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
- Field: Player Clear ×
Alex Higgins
1949 - 2010
Joe Swail
Born 1969
Paddy Jackson
Born 1992
David Humphreys (rugby union)
Born 1971
Paddy Wallace
Born 1979
Chris Henry (rugby union)
Born 1984
Jack Kyle
1926 - 2014
Jeremy Davidson (rugby union)
Born 1974
Neil Best
Born 1979
Roger Wilson (rugby union)
Born 1981
Jonathan Bell (rugby union)
Born 1974
Chris Farrell
Born 1993
Andy Black (poker player)
Born 1965
Claire Curran
Born 1978
Denis McBride (rugby union)
Born 1964
Craig Gilroy
Born 1991
Trevor Ringland
Born 1959
James Topping
Born 1974
Ryan Caldwell
Born 1984
Stuart Olding
Born 1993
Gary Longwell
Born 1971
Ian Humphreys
Born 1982
Keith Crossan
Born 1959
Nigel Carr
Born 1959
David Irwin (rugby union)
Born 1959
Gordon Hamilton (rugby union)
Born 1964
Rory Scholes
Born 1993
Tom McGown
1876 - 1956
Brian Robinson (rugby union)
Born 1966
Phil Whitlock (squash player)
Born 1962
Colin Patterson (rugby union)
Born 1955
Thomas Gisborne Gordon
1851 - 1935
David Hewitt (rugby union, born 1939)
Born 1939
Paddy Morgan
Born 1943
Dave Young (rugby union)
Born 1985
Jack Siggins
1909 - 1995
Sam Walker (rugby union)
1912 - 1972
Ashleigh Baxter
Born 1991
Jimmy Nelson (rugby player)
1921 - 2014
John Andress
Born 1984
Tommy Smyth (rugby union)
1884 - 1928
Michael Allen (rugby union)
Born 1990
Matty Hadden
Born 1990
Michael Heaney
Born 1990
Kyle McCall
Born 1992
Ian Herron
Born 1971
Adam Macklin
Born 1989
Ricky Lutton
Born 1986
Ross Kane
Born 1994
Jonny Murphy
Born 1992
Tom Hewitt
1905 - 1991
Harry McKibbin
1915 - 2001
James Lytle
1875 - 1928
Mike McComish
Born 1983
Larry Warke
1927 - 1989
Paul Shields (rugby union)
Born 1978
James McKelvey
Born 1933
Arthur Norman McClinton
1886 - 1929
William McKee
1926 - 1982