The Knowhere Guide

Local Heroes in Bath, Somerset*

Bath, Somerset Famous Residents

Cringing Cult of Celebrity (Famous residents and ex-residents.)

• Jason Cooper (The Cures drummer) lives in Bath.
• Van Morrison
• You missed a major one! Nena Cheery used to own a house in Bath (may still do). Always very chatty apparently.
• Leslie Crowther lived for years in Corston, about 4 miles outside Bath. He died some time in the 90s. Jimmy Choo supposedly lives in the Royal Crescent. Loads of stage actors performed over the years at the Theatre Royal, including Lionel Blair. What about Jeremy Guscott, grew up in Batheaston. And other stars of the national rugby team who played for Bath.
• giles from buffy lives just outside bath and is quite often seen in town!. jonny depp is also known to have a second home here and loves it!
• andy robinson-the new england rugby captain
• The Zen Hussies are from Bath, wow!!!!!!
• Ken Loach no longer lives in Bath. Tears for Fears boys grew up in Bath. Shoe designer Manolo Blahnik lives in Bath. Midge Ure lives near Bath. Hugh Cornwell from the Stranglers came from Bath and the cover of their single Strange Little Girl is taken with the view of Bath in the background.
• truda who stabbed a kitten on vets in practise!
• Cardiff City Footballers: PETER THORNE, ANDREW CAMPBELL, CHRIS BARKER, GARETH WHALLEY & JAMES COLLINS ARE IN BATH REGUALY. ALSO ARSENAL PLAYER EDU SPOTTED
• Tony Head (Buffy) doesnt llive in Bath, he lives in Timsbury which is about 10 miles away from Bath.
• apparently someone in brookside was an ex-dweller in bath, tell your friends, they're dying to know.
• Nobody has put Jonathan Dimbleby, Prince Charles lives close, the blokes that did the hair and makeup for Lord of the Rings. In town you might see Robbie, Will Young, Johny Depp and Orlando Bloom who like the bars and Geri Halliwell and former S-Club poppies who like the shopping. I was at a charity fashion show last week and saw Miss Scotland, TV presenter Ali Vowls, radio broadcaster Graham Alexander and Tanya who is the voice you hear doing the announcements on the London Underground. Jane Seymour has a house here too.
• Antiba (http://www.antiba.co.uk) all currently reside in Bath! I saw Steve in Somerfields the other day!
• Bath has always had Jazz so no surpise to find Jamie Cullum and Claire Teale hail from here. Christopher Frayling, now the head of the Arts Council, lives up Widcombe Hill. Plenty of sporting heros - Colin Jackson, hurdler, used to train here, Olympic medalists Kate Howey, Stephanie Cook and Kate Allenby also. You'll find half the England swimming team doing something slightly more exotic than the Doggy Paddle in the University swimming pool. Jason Gardner one of the world's fastest over 60m also to be found up at Claverton Down. Watch out for the mad ones that go down ice slopes on tea trays and bobsleighs. They train here as well.
• Loads of people - esp famous local author John Wroughton
• Claytown Troupe, 80's alternative rock group who were signed to Island & EMI records toured with The Cult & Pearl Jam
• apparently that bloke from tears for fears lives there sometimes. obviously that's pushing the 'celeb' bit though...
• Michael Jackson
• apparently johnny depp has a house in lansdown. anthony head who is some character in Buffy.we saw him walking past ann summers. jane seymour had a house in bath....kindof. peter gabriel lives in box zoe ball and norman cook got married in bath crispian mills of kula shaker fame often seen in harvest/waitrose tears for fears come from bath.snow hill to be precise.
• hugh grant and liz hurley live outside bath,truda the swedish vet,bloke outta buffy,
• You've forgotten William Herschel he lived in Queens Square a couple of centuries ago and discovered Uranus in 1781.
• Camilla Parker Bowles has been known to step out. A lot of bands stay in Seymour's mansion whilst recording albums including Radiohead I believe
• Manolo Blahnik - Bath cobbler to those sexy city girls and an awfull lot of international fashion shows. Retrospective exhibition at Design Museum, London. If you want cheap shoes go to the market - his aren't! Ian Lidell of Buro Happold - one of the foremost structural engineers in the country - Millennium Dome, Glasgow Science Tower etc. If it's outrageous and challenging he probably did the structural side. Midge Ure from Ultravox lives just outside as does Hugh Cornwal late of the Stranglers.
• Giles from Buffy lives in Timsbury and I've seen him around Bath with his kids quite a lot
• I think the Stranglers come from Bath too ? saw Hywel bennett in town once.
• Hot Dog Jackson. Rock Star!!!!!!!!1
• Simon bloody Parkin of Bath FM fame lives here. Saw him walking down the road in a wax jacket with a baguette under his arm. Know where i'd like to have stuck it...
• Pere Hamill, Van Morrison, Peter Gabriel, that geezer out of
• Jonathon Dimbleby & Bel Mooney
• Tony Head (Buffy), Van Morrison, Hugh Grant and Liz Hurley
• Andrew Lincoln of That's Life, went to Beechen Cliff Coffee ad bloke who plays Giles on Buffy
• Can't believe nobody has mentioned the legendary Stackridge, from whom came the Corgis and later the Buggles. Ahhhh those were the days... real music......
• Giles from buffy skulks around sometimes, causing all preteenagers into a wild frenzy and that guy from this life, Egg, lives here.
• VAN MORRISON, AND PETER GABRIEL AND BEAU NASH
• Jane Austen
• so whoever is writing about deja voodoo..whats up? deja voodoo...get back to the 80's ....your sound is dead.
• I saw the Deja voodoos the other day - God they are so good looking! - I think the person who said they were old and washed up has to get their facts straight, they have only been around for about a year and they ROCK!!!!!!! - if you ever see them get an autograph while you can- before they are too famous to get to!!!!!
• I cant believe no one has yet mentioned The Propeller Heads: there the only decent thing to come out of Bath since ...well-ever. Oh and there's that band Silversun. Plus at the moment the band Snowhill.
• I seem to see the Deja Voodoos around quite a lot
• That band The Deja Voodoos ,if anyone remembers them, live in Bath and regularly strut through the streets expecting us to run up and ask for autographs.
• Lived there for 21 years. I've never clapped eyes on a celeb. If you're a tourist p,raps you're more likely to look
• Every middle aged womens dream:Simon Sheppard from Peak Practice and his wife, who did all the costumes for 'Elizabeth' own a massive house in Bath. The American bloke from AbFab ( the dad) lives in Southstoke.
• All the old washed out soap stars visit at panto time.
• Excellent place for star spotting - they think that they are inconspicuous walking through our dear streets but boy are they wrong, they couldn't stick out more!!!! e'g' Richard Ashcroft - like he could get away with it!!!
• Cripian from Kula Shaker. Oh and I saw Richard Ashcroft and the girl from Spiritulized on Milsom Street.
• Tears for fears came from Bath
• J.R. Chisman WWI Fighter pilot and car hire pioneer.
• Peter Gabriel lives a few miles out of time. (Or at least he did when I was at school, about 1983.)
• I once saw Cheggers on the High Street and a couple of my mates saw Lionel Blair in Boots.
• Famous comedian IAN COGNITO now resides here, and has done for years
• Jane Seymore has a very big house that you can rent in the summer Only 14000 a week??? Call Challenger Int @ 01225 445 445 ask for Mr Edwards
• Consider yourself lucky if you don't see Van Morrison eating. Should be kept in an aquarium when not onstage.
• Had my haircut next to Van Morrison once and got really pissed up with Patrick McGoohan.
• Mick Haggard, vocalist of the Rolling Clones lives in Bath. The Clones became local (and national) heroes when they were sued by their mentors over copyright of the band's name.
• Lord Bath - mad bloke, famous for his eccentric behaviour and outfits. Has decorated his home in the most bizarre fashion!
• Malthus ("The Malthusian Doctrine") died in Bath and is buried in Bath Abbey.
• There are a few film makers around. Ken Loach lives here and David Puttnam just outside. Also a chap called Paul Weiland who did the Mr Bean series (and City Slicker II - but I'm not sure that's a recommendation!)
• Soap stars(?) every Christmas at the Theatre Royal.
• Rolf Harris visits a bit.
• Hidden links with Simply Red.
• My friend met Seal in Sainsburys once.
• Van Morrison, Peter Gabriel, Keith Waterhouse, Leo McKern
• Plenty of famous rugby players obviously - most of England team can be spotted at one time or another erm, oh and Peter Gabriel has been known to drive through town in his sports car as well.
• Leslie Crowther used to shop in Waitrose
• Once saw Paula Yates and Michael Hutchence in WH SMITH (of all places)
• Liz Hurley, Hugh Grant.

Buskers, Street Entertainers

• The reggae guy on milsom street is absolutly a legend!! he even does christmas songs in a reggae style! buy his cd! And the legend htat is G. guy with an unfortunate crook in his neck, works in Ducks, son and pinker. Nice guy.
• that loony who plays the guitar
• Where has Clive TV gone? I'm gonna start a Bring Back Clive campain!
• the funniest busker outside the abbey, very eccentric and mad, dances around like a lunatic, theres also the man who plays the saw and the silver, gold and blue people who are quite a sight.
• There's a guy with a pink flower in his hat. And the ones in underpants on unicycles eating fire...
• there is this guy who plays violin in a band that buskes around whsmiths. he is THE most entertaining guy to watch he looks like hes having some sort of seizure and you always think those wide eyes are staring at you...
• Aha, well most of them are crap and for the tourists but check out the huckleberries (sometimes near the big WHSmith) and go and jig, or go find happy Graham in the Abbey Courtyard.
• big issue sellers everywhere
• The Zen Hussies are great showmen, playing there mix of swing, ska and klesmer either in local and national venues or on the street, you can find some of them polishing their Brogues and drinking Bellringer in The Bell on Walcot St.
• Does anyone know the contact information for the guitar player and singer that usually plays outside of sommerfields? His voice and his music had a way of making any day brighten up. I really want some of his music on cd!
• Reggae man!!!!! he sings reggae songs over one chord on his guitar and he rocks!
• Scott Presley - Local Football Hero
• Where has that guy gone who always stood outside the abbey, by the taxi rank, and sold his child-like drawings of 'a pint of beer'?
• the guy with the hat who plays the guitar outside the pump rooms, very cheerful, if a bit pervy in a weird friends-dad-way
• drunken dunken[guitar playing busker but really good]
• THAT busker on in the abbey coiurtyard he is rubbish.though i read in the paper he is gonna stop because someone hit him with a ladder.haha. there is also that ceticy/folk band THAT play like EVERY saturday in the summer outside dixons. and the pan pie band that play every saturday outside marks and spencers. and the african dancers that dancer every saturday outside the pumo rooms but there is a group of three punk types that wear creepers and play various instruments oustide the bodyshop.
• the old man at the bus station with the long beard and wee dog and the bycicle!! rest in peace 'Happy days' a true character! the man who can sing happy bithday by tapping his cheeks with his hands!...i dunno how 2 explain it but its impressive..i swear!
• Happy Days! Lovely man who brightens up every pub, happy days
• Can be the best thing about Bath. Have seen travelogue of the Up the Amazon Without a Paddle type on telly showing band playing in tin shack on a saturday night in an amazonian settlement only to find them playing at the bottom Milsom Street the next day!
• The naked blokes are good. They sometimes perform in front of the Pump-Rooms.
• That AWFUL man who sings 'Where do you go to..' and other things like he's being strangled. AWFUL. The tourists love him.
• The guy with the '10ft unicycle of death' is great, saw him 3 years ago then went back this year(2002) and he was there again. Kids loved his show. Plays up to the audience well, better the audience, better the show.
• great busker in the corridor, up by onyx records outside the back of the top next...he played a Muse song coz he saw me wearing their T-shirt!!!
• Bath used to have the best outside London. trouble is the council would rather have pavement cafe table tho' it keeps putting buskers in the tourist brochures, 'The Pump Room Pitch' is generally top quality. Noel Britten & JJs walk (Bizarre Bath) is a hoot too.
• The score with the two chords guy was that someone paid him to leave town-apocryphal possibly, but it was printed in the Chronicle. He resurfaced briefly 3 years or so ago. What about the much missed retarded breaker who wore a crash helmet, had cardboad instead of lino and openly displayed a "Teach Yourself Breakdance" book?
• Lots of these - variable - many very good
• Whatever happened to the bloke who only knew 2 chords? As I recall he was voted Britain's Worst Busker....
• Why do the tourists love the blue guy? He's not that interesting!! THe African singers that sometimes come are brilliant to listen to and i can't believe Bath Council are causing a fuss cos they reckon they're, ' too loud' or something stupid like that! These kinds of Buskers make Bath what it is today! And please can the bible bashers leave us all in peace!
• THERES ME OF COURSE I BUSK MOSTLY IN THE SUMMER AND MOSTLY IN ABBEY SQUARE, I'M THE PERSON PLAYING GUITAR AND SINGING TUNEFULLY I HOPE IN YOUR GENERAL DIRECTION LET ME DESCRIBE MYSELF I'M BLACK AND ABOUT 6' WIEGH 12 AND A HALF STONES, AND I ANSWER TO THE NAME OF CLIVE OR CLIVE T-V.
• Henry the saw player. I hate him.
• During the summer there was a fanastic gold woman outside the abbey, i think her name was Lex, and she was really friendly and pretty. I haven't seen her since it got cold. Worth waiting 'till next summer to talk to her again.
• Jugglers and fire eaters and bagpipe players sometimes seen
• I personally, being local, like the jugglers who do a handstand on a unicycle, wearing just a thong, with a sparkler between their buttocks, especially to **** off the tourists in the pump rooms....
• Grod the groddler, Aka Happy Graham must die!! If i have to listen to American Pie one more time...
• Has that good Big Issue seller gone now Haven't seen him for ages His best line was Help the Homeless..........to go down the pub
• They're fun but the guy who is the bue living statues getting a bit boring now He should retire
• Simon the pavement artist..can anyone tell me what his crayon drawings are all about. good photos on canvas though...place your orders...ideal gifts.
• that bloke who plays a violin while walking on a tight rope is good. I think that buskers etc are the people who make bath what it is today. they play an equal part to bringing in the tourists as the roman baths etc.
• That really cool Big Issue Seller who takes the piss out himself and everyone. "Todays Big Issue, tommorows toilet tissue"
• THE BLUE BLOKE
• There is a man who paints himself blue and stands still, and for some reason, this absolutely enthralls the tourists.
• Jessie who plays her clarinet with her little dog stash
• `The Blue Man`!
• Speaking as someone who busks fairly regularly in the Abbey Churchyard I can state with absolute certainty that the council NEVER pays buskers. In fact they would much rather we were not there at all, which is a pity really, because I think that busking adds a lot to the city.
• Some of the buskers are paid by the Council.
• There are some very good street performers around Bath; fewer drunks than there used to be, too.

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Last updated: 2008-05-15