An A to Z of Bygone Celebrities of Ramsgate

If we go back through time and take a good look at what has helped our great town to be a Great Town, you will see that a lot of this came from all the world-famous Celebrities that have stayed, lived, or visited Ramsgate.

Two of the World’s Greatest writers, Hans Christian Anderson, and Jane Austen, both visited Ramsgate. Jane used to visit her brother Captain Austen and later Admiral, who lived in Ramsgate.

World famous Victorian Doctor Collis Browne, inventor of that well know medicine, lived in Victoria Road and is buried in St. Laurence Churchyard. Actress Brenda Blethyn OBE was born and brought up in Ramsgate and returned. PT Barnum and Buffalo Bill both brought their Greatest Shows to Ramsgate.

Writer, Wilkie Collins stayed in Wellington Crescent and Nelson Crescent, a great friend of Dickens (one of his books was Woman in White). Coleridge also visited and wrote of Ramsgate. Winston Churchill visited our Ramsgate Tunnels soon after they were finished. The Duke of Clarence proposed to Miss Long of Ramsgate four times, she turned him down, he became King William IV.

Daniel Defoe wrote of Ramsgate when he visited several times. He wrote that the locals claimed that it used to be called Romansgate and that the Romans visited. He doubted that to be true, but we now know that Julius Caesar and his troops did land here. Lady Augusta Murray and the D’Este family also lived in Victoria Road. Ramsgate’s own Royal family; the wife of the Duke of Sussex and their children lived here and are buried in St. Laurence Churchyard.

Prince Edward, Prince of Wales, Duke of Windsor came to Ramsgate in 1926 to open the Prince Edward Promenade on the West Cliff.

Elizabeth Fry, the lady on your five-pound note, lived in Belle Vue Road on the East Cliff and she would visit the convict ships in the harbour to check on their welfare.

HM King George IV visited several times, loved the town and its people, and named our Harbour Royal in 1821.

Prime Minister Ted Heath went to Chatham House School and lived in Broadstairs. Audrey Hepburn performed in the chorus line at the pavilion before she was a superstar.

Sir Henry Irving, the famous Victorian Actor once fought a mock duel with another actor on the Harbour. Julio Iglesias learnt English in the Regency School of English.

Richard Joy, the Kentish Samson who entertained royalty often performed in Ramsgate, he lived in St. Peters.

Karl Marx stayed in Ramsgate on the Plains of Waterloo and bought a house for his daughter Jenny in Artillery Road.

Actor John Le Mesurier lived in Ramsgate at several addresses including London Road.

TV personality Frank Muir was born in a pub on Margate Road.

Norman Wisdom staged a show at the Granville Theatre, the show sold out in minutes, so he said ‘we will do it twice’.

Two Ton Tessie O’Shea, entertainer performed at the Palace Theatre.

World famous architect Pugin lived in the Grange and built the St. Augustine’s Church on the West Cliff, his son built the Granville.

Queen Victoria used to stay in Ramsgate for her holidays when she was a Princess, with her mother the Duchess of Kent.

The Rolling Stones appeared at Ramsgate’s West Cliff Hall in a charity show for Ramsgate Football Club.

Shackleton met Dame Janet Stancomb-Wills, local rich resident who sponsored the Antarctic Expedition. James Stewart, actor of the silver screen, attended the Miss Merrie England pageant to present the prizes at the Coronation Ballroom.

General Tom Thumb came here with PT Barnum in 1843.

Turner painted an amazing image of the Ramsgate Harbour in a storm.

The Viking Ship Hugin returned to Ramsgate in 1949.

Vincent van Gogh, lived and worked as a teacher in Spencer Square and Royal Road.

Duke of Wellington lived in 1 Chatham Place near Chatham House School.

William Pitt the Younger reviewed the troops on the West Cliff after the War.

Zimber, the only fire dancer in Europe performed on the sea front for many years near Merrie England.

This comes to you from one of the “Old Ramsgate – A Trip Down Memory Lane” presentations, which will be part of the Festival Slide Shows.

Written by:
Ralph Hoult OBE,
Festival Director