The Only Way Is Essex
There's more to Essex than fake tan and boobs. It's also the birthplace of a fashion designer, a rock star's wife (or two) and a fair few X Factor stars.
Rex FeaturesThe Only Way Is Essex Cast
And it’s this lot that have brought the recent limelight back to Essex. The reality TV hit follows the friendship, fights and fumbles of Mark Wright, Jessica Wright, Kirk Norcross, Amy Childs, Lauren Goodger and Sam Faiers.
PA PhotosDenise Van Outen
Despite her Dutch-sounding surname, Denise Van Outen is in fact from Basildon. The Only Way Is Essex narrator is proud of her Essex girl roots and recently hit out at criticism of the show saying: "Why are people in Essex so outraged? Where's your sense of humour? You're letting your county down."
Rex FeaturesDermot O’Leary
You might think that Dermot O’Leary is Irish (he does actually have an Irish passport) but the X Factor presenter grew up in Essex, getting his big break on a local radio station.
PA PhotosDamon Albarn
This Essex boy grew up near Colchester. When Blur officially reformed (albeit briefly) in 2008, Damon planned for the band to perform secret gigs in his home county. “I think that it's beautifully ironic that with my kind of wanderlust and desire to travel and experience the – some would say – exotic east, the south, wherever, the thing that excites me next year is going back to Essex. Can you believe it?" he revealed at the time.
PA PhotosJamie Oliver
Jamie Oliver was famously brought up in the Essex pub run by his parents. Despite his international reputation, the chef still lives in the same town he grew up in, Clavering, with his wife and their four children.
PA PhotosStacey Solomon
Just about everyone fell in love with Stacey Solomon’s bubbly personality on X Factor so it’s little wonder that the public voted this Essex girl the winner when she went into the jungle on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here.
PA PhotosOlly Murs
But Stacey wasn’t the only Essex representative on X Factor in 2009 (are they putting something in the water there?) Olly Murs also hails from the county and, though he lost out to Joe McElderry in the final, he has since scored a No1 hit with "Please Don't Let Me Go”.
PA PhotosJade Goody
Perhaps the county’s most famous resident, the Big Brother star was described as “Essex’s Princess” after her death from cervical cancer in 2009.
Rupert Grint
From Essex to… Hogwarts. This flame-haired Harry Potter star was born in Harlow but, since finding fame, has moved to neighbouring Hertfordshire.
PA PhotosMichelle Dockery
Michelle played Lady Mary Crawley in the hit TV drama Downton Abbey (GLAMOUR.COM can’t wait till the second series) but the actress’ origins were more humble – and there wasn’t a corset in sight!
PA PhotosRussell Brand
Russell Edward Brand might now rub shoulders with just about all of Hollywood but he hasn’t forgotten the place he once called home. He and wife Katy Perry were rumoured to be buying a house in the town of Danbury last summer. Only time will tell if they make the move…
PA PhotosJo Wood
Back before she bagged one of the most eligible rock stars of the 70s in the shape of the Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood, this former model had a slightly less glamorous existence, growing up in Basildon.
PA PhotosAnya Hindmarch
Anya Hindmarch’s cute handbags have become a hit all over the world but, while her base is now in London, the designer was born a little further north in Essex.
PA PhotosJamie Cullum
The jazz player grew up in Romford before moving with his parents to Wiltshire. He now lives with wife Sophie Dahl in North London.
PA PhotosRoss Kemp
While Ross learnt his hard-man ways growing up on the streets of Barking, he didn’t learn how to impress girls. “The first question an Essex girl asks is not ‘What do you do for a living?’ it’s ‘What do you drive?’” he says. “To which I had to say, ‘Not very much’, and that seriously hampered my love life.”
PA PhotosMaggie Smith
Maggie Smith was born in Ilford and proves that the stiletto-clad, bleach-blonde image of Essex girl is not always true!
PA PhotosStephen Moyer
Stephen Moyer has taken America by storm as the enigmatic vampire, Bill Compton in True Blood. Forget that Southern drawl though, Stephen was born in Brentwood. While his home is now in LA (with wife and co-star Anna Paquin), Stephen still remembers where he came from and recently donated a T-shirt to the Brentwood Theatre.
Rex FeaturesSimon Amstell
Simon Amstell’s sitcom, Grandma’s House, was inspired by the comedian’s own life, growing up in Essex.
PA PhotosNick Frost
Shaun Of The Dead star Nick Frost learnt his funny ways in Essex, well, before he jetted off to Israel to live on a kibbutz for two years that is.
PA PhotosPenny Lancaster
As the wife of rocker Rod Stewart, Penny Lancaster lives the high life. But it wasn’t always that way; the model grew up with her gym-enthusiast parents in the quiet suburb of Chelmsford.
PA PhotosFrankie Sandford
The Saturdays’ star, who cut her performing teeth at stage school in Romford, has hit out at the The Only Way Is Essex. “It’s kind of like they’re undoing all the hard work that us Essex girls are doing!”
PA PhotosRochelle Wiseman
Frankie Sandford isn’t the only Essex gal in the Saturdays - bandmate Rochelle was also born in the fair county.
PA PhotosMatt Cardle
What is it with X Factor and Essex? 2010’s winner Matt Cardle came from Little Maple-stead and regularly performed gigs in local pubs.
PA PhotosRussell Tovey
The Being Human actor, famous for his big ears, grew up in Billericay. In fact, Gavin and Stacey star James Corden is rumoured to have set the show in Russell’s hometown as an homage to his close friend. Sweet.
PA PhotosTamzin Outhwaite
Actress Tamzin Ouithwaite was born in Ilford to a taxi driver father and an Italian Avon lady mother. The actress admitted that her upbringing was rather chaotic. “There was no such thing as routine and we were notorious for our unpunctuality. I was late every day for school because my mother never dropped me off on time.”
