The West Midlands boasts some seriously talented exports, from movie stars and musicians to world class football players.
Recently, we’ve had a look at the famous faces - actors, musicians and even politicians - who were raised in and around Birmingham. Now, we’ve decided to take a look at the famous celebrities who grew up in nearby Walsall.
Many famous people grew up in the Black Country town which has plenty to offer. It’s steeped in history as is known as the leather capital of Britain. Bits, stirrups, buckles and spurs have been made locally in the town for centuries, and from this trade developed the manufacture of saddlery and leather goods for which Walsall is famous.
And the town also has its prestigious football club, Walsall FC, of course.
A number of actors, sportspeople and musicians all come from the area. With this in mind, we’ve taken a look at the most famous people who are from Walsall - let’s take a look:
5. Sue Nicholls
The Darlaston-born actress is known for her roles on British television in Crossroads, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, and as Audrey Roberts in Coronation Street Photo: Jason Bellinger
6. Jeffrey Holland
The British actor is well known for roles in television sitcoms, playing comic Spike Dixon at the Maplin’s holiday camp in Hi-de-Hi!, as well as BBC Radio comedy, including Week Ending. He also played leading roles in the sitcoms You Rang, M’Lord? and Oh, Doctor Beeching!. Photo: Richard Davenport
7. Ellie Simmonds
From Aldridge in Walsall, Ellie is a former Paralympian swimmer who won a number of gold medals for Great Britain. In 2012, she was again selected for the Great Britain squad, this time swimming at a home games in London. She won another two golds in London, including setting a World Record in the 400m freestyle, and a further gold medal at the Rio Paralympics in 2016 - this time setting a world record for the 200m medley | Getty Images
8. Bob Warman
Warman, aka ‘Mr Midlands’ was born in Walsall, and spent most of his television career at ATV and Central, presenting regional news programmes. He has presented ITV News Central since 2009, and he also presents the later sub-regional edition of Central Tonight from Monday to Wednesday. He presented ITV’s Evening News programme for 13 years, retiring in the summer of 2022 | (ITV News Youtube)