54.5964° N, 5.9301° W
BELFAST
Most Famous People Born in Belfast, United Kingdom
- Notable people
- 1,393
- Peak decade
- 1950s
- Median birth year
- 1949
- Most distinctive
- Loyalist 272.1×
A divided city whose most distinctive profession in the entire dataset, at more than two hundred times the global rate, is loyalist — paired with republican at more than thirty, the statistical footprint of the Troubles. Belfast's other distinctive shelves are boxers, rugby players (grouped as 'player'), footballers, and cricketers at concentrations that outpace every other city on the island. Van Morrison, George Best, Kenneth Branagh, and C.S. Lewis all grew up within walking distance of the Lagan, and the 19th-century shipbuilding establishment that built the Titanic anchors the older half of the bench.
One face per decade — the most globally famous figure born in Belfast during each.
Notable Births by Decade
Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1950s with 179 notable births.
What Belfast Is Known For
Click any row to filter the list of people below.
Football is Belfast's biggest profession — 23% of all notables (321).
Belfast over-indexes on loyalist — 272.1× the global rate.
Belfast under-produces painter — only 0.5× the global rate.
Profession Mix Over Time
Each band shows a profession family's share of Belfast's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.
- Sports
- Politics & Law
- Film & TV
- Writing
- Science
- Music
- Other
- Filtered to 1960s Clear ×
Kenneth Branagh
Born 1960
Vivian Campbell
Born 1962
David Holmes (musician)
Born 1969
Brian Kennedy (singer)
Born 1966
Michael Smiley
Born 1963
Barry Douglas (musician)
Born 1960
Norman Whiteside
Born 1965
Robert McLiam Wilson
Born 1964
Ian Beattie
Born 1965
Bap Kennedy
1962 - 2016
Larry Holden
1961 - 2011
Cathy Kelly
Born 1966
Jeremy McWilliams
Born 1964
Michael Moore (British politician)
Born 1965
Anna Burns
Born 1962
Tommy Wright (footballer, born 1963)
Born 1963
Joe Swail
Born 1969
Alan McDonald (Northern Ireland footballer)
1963 - 2012
John McCrea (comics)
Born 1966
Stuart Graham (actor)
Born 1967
Ian Paisley Jr
Born 1966
Adrian McKinty
Born 1968
Martin Galway
Born 1966
Jim Magilton
Born 1969
Zara Turner
Born 1968
Candida Doyle
Born 1963
Brian Quinn (soccer)
Born 1960
Johnny Adair
Born 1963
James Brown (Elvis impersonator)
Born 1968
Ian Stewart (Northern Irish footballer)
Born 1961
Rosemary Church
Born 1962
Geraldine Heaney
Born 1967
P. J. Lynch
Born 1962
Andy White (singer-songwriter)
Born 1962
Patrick Bond
Born 1961
Trish Deseine
Born 1964
Derek Porter
Born 1967
Andy Black (poker player)
Born 1965
Phil Hughes (footballer)
Born 1964
Jane Harris (writer)
Born 1961
Ian Wilson (composer)
Born 1964
Cathy Wilkes
Born 1966
Fionnuala Sweeney
Born 1965
Mark Caughey
Born 1960
Martin Donnelly (racing driver)
Born 1964
George O'Boyle
Born 1967
Arlene McCarthy
Born 1960
Rimi B. Chatterjee
Born 1969
Denis McBride (rugby union)
Born 1964
Phil Gray
Born 1968
Dudi Appleton
Born 1969
Anton Rogan
Born 1966
Ben Jeapes
Born 1965
John Graham (racing driver)
Born 1966
Carál Ní Chuilín
Born 1964
Tim Collins (British Army officer)
Born 1960
David Kerr (director)
Born 1967
Siobhán Hapaska
Born 1963
Seán Savage
1965 - 1988
Barry McEvoy
Born 1967
Jennifer McCann
Born 1960
Andrea Catherwood
Born 1967
Jonathan Strahan
Born 1964
Ray Close
Born 1969
Richard English
Born 1963
Darren Patterson
Born 1969
Catherine Calderwood
Born 1968
Noel Magee
Born 1965
Gordon Hamilton (rugby union)
Born 1964
Tim Shaw (sculptor)
Born 1964
Cedric Thornberry
1960 - 2014
Owen McCafferty
Born 1961
Antara Dev Sen
Born 1963
Phil Beattie
Born 1963
Paul Marquess
Born 1964
Brian Robinson (rugby union)
Born 1966
Colin Davidson (artist)
Born 1968
Peter McDonald (critic)
Born 1962
David Quinlan
Born 1968
Sam Storey
Born 1963
Phil Whitlock (squash player)
Born 1962
Gillian Hamilton
Born 1969
Michael Savage (politician)
Born 1960
Pat Storey
Born 1960
Robert Ehrlich
Born 1965
Geraldine Smith
Born 1961
Noel Burke
Born 1962
Eddie Friel
Born 1962
Anthony Kerr
Born 1965
Seamus Kennedy
Born 1964
Mark Haddock
Born 1968
Omar Sani
Born 1969
Deirdre Gribbin
Born 1967
Patrick O'Kane
Born 1965
Dawn Purvis
Born 1966
Mervyn Storey
Born 1964
Gregory Collins
Born 1960
Stephen Baxter (footballer)
Born 1965
Paul Loughran
Born 1969
Gary McCausland
Born 1968
Keith Drury (artist)
Born 1964
Joe Bratty
1961 - 1994
Jackie McKernan
Born 1965
Norman Boyd
Born 1961
Mo Courtney
Born 1963
Dave Lemon
Born 1969
Lycia Trouton
Born 1967
Seamus Heath
Born 1961
Paul Millar
Born 1966
Sean Connor
Born 1967
Jim Spence (loyalist)
Born 1960
Christopher "Crip" McWilliams
1963 - 2008
Billy Elliot (RHC)
1964 - 1995
Paul Williams (Northern Ireland footballer)
Born 1963
Kirk Hunter
Born 1963
Kathy Clugston
Born 1969
Ken Barrett (loyalist)
Born 1963
James Millar (loyalist)
Born 1966
Jackie Thompson
Born 1963
Janet Boyle
Born 1963
Mark Hawthorne (umpire)
Born 1962
Donald Hodgen
Born 1963
Philip Morrow
Born 1962
Harry Stockman (loyalist)
Born 1961
David Corkill
Born 1960
Ray Campbell
Born 1967
William Humphrey (Northern Ireland politician)
Born 1967
Glenn Dunlop
Born 1968
Eddie Patterson
Born 1968
Steve Carson
Born 1968
Terry Magee
Born 1964
Trevor Adair
1961 - 2020
David Cullen (basketball)
Born 1969
Drew Harris
Born 1965
Paul Kee
Born 1969
Dan Gordon (actor)
Born 1961
Brian Millar
Born 1966
Peter Barron
Born 1962
Marcas Ó Murchú
Born 1961
Ciaran Barr
Born 1964
Mandy Cunningham
Born 1964
Brian Kingston
Born 1965
Arder Carson
Born 1960
Brian McConaghy
Born 1963
Gary Smyth
Born 1969
Mark Todd (footballer)
Born 1967
Colin Bailie
Born 1964
Linley Hamilton
Born 1965
Ger Rogan
Born 1963
Ross McCollum
Born 1964
Charles McCrum
Born 1964
Lee Doherty (footballer, born 1963)
Born 1963