The Knowhere Guide

Local Heroes in Lewisham, Greater London*

Lewisham, Greater London Famous Residents

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

• John Cole, Terry Jackson, Ray Cue, Tony Gibbins, Little Joe, and John Shanks who formed "The Catford Crew" all lived in Forest Hill, Catford and Lewisham. There were many changes in the line-up and the Group broke up in the late 60s. John Cole moved to Melbourne, Australia and wrote of his experiences in a best-seller called, "Trouble at Ladywell Nick".
• my boyfriend says naomi campbell???
• Westcombe Park, Jools Holland
• linda barker lived in honor oak to it' shame, as did (does) timothy spall. Kate bush lived in bexleyheath but played in the rose of lee. Tommy steele came from catford
• I'd like to point out that Kate Bush seems to have lived in every town in South East London according to this website. I know she lived in Eltham but that is not Lewisham. Same with Ian Wright. He was from Woolwich which is also NOT Lewisham.
• Spike Milligan - I spoke to Spike's brother Desmond and the Milligan family used to live at 50 Riseldine Road which is on the cusp of Brockley and Honor Oak (in the Borough of Lewisham). The only connection with Catford is Spike's aunt lived there and he probably had a few jazz gigs there. In his biography it mentions him playing jazz at St Cyprians hall which is in Brockley. There is a campaign for a statue of him to be erected in Lewisham High Street close to the Victorian clock tower.
• Matthew Kelly used to live up the road from Brockley Cross!!
• Glenda Jackson's from Liverpool, but lived in Blackheath before moving on to Hampstead to be MP. Parents of Francis Rossi of the Quo lived in Somerset Gardens near the muticoloured house and he used to visit a lot. Eat yer heart out, Heat.
• Footballers Rodney Wallace,Richard Rufus and the late David Rocastle are from Lewisham as is Spencer from EastEnders while Blues Lee Ryan is from Blackheath
• Famous residents of southbrook Road have included: Mannfred mann and Eric Clapton. Dennis Thatcher was born there, and Jude Law spent his childhood there and went to Kidbrooke School
• Edith Nesbit (Socialist writer of kids books: Five Children & It, Railway Children, Treasure Seekers etc.) lived round here for most of her life, various houses in Lewisham & Lee. Started off in a tiny terraced house in Elswick Road, ended up somewhere posh in the suburbs Henry Williamson (Tarka the Otter & a whole load of novels no-one reads nowadays because he was a fascist) was born & raised in Brockley. Eleanor Marx (not a fascist) was round Lewisham somewhere. Spike Milligan said "I'd like to go to heaven, but if Jerrfey Archer is there I'd rather stay in Lewisham".
• From Brockley in Lewisham: Kate Bush, Gabrielle, Glenda Jackson, Matthew Kelly, Spike Milligan, Mica Paris, Tim Roth, Ian Wright
• Kate Bush lived here for a while. David Sylvian leader singer of Japan born and bred here.
• Christopher Marlowe was stabbed in the eye and died in Deptford.
• Louise (that singer from Eternal, now more famous for getting her jugs out for FHM) was born in the Hospital.
• Former Labour Home Secretary Herbert Morrison (grandfather of Peter Mandelson) was MP for Lewisham East after the war. Sidney Webb (founder of the Fabian Society and Labour's First Trade Secretary) was the member for Deptford on the London County Council in the early 20th century. The likes of Gabrielle, Jools Holland and Danny Baker all live in Blackheath.
• The Goss brothers were born in Lewisham hospital!! Spike Milligan lived in Catford for many years.
• There is a rumour that someone famous lives on Baring Road, but recently he has only been spotted during weekends (probably cos he's at his university). He goes by the name Y2K£N.

Buskers, Street Entertainers

• The guy in the multicoloured house sometimes likes to scream at the traffic in a weird, high-pitched squeal of an evening. As you do.

The Knowhere Guide started out as a list of places to skateboard in the UK. It is a compilation of (unedited) information and views supplied by users like yourself. It is not a conventional tourist guide!

In most cases, the information in each section has been submitted by more than one contributor (the credits at the bottom of the page list some, but not all, of the contributors) and some of it dates back to the 1970s.

We make no claims as to the accuracy of the information in the Guide - our only purpose is to provide a forum for users to share their knowledge and opinions. So please keep a large bag of salt handy and be prepared to read between the lines!

If you disagree with a comment, or information is out of date, please submit an update! The contributors come from all walks of life, and their opinions are bound to be subjective, so if your view isn't represented, please speak up and contribute to the balance of the Guide. See below in the 'Have Your Say' section for how to add your voice.

If we have helped you out or made you laugh you can buy us a pint.

Have Your Say...

You can tell us more about Lewisham. This is also the method to use if you want to correct some of the information already here. (But please remember you're not mailing the person who actually wrote whatever-it-is.)

You can use the add an event form to tell us about events happening in Lewisham.

Or, if you'd just like to leave a message for other users of this site, take a look at The Knowhere Board (handy if you're just trying to get in touch with someone).

Credits

Last updated: 2008-07-08