, Tottenham, where Howard spent his
final years.
|
JOHN WILLIAMS |
Born
Tottenham , High Cross - 27th June 1796 |

|
John
Williams was born at Rupert House, High Cross, Tottenham on the 27th June 1796 and was
educated at a school in Fore Street, Edmonton. At the age of 14 he was apprenticed to a Mr
Elias Tonkin, an Ironmonger in the City Road, London. Although primarily he was expected
to be taught the commercial side of the business, John was far more interested in the
practical side and spent much of his time in the blacksmiths forge where before long he
became so skilled that any job that required great or delicate skill was entrusted to his
capable hands. However it was a chance invitation by Mrs Tonkin for John to join her at a
meeting at the Tabernacle Chapel that resulted in John dedicating his life to becoming a
Missionary and to the worship of God.
Within 12 months of applying to become a missionary, John had been married to Mary Chawner
and in November 1816 they were both on route to a new life serving in the South Seas. John
was no ordinary character but was thrusting and self confident. His vigorous personality
and practical skills made him perhaps the most famous Missionary of his time. One can
appreciate now both the talent and confidence he had and what a craftsman he was to
undertake the construction of ocean going vessels as well as the many houses and churches
he built during his years as a missionary mostly built by him using only the primitive
tools and materials available to him in the South Seas.
Sadly John Williams was to meet a very tragic death when, along with another missionary,
Mr Harris, he was clubbed to death by natives on the island of Erromango in November 1839
and subsequently eaten by the natives in an act of cannibalism. The announcement of his
death back home in the UK resulted in a huge outgoing of public sorrow. Such was their
concern that appeals to the public resulted in the first of seven ship bearing the name John
Williams being dedicated to the service of missionaries continuing his work
in the South Pacific. |
ROWLAND HILL |
Born Kidderminster, Worcs
- 3rd December 1795 - Died 27th August 1879 |

|
Perhaps one of the most famous people from
Tottenham's history is that of Sir Rowland Hill who is world famous for the
development of the Penny Post System and the introduction of the postage stamp.
His family operated Bruce Castle School, perhaps
the most famous of the many private schools in Tottenham, that was opened in 1827 and
began as a branch establishment of the Hill family school at Hazelwood near Birmingham.
Rowland Hill was the first headmaster of Bruce Castle School and, on leaving the school in
1833, handed over to his brother Arthur Hill who retired in 1866
Sir Rowland Hill died at his home in Hampstead at
the age of 84 on the 27th August 1879. His remains were laid in Westminster Abbey, London
on the 4th September 1880.
|
WILLIAM HOBSON |
Born: Southwark, London, 9th November 1752 - Died
Tottenham May 1840 |

|
William
Hobson of Markfield House was the Quaker builder of the Martello Towers that
were constructed all along the South East coastline of England in the early
19th century to repel any attacks by Napoleonic forces. Although never used
in battle many are still standing today. William Hobson was also a friend of
the artist, John Constable, who painted many portraits of the Hobson family |
HARRY CHAMPION |
Born : William Crump - Shoreditch, London, 1865 - Died
Tottenham 1942 |

|
Harry
Champion was a famous Music Hall star from the Victorian era. He first appeared in Music
Hall at the age of 15. In 1888 he changed his stage name from Will Conray to Harry
Champion and with a wide repertoire of songs, many of them sung at breakneck speed, he
became one of the Music Hall's most successful artists. Many of Harry Champion's songs are
still well known today and include "Any Old Iron", "Boiled Beef and
Carrots" and "I'm Henery the Eighth I am".
What few people realise however is that Harry Champion spent most of his life in Tottenham
and in 1918 his address was given as 'Ascot Lodge' 520 West Green Road. He later moved to
161 Great Cambridge Road, Tottenham, this being his address at the time of his death in
1942.
Many sources, not least of all Champion himself, confirm his long standing connection with
the cab/taxi business, which seems to have continued well into the 1930's and possibly
involved his relations. His son William Henry Crump, who acted as executor of his will in
1942, was described then as a 'Motor Engineer'. We now know that they established 'North
London Coaches' in the 1930's but their fleet of vehicles was commandeered by the
government at the outbreak of war in 1939 |
JAMES SMITHSON |
Born : Paris 1765 - Died Genoa, Italy 27th
June 1829 |
 |
James Smithson, MA, FRS was an English chemist and
mineralogist. Born in Paris as the illegitimate child of Hugh Percy, the 1st
Duke of Northumberland. James Smithson is known to have lived at Percy
House, Tottenham that was built in the early 1740's by Sir Hugh Smithson
(later Percy) the Duke of Northumberland. James Smithson was never
married and had no children. Smithson's will stipulated that his estate be
used "to found in Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian
Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of
knowledge among men." |
TALBOT BAINES REED |
Born : Hackney 3rd April, 1852 - Died
Highgate 28th November 1893 |
 |
Though
virtually forgotten today, over his relatively short life he was a massively
prolific and successful author of Boys’ books and also an acknowledged
expert in Typography. He attended the City of London School and one of his
close friends was Herbert Asquith who was later to become Prime Minister.
His father was Sir Charles Reed a leading MP and very prominent in
Victorian Society. The family lived at Earlsmead House at Page Green in
Tottenham. The family had strong connections with the town of Castlerock in
Northern Ireland and Talbot B Reed was later to marry Margaret Greer from
Castlerock in 1879. Their first home was at Broomfield Villa in Philip Lane
Tottenham where two of their children were born. Sadly Talbot B Reed
contracted Tuberculosis early in 1893. He fought his illness bravely and
visited his favourite Castlerock one last time before returning to his home
in London where he died in November 1893. |
HENRY HUNNINGS |
Born : Tottenham 25th July, 1842 - Died
Southampton 4th May, 1886. |
 |
The Hunnings family lived at 516 High Road, Tottenham
where William Butters Hunnings had established a ‘Printing and Stationers’
business. Henry Hunnings was the youngest son and took an early interest in
photography which he introduced to the family business. Henry was later to
leave the business to study to be a clergyman. Between 1874 and 1880 he was
the curate at Bolton Percy near York. It was here that he took an interest
in telephony and he invented and patented his own telephone transmitter.
This later resulted in a long legal battle with Alexander Graham Bell and
Thomas Edison who contested his patent. However the British Post Office and
others went on to adopt Hunnings’ carbon-granule transmitter as their
transmitter of choice until it was phased out in the 1980s some one hundred
years later. Sadly a combination of ill health, loss of income and stress of
court cases caused Henry Hunnings to take his own life at Eling near
Southampton in May 1886. |
ARTHUR B PURVIS |
Born : Tottenham 31st March 1890. - Died
Ayr Scotland 14th August 1941.. |
 |
Arthur Blakie Purvis was born at Linden Road, West
Green, Tottenham on the 31st March, 1890 one of two sons and a daughter born
to William and Annie Purvis. Arthur Blakie Purvis was educated at St Anne’s
School and later Tottenham Grammar School. At the age of 20 he joined
Nobel's Explosives Co of Glasgow, which became part of Imperial Chemical
Industries of London. During WW1 Arthur B. Purvis was responsible for
the purchase of materials for explosives in America. After the war it was as
an employee of ICI that Purvis was sent to Canada to be President and
Managing Director of Canadian Industries Ltd, one of Canada's most
technologically advanced companies. During the inter-war years Arthur B
Purvis pursued a very successful business career. He became President of
Canadian Industries Ltd and was a member of many boards. At the outbreak
of World War II, Arthur B. Purvis was appointed by the British Government to
be Director-General of the British Purchasing Committee which was charged
with buying war supplies from the United States. In 1941, he was made
Chairman of the British Supply Council in North America, having overall
responsibility over all British war purchases in the United States.
Tragically Arthur B. Purvis was killed in an air-crash on the 14th August
1941, when his plane crashed shortly after taking off from RAF Heathfield in
Scotland. Following his death it was reported that President Roosevelt said
of him “I have lost a Friend”. On his death, Winston Churchill wrote that
“Purvis was a grievous loss, as he held so many British, American and
Canadian threads in his hands”.
|
WALTER HOW |
Born : Bermondsey, London 25th December, 1885. - Died
Tottenham 5th August ,1972. |
 |
Walter
How was born in Bermondsey, London in 1885. He went to sea at the age of 12
and served on many sailing ships and was later chosen as an Able Seaman for
'The
Imperial Trans Antarctic Expedition'
aboard the ‘Endurance’ led by Sir Ernest Shackleton which took place from
1914-1917. Their objective was to be the first group to cross the Antarctic
continent on land after having reached it onboard the Endurance ship via the
Weddell Sea. Unfortunately, the ship was beset by ice at sea, near Vahsel
Bay, and it eventually crushed before sinking.
The men spent months on makeshift camps before finally reaching the
uninhabited Elephant Island. From here, Shackleton and five crew members
made an open boat, 800 mile journey to South Georgia to get help one of the
most heroic rescue attempts known to man. Thankfully, all the crew returned
to England, safe and sound.
Walter How was later to live at Birkbeck Road Tottenham for the rest of his
life. The involvement of a Tottenham man in this famous expedition was
recognized by Cllr Douglas Clark who was Mayor of Haringey in 1973.
|
PRISCILLA WAKEFIELD |
Born :Tottenham 31st January, 1751. - Died
Ipswich 12th September, 1832.. |
 |
Priscilla Wakefield (nee Bell) was born in Tottenham on
the 31st January 1751 and was the eldest daughter of Daniel and Catherine
Bell of Stamford Hill. Priscilla was married in January 1771 to Edward
Wakefield (1750-1826) who was a prominent London merchant. They were to have
two sons Edward and Daniel and a daughter Isabella. Priscilla Wakefield
was a devout Quaker and very successful business woman who also became
prominent for her philanthropic undertakings. She was one of the earliest
promotors of savings banks. It was however as writer of children’s books
that she became most widely known. Priscilla Wakefield also had a
considerable knowledge of botany and natural history and published many
books between 1796 until her death in 1832. It has been suggested that being
a Quaker was an important part of her life and clearly this influenced many
of her stories relating to children’s education, the female sex and the
introduction to natural history. Priscilla Wakefield was also the Aunt
of Elizabeth Fry (nee Gurney -daughter of her sister Catherine Bell) the
well-known prison reformer. Priscilla Wakefield and her niece Elizabeth Fry
were involved in creating training schools for nurses which inspired none
other than Florence Nightingale to assist wounded soldiers in the Crimean
war. Five of Priscilla Wakefield’s grandsons were later to become
prominent in the colonisation of both Australia and New Zealand. These
members of the Wakefield family were later to become very prominent in early
New Zealand politics and became known as the ‘Wakefieldites’.
In the very first New Zealand Parliament established in 1854 there were two
if not three members of the Wakefield family elected. |
BENJAMIN WINDUS |
Born : Bishopsgate, London 15th January, 1790 - Died
Tottenham 8th July, 1867. |

LIBRARY - BENJAMIN WINDUS -HOME
TOTTENHAM GREEN |
Benjamin Godfrey Windus was born in Bishopsgate, London
on 15th January 1790 the son of Edward William and Mary Windus. The Windus
family were well known as makers of high class carriages and harness makers.
Benjamin Windus’s inheritance was not solely derived from his family’s
coach-building business. His mother’s father, Benjamin Godfrey, had built up
a fortune making and selling ‘Godfrey’s Cordial’, a mixture of opium,
treacle and spices which was marketed all over the country. Benjamin
Windus inherited from his father in 1832 a ‘unique and elegant cottage
residence’, or as John Ruskin was later to call it, a ‘cheerful little
villa’ in Tottenham located close to Tottenham Green. One of his first
actions on moving in was to add a library to the side of the house where he
shelved his books and displayed his growing collection of pictures. Benjamin
Windus was well known as a leading art collector of his time, with a large
and important collection of Turner watercolours and David Wilkie drawings
amongst his collection. He was also a supporter of the Pre-Raphaelites and
had many paintings by Millais, Holman Hunt and Rossetti’s tutor Ford Maddox
Brown. A regular visor to the home of Benjamin Windus was the artist John
Ruskin who would immerse himself in the Windus collection. However by far
the most prominent of visitors to the house on Tottenham Green was J.M.W
Turner and Benjamin Windus was an avid collector of his works. Following
his death in 1867 the collection of works of arts and antiquities of B.G
Windus were auctioned in London by Christies. When looking at the extensive
list of items that were made available for auction it is hard to imagine
just how much they would be worth today. A memorial to Benjamin Windus and
his first wife Mary can be found in Holy Trinity Church.
|
PRINCE BONAPARTE |
Resident of Tottenham -
1861 -1883 |

|
In September
1861 a quiet scholarly man retired to a house in West Green Road, close to Black Boy Lane.
His name was Louis Lucien Bonaparte (Born 1813) and he bore a strong resemblance to the
great Napoleon, who was his uncle. Lucien spent most of his life in literary pursuits. In
1883 Queen Victoria recognised his literary services with the grant of a pension. He took
a house in Bayswater where he had a large library and a collection of Napoleonic relics.
Ill health took him back to Italy where he died in Nov 1891 |
PERCY PERRIN |
Born Percival Albert Perrin -Stoke Newington 1876 - Died Norfolk 1945 |

|
Percy
Perrin, often known as Peter, was one of the leading cricketers in England in the
Edwardian Golden Age of amateur cricket. Percys family moved to
Tottenham in 1878 where they were very successful Publicans. They ran the White
Hart at Tottenham Hale and later The Bull in Tottenham High Road. The
Perrins were evidently very successful in the pub business and later in property
because they were able to pay for the education of their two sons.
In 1892, during the school holidays, he started to play cricket for Tottenham Cricket
Club. In 1895 Percy broke several Tottenham batting records, and his performances came to
the attention of Essex County Club, then based at Leyton. In his career as a county
cricketer Percy played more matches, 496, in the County Championship than any other
amateur. He was a hard hitting right hander he scored more Championship runs, 27,703, than
any other Essex player, including Graham Gooch. At Chesterfield in 1904, he scored the
first first-class triple century in the twentieth century, 343 not out, setting an Essex
record which has lasted a hundred years. Shortly before he stopped playing cricket for
Essex, Percy became a Test match selector. He remained a member of the Test selection
committee for ten years, alongside the likes of Lord Hawke and Sir Stanley Jackson. Percy
Perrin died at Hickling Broad, Norfolk just after the end of the Second World War, when
his estate was valued at £5 million at 2005 prices. |
OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PERSONS BORN IN TOTTENHAM |
DENNIS SPOONER |
Born
Tottenham 1st December 1932 Screenwriter and script editor
Including Stingray, Thunderbirds, Doctor Who, Avengers, Bergerac, Randall & Hopkirk
Deceased among many others. |
LEONARD LEWIS |
Born
Tottenham 29th November 1927 Producer & Director credits include
EastEnders, Flambards, When the Boat Comes In, Softly Softly, Juliet Bravo among many
others |
MARK ALLEYNE |
Born
Tottenham 23rd May 1968 Cricketer Gloucestershire. Played a few one-day
internationals for England. Awarded MBE in 2004 for services to Cricket. |
REUBEN MARTIN |
Born
Tottenham 1921 - Bodybuilder and weightlifter and former Mr Universe.
Reuben also featured in many films including several of the 'Carry On' series when he
played the part of a Gorilla. Reuben died December 1993. |
JEAN BAYLISS |
Born
Tottenham A musical actress, Jean once lived in Arnold Road Tottenham and
attended the Italia Conti stage school as a child and she went on to perform in many West
End musicals. Jean was to star as 'Maria' in the original West End production of the 'The
Sound of Music' when it premiered in London in 1961. She was later to gather some
television fame when she played the part of Mrs Cunningham in the notorious ITV
series Crossroads |
THOMAS HODGKIN |
Born
Tottenham 1798 - Physician and pathologist . Studied at Edinburgh University.
Best known for his description of the disease causing enlargement of the spleen, liver and
lymph nodes, later named Hodgkins disease. Pioneer of preventive medicine. Wrote the
two volumed work entitled The Morbid Anatomy of Serous and Mucous Membranes which became a
classic in modern pathology |