Rochdale might be a relatively small town but a lot of famous people have been born here.
Cyril Smith: Our larger than life politician who represented the town for many years. Cyril Smith was born in Rochdale on 28th June 1928.
He first came to the public's notice as the newly elected Member of Parliament for Rochdale in the 1972 General Election, though he had already been a major player in Rochdale politics for many years. He had been just 22 years of age when he was first elected to the Rochdale Council.
A lifelong member of the Liberal Party, in 1966 he was appointed Mayor of Rochdale and was awarded the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List. In 1988 he was knighted Sir Cyril Smith and was appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester in 1991. By now his political career was drawing to an end and in that same year he announced his retirement as MP for Rochdale.
Sir Cyril always was a larger than life character, both in terms of his ebullient outspoken personality and his enormous size - he was affectionately known around the town as "Big Cyril". He still lives in the same house in Emma street that he has always lived in.
Upon retirement he was offered a peerage, but declined a seat in the House of Lords, regarding the honour of a knighthood as sufficient recognition of his services to politics and his local community.
Bill Oddie: Former 'Goodie' and now more famous for his birdwatching and naturewatch programmes, was born in Rochdale in 1941. In addition to his wildlife TV work, Bill has worked on a variety of non-birdy projects, mainly co-written with his wife Laura Beaumont. These range from film scripts, drama and comedy series to puppet shows and books. As well as writing scripts, Bill has written numerous bird books including Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, Gone Birding, and Birdwatching with Bill Oddie, all illustrated with his own drawings. He has also written wildlife travel articles for magazines such as BBC Wildlife, Country Life and Signature, often accompanied with his own photos.
Andy Kershaw: Born in Rochdale in 1959 he is a well known disc jockey, particularly keen on more obscure world music than the mainstream stuff. Andy presented his Radio 1 show for 15 years until he was sacked in May 2000 to be replaced by another dance music programme. He realised Radio 3 was his spiritual new home when Controller Roger Wright told him that what he liked about Andy’s Radio 1 programme was that he never knew what was coming next. Andy is a passionate broadcaster and likes to play a variety of lesser heard music on his shows.
Dean Butterworth: Known as Deano and born in Rochdale, he moved to America at the age of 10 and is now drummer with top band 'Good Charlotte.' Famous for hits such as 'lifestyles of the rich and the famous' and 'the young and the hopeless,' and many others. Deano has also been a drummer for 'Morrisey' amongst others.
Lisa Stansfield: Born in 1966, Lisa has appeared on many television shows and has released many records, including 'All around the world' and 'All woman.' She attended Oulderhill School and left at the age of 14 to take up tv work hosting shows such as 'Razzmatazz,' a well known kids programme, at that time. In July 1998, she married trombonist and guitarist Ian Devaney, whom she has known since her school days and with whom she also collaborates (he is also an arranger and producer). She no longer lives in Rochdale and has now moved to sunnier climes. i.e Dublin!
