Notable Residents
William Webb Follett, the noted lawyer and parliamentarian, was born here in 1796. Thomas Hardy's cousin, Tryphena Sparks, who was the inspiration for Hardy's poem Thoughts of Phena at News of Her Death lived here and is buried here. She was known locally for the charitable work she did for the local fishermen. Dick Pym, the footballer, was born here in 1893; he was a goalkeeper in the first Wembley FA Cup Final in 1923, and died in Exeter in 1988, aged 95. The newsreader, Trevor McDonald, is a past resident of the town, and both members of the folk group Show of Hands live in Topsham. Novelist Philip Hensher also lives here. His 2011 book 'King of the Badgers' is set in a fictional town based on Topsham. Bill Pertwee (ARP Warden William Hodges)from Dad's Army also live here
Read more about this topic: Topsham, Devon
Famous quotes containing the words notable and/or residents:
“a notable prince that was called King John;
And he ruled England with main and with might,
For he did great wrong, and maintained little right.”
—Unknown. King John and the Abbot of Canterbury (l. 2–4)
“In most nineteenth-century cities, both large and small, more than 50 percent—and often up to 75 percent—of the residents in any given year were no longer there ten years later. People born in the twentieth century are much more likely to live near their birthplace than were people born in the nineteenth century.”
—Stephanie Coontz (20th century)