Women of Portsmouth

Portsmouth has been home to many trailblazing, awe-inspiring and boundary pushing women over the years. There have been scientists and sportspeople, actors and academics, musicians and mathematicians - plus a great many more.

Here we want to shine a light on the women who have made an indelible mark on British culture and history, and whom we're incredibly proud to call Portsmouth's own.

   

Hertha Marks Ayrton

Hertha Marks Ayrton was a prodigal mathematical talent born in Queen Street. Her skills in the field were identified from an early age, despite also having responsibilities caring for her four younger siblings after her father died when Ayrton was just six.

She went on to study at Cambridge University and was enormously productive during this time - constructing a blood pressure monitor, founding a fire brigade, forming a maths club, and even leading the choral society. Yet despite all these extra-curricular activities, Ayrton was a victim of Cambridge's (thankfully now long-outdated) practice of only awarding women certifications, not full degrees.

In a long and illustrious career Ayrton went on to patent no fewer than 26 inventions; was elected first female member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers; became the first woman to be nominated as Fellow of the Royal Society of London; was only the fifth person to be awarded the Royal Society's prestigious Hughes Medal; was a founding member of the International Federation of University Women in 1919 and the National Union of Scientific Workers in 1920; became vice-president of the British Federation of University Women and the National Union of Women’s Suffrages Societies; had the honour of being commemorated as a 'Google Doodle'; and has a blue plaque on the building in which she was born.

   

Michelle Magorian

Anyone who has read Goodnight Mister Tom, or watched the immensely popular film adaptation featuring John Thaw, will be aware of Michelle Magorian's incredible storytelling prowess.

The author was born in Southsea to a Welsh mother and an Irish father with an Armenian surname. Whilst she lived in Portsmouth until the age of 18, Michelle also had a couple of stints in Singapore and Australia.

Her first foray into the arts wasn't writing, but performing. Michelle was no stranger to the Kings Theatre stage and carved out a name for herself as an actress (that name, as it happens, was Mikki Magorian). During her studies at The Rose Bruford College of speech and drama, Michelle started writing more regularly, turning her attention to the genre of children's stories that she so loved.

This interest in children's books led to Magorian writing Goodnight Mister Tom, which went on to win the Guardian Award and the International Reading Association Award, not to mention being the basis for the renowned TV adaptation, as well as a musical. Since her enormously successful debut, Magorian has published four additional novels, two collections of poetry, a collection of short stories and two picture books.

   

Freda Swain

Born on Hallowe'en 1902, Freda Swain was probably always destined to become a musician. Her father, Thomas Swain, was a musical instrument dealer who lived on Fawcett Road, and it's thought her grandfather was a bandmaster in the Royal Marines.

Surely enough her talents emerged from a very early age; she won both an Ada Lewis Scholarship for piano at the Royal Academy of Music and the Portsmouth-Whitcombe Scholarship for composition at the Royal College of Music (RCM) - where she would later return as a professor.

Swain's early career was as a concert pianist but she was always writing and soon saw her work, The Harp of Angus for violin and orchestra, performed by Achille Rivarde at Queen’s Hall.

In 1936, Freda founded the British Music Movement, to help promote new music from young composers and artists. She later set up the NEMO Concerts, promoting the music of her contemporaries following the Second World War.

Though she toured globally (including shows in South Africa and Australia), Freda still kept Portsmouth close to her heart. One composition was even titled 'The Lark on Portsdown'.

Freda Swain died in 1985 having written some 109 songs. She lives on not just through this stunning musical output but also through the lounge at Portsmouth Guildhall that bears her name.

   

Katy Sexton

The first British swimmer ever to win a World Championship title was our very own Katy Sexton MBE. Born and raised in Portsmouth, Sexton attended Springfield School in Drayton, where she first developed the swimming skills that would earn her a host of titles.

Over her illustrious career, Sexton won two gold medals (one at the 2003 World Championships in Barcelona, the other at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur), as well as a further two silvers and three bronze medals.

In fact, so prodigious were Sexton’s talents that she was competing in the senior World Championships whilst still eligible for the juniors. Sexton wasn’t just winning titles but breaking records, too. In both the junior and senior competitions, Sexton broke a huge number of British swimming records, as well as shattering a Commonwealth record during a trial event in 2003.

Since her retirement from competition, Sexton has sought to give back to the local community that helped during her formative years. She founded the Katy Sexton Swim Academy in Havant, whilst also becoming a patron of youth counselling charity Off The Record.

   

Emma Barton

She may be best known as a resident of Albert Square, starring for years as Honey Mitchell in Eastenders, but actress Emma Barton was actually born in Portsmouth.

Barton studied at Horndean Community School, before going on to the Guildford School of Acting. This was to provide the launchpad for her career in the arts, with many credits already to her name for stage and screen.

As well as her long-running Eastenders role, Barton appeared in BBC’s Spooks, and has also established herself as a star of the stage as well – with roles in Grease, Chicago, Thoroughly Modern Millie and plenty more besides.

More recently, Barton lit up the screens in Strictly Come Dancing, being partnered with fan favourite Anton Du Beke. It was a fruitful partnership, with Barton helping Du Beke achieve his first 10s in all 17 series. The couple received a total of fifteen 10s during the competition, eventually finishing joint runners-up.

Today, Barton is patron of the Kings Theatre and involved in numerous charity projects around the UK.

   

Lauren Steadman

From one Strictly star to another! Lauren Steadman featured in the 2018 series of Strictly Come Dancing – making it to the semi-final with partner AJ Pritchard.

Dancing is just one string to Steadman’s bow, though, with the athlete having won numerous medals across swimming and paratriathlon competitions.

Having originally been a swimmer at the 2012 Paralympics, Steadman made the move to paratriathlon shortly afterwards – on the guidance of her uncle, also a triathlete. The switch was a huge success, with Steadman finishing in second place in her first competitive event. She would go on to become a double world champion, six-time European champion and Paralympic silver medallist.

Despite all this success there’s potentially much more still to come, with Steadman – who was born missing her lower right arm – still competing at the highest level.

Though not actually born here in Portsmouth, Steadman has lived in the city for some time and obtained her degree from the University of Portsmouth. She can sometimes be seen racking up the miles around the city in training – and does her adopted home very proud indeed.

   

Amanda Holden

Star of stage and screen, Amanda Holden was born in Portsmouth and grew up in Bishop’s Waltham. It was here that the budding actress well and truly found her calling, joining Bishop’s Waltham Little Theatre Company for classes before being granted her very first role – as a fairy.

Since then it’s only been onward and upward for the TV favourite, who has a vast array of West End credits to her name. As well as appearing as Princess Fiona in the stage adaptation of Shrek, Holden was nominated for a Laurence Olivier award for her performance in Thoroughly Modern Millie, and more recently got to number 4 in the album charts with a collection of musical cover versions.

Of course, most people will recognise Holden as one of the longest-serving judges on ITV’s flagship show, Britain’s Got Talent – where she has been behind the famous red buzzer since 2007.

   

Jill Ellis

Today she may be a naturalised American citizen, but one of the greatest women's football coaches of all time was born right here and grew up in nearby Cowplain.

Jill Ellis was an athletic youngster, playing hockey and netball, as well as various track and field events. Though football was her main love, there weren’t as many opportunities available at the time – apart from occasional games with her brother when his team found itself down a player.

Many more opportunities opened up when the Ellis family moved to Northern Virginia in the USA, where John Ellis – Jill’s father – opened a football academy.

After deciding to leave her job as a technical writer to become a football coach, Ellis went from strength to strength. She won an Atlantic Coast Conference title with NC State, then won eight NCAA Women’s College Cups with UCLA – of which seven were in a row. With the team she also won six Pacific-10 Conference titles on the bounce.

Ellis’ biggest appointment came in 2014 when she was selected as head coach of the USA, following two spells as interim. By the following year she had guided The Stars and Stripes to World Cup glory – then did so again in 2019. This achievement made Ellis the first women’s football coach ever to win back-to-back titles, and only the second coach in history to achieve the feat – with Italy’s Vittorio Pozzo the only other to have done so, way back in 1934 and ‘38.

Following the World Cup success, Ellis stepped down as head coach, but continues to work with the USA team in an ambassadorial role.

   

Celia Levetus (nee Moss)

Poet and author Celia Levetus was born in Portsmouth in 1819 as one of Joseph Moss and Amelia Davids' 12 children.

Joseph instilled a love of poetry in his daughters from an early age, reading Romantic classics to them whilst they sewed. Surely enough, Celia and her sister Marion teamed up to co-write works of their very own: Early Efforts in 1839, The Romance of Jewish History in 1840 and Tales of Jewish History in 1843. As the titles allude, many of their works dealt specifically with Judaism (their great grandmother having founded the Portsmouth Jewish Congregation and their grandmother Sarah being the first Jewish child to be born in Portsmouth in modern times).

A later book, The Romance of Jewish History, was published in a subscription format and counted Prime Minister Lord Palmerston among its subscribers.

Outside of their writing Celia and Marion also opened a boarding school for girls in London in 1845.

   

Sarah Doudney

Another of Portsmouth's women who showed enormous talent from a very young age was Sarah Doudney. Born in 1841 and baptised at St Mary's Church, Doudney was just 15 when she wrote The Lesson of the Water Mill, which went on to become a popular song on both sides of the Atlantic.

Though a prolific writer of poetry and hymns in her younger years, Doudney went on to write prose, often for an audience of younger girls. She didn’t let this impact the gritty realism of her stories, though, with many of Doudney's tales having tragic endings - albeit ones that look forward to comfort or even happiness in death.

Doudney's family has very close ties to Portsmouth, her father and uncle having owned a candle and soap factory near what was then The Royal Portsmouth Hospital. Sarah herself attended Madame Dowell’s College in Southsea and would go on to title a novel The Great Salterns, setting the action in a house of that name on the east coast of Portsea Island.

   

Katie Magnus (nee Emanuel) Lady Magnus

Katie Magnus was the daughter of Alderman Emanuel Emanuel, a goldsmith who became the first Jewish mayor of Portsmouth. Born in May 1844 on High Street, Magnus would go on to make her name as an author and communal worker.

She began a teaching career here in Portsmouth before moving to London. Outside of teaching Lady Magnus wrote and published a host of books, first bible stories for children then later school textbooks - specifically focusing on Jewish and English history. She also contributed much to periodicals, with features in the National Review, Westminster Gazette and the Jewish Chronicle.

Lady Magnus was also a proud supporter of charitable causes and became involved with a number of organisations helping deaf people and those with terminal illness. She also worked with the Jewish Association for the Protection of Girls and Women and founded the Jewish Girls Club in London.

   

Martha and Alice Eliza Loane

The life and work of sisters Martha and Alice Loane will always be intertwined, thanks to a deception where the combined work of both women was passed off as a solo effort.

Martha trained in medicine and went on to become Superintendent of Queen’s Nurses for the Borough of Portsmouth Association for Nursing the Sick Poor.

Younger sibling Alice was born on Southsea's Green Road in October 1863. She went on to develop an interest in social commentary and the lives of the nation's poor.

It's this combination that informed the pair's writing output, with each sister bringing her own expertise to the fore. This combination of medical expertise and social commentary struck a chord with Victorian and Edwardian audiences, who weren't to know that 'M Loane' was actually two people.

It was only Martha's later life conversion to Catholicism that drove a wedge between the sisters and their writing relationship ended.

Working solo, Alice Loane published Shipmates, the only book to be under her own name. She would also go on to become an active member of the Bristol Civic League (an organisation created to tackle problems caused by poverty) after moving to Clifton.

Despite their disagreements Alice offered an olive branch to her sister in death, leaving a will to pass her estate on to Martha (though to add further mystery, the will was not signed, so it took four years for it to clear).

   

Annie Muriel Gammans (nee Paul) Lady Gammans

The future MP Annie Gammans (then Annie Paul) was born on Southsea's Marmion Road in March 1898 and later studied at Portsmouth High School.

At the age of 19 Annie married Royal Field Artilleryman Leonard David Gammans who, in 1941, became Conservative MP for Hornsey Middlesex.

Winston Churchill made Leonard Assistant Postmaster General between 1951 and 1955, and during this time much of his constituency work fell to the MP's wife. The electorate certainly took Mrs Gammans to their hearts as, following her husband’s death in 1957, she was elected MP for Hornsey in his place. She remained a Conservative MP until her retirement in 1966. After stepping down from parliament Lady Gammans became a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and received the Order of the Sacred Treasure (second class) from the Emperor of Japan.

   

Dame Frances Amelia Yates

Historian Frances Amelia Yates has an early history that closely mirrors one of Portsmouth's most famous residents, Charles Dickens. Both were born here to fathers working in the Royal Naval Dockyards, who then headed off at a very young age when their fathers' jobs were moved (Dickens to London and Yates to Chatham, coincidentally where Dickens would eventually call home).

Yates almost certainly had a wealthier start in life, though, with the middle-class family owning lots of books thanks to father James being a voracious reader keen for his children to have access to literature.

This turned out to be something of a masterstroke as Yates went on to have a quite itinerant childhood, during which time she changed school many times and had long spells of non-attendance. During that time, however, she read avidly and kept a detailed diary. Thanks in no small part to her reading, the girl from Victoria Road North ended up with a first-class degree in French, followed by an MA from University College on Sixteenth century French political drama.

Her first book - John Florio: the Life of an Italian in Shakespeare’s England - was published in 1934 and went on to win the British Academy’s Rose Mary Crawshay prize. She would later become a lecturer and editor at the University of London, then reader in Renaissance history and eventually honorary fellow.

Yates was also awarded honorary degrees from the Universities of Edinburgh, Oxford, East Anglia, Exeter and Warwick. She was also an honorary fellow of Lady Margaret Hall at Oxford and Ford lecturer from 1970. Yates won the senior Wolfson History Prize in 1973 and the Premio Galileo Galilei in 1978. She was awarded the OBE in 1972 and DBE in 1977.

   

Vickii Cornborough

An England rugby player with over 70 caps and a host of titles to her name, Vickii Cornborough has gone on to have a successful career from starting off with Portsmouth RFC.

Cornborough's father was responsible for kick starting the love of rugby, involving all his children in the game from a young age. Vickii stuck it out, playing for Portsmouth before moving up through the systems to play for Richmond and then Harlequins.

Her full international debut came in 2015 (after having already represented England in the U19 and U20 teams). Since then she has gone on to feature in two World Cups (playing every single game of the 2017 edition) and win four Six Nations Grand Slams. Cornborough also had club success with Harlequins, lifting the Premier 15s trophy in the 2020/21 season.

   

Olivia Manning (later Olivia Smith)

Author Olivia Manning was born on Laburnum Grove in March 1908. Her younger years were divided between Portsmouth and Ireland, though she studied art at Portsmouth Technical College and had work included in an exhibition on South Parade Pier. A letter to a local newspaper explaining her artwork led to Manning being asked to write several short stories - albeit under the pseudonym Jacob Morrow.

Having won a short story competition Manning dedicated more time to writing and went on to pen six books that make up the Fortunes of War series (comprising the Balkan Trilogy and Levant Trilogy).

Elsewhere her novel A Different Face has many rather familiar aspects, being set in a town called 'Coldmouth' which has a Harbour Station, Royal Beach Hotel and subdivision called Old Coldmouth.

Sadly for Manning, the real fame she so craved only came after her death when her Fortunes of War series was adapted for television. The show starred Emma Thompson, Kenneth Branagh and Alan Bennett, and won three BAFTAs (from a total of nine nominations).

Manning was said to have constantly worried about her ability as a novelist and her literary reputation, wishing to be famous like the actor and comedian Peter Sellers, also born in Portsmouth. Ironically, she died on 23 July 1980, the same day as Sellers, with reports of his death rather overshadowing those of her own.

   

Margery Hurst (nee Berney)

Businesswoman Margery Hurst was almost certainly born in Portsmouth in May 1913. Her father, Samuel Berney, was a cinema owner and builder in the city.

Hurst's career began as a typist, a skill which she took onward to her father's business, running the clerical side before becoming office manager.

After a failed first attempt to get an agency of her own off the ground, Hurst launched Brook Street Bureau, and it quickly became an enormous success. The company, which supplied secretaries to businesses, saw 33 branches open around the country, as well as in New York and Australia. In under two decades the bureau had grown to become the largest office employment agency in the world and was floated on the London Stock Exchange. It was sold in 1985 for over £19 million.

As well as running the bureau throughout, Hurst was also involved with child welfare charities, being a member of the London County Council Children’s Committee and buying a house in Gravesend to transform it into a place where autistic school leavers could be trained for the world of work. She was a member of the Executive Committee of the Mental Health Research Fund and brought her learnings to the bureau, with a special project to create placements for those who had suffered from mental illness (Hurst herself having had a number of nervous breakdowns).

Hurst was awarded the OBE, became one of the first women to be made a member of Lloyds, was the first female member of the Worshipful Company of Marketors, was made a Freeman of the city of London, and was the first woman to be elected to the New York chamber of Commerce.

   

Ann Granger

Ann Granger is a prolific fiction writer, having published over 40 novels in a long and storied career.

Granger was born in Portsmouth in July 1939, living in North End and attending Northern Grammar School for Girls on Mayfield Road. Her first novels were historical romances published under the pseudonym Ann Hulmes, including one - Captain Harland's Marriage - set in Portsmouth in 1850.

After a run of romantic fiction Granger pivoted to detective novels, noting that it offers more freedom to the author. She argued that romance fiction is largely a variation on the same plot, simply told in different ways.

Granger has since introduced a number of popular detectives, including some who have endured for thousands of pages worth of novels. Romance wasn't far away, though, with two of her most popular - Mitchell and Markby - eventually falling in love and marrying after 15 mysteries together.

Granger has been inducted into the Detection Club and is a member of the Crime Writers' Association in the UK and Sisters in Crime in the US. Her work is also immensely popular in Germany, where Granger has sold millions of copies and been in the Top Five Bestseller charts no fewer than thirty times.

   

Julia Bryant

Portsmouth isn't just where author Julia Bryant was born, it also features heavily in her writing. Bryant has written six novels (Waiting for the Tide, Written on the Tide, Borne on the Tide, The Restless Tide, The Spirit of Nelson Street, and The Water is Wide) and Portsmouth features centrally in them all.

In her early life Bryant attended Meon Road Secondary Modern School then went into nursing, having obtained a degree from La Sainte Union College, Southampton.

She now lives in Portsmouth once more and remains fascinated by the city and the stories of its inhabitants.

   

Alison Habens

Author and creative writing lecturer Alison Habens was born in Portsmouth and attended Drayton's Springfield School. She has published three novels to date (showcasing "a dazzling display of wit and wordplay" - the Sunday Times), including Lifestory, which is partly set in Portsmouth and Southsea.

Habens has been a lecturer at the University of Portsmouth for generations, being Course Leader for many undergraduate creative writing courses. She also teaches on the Creative Writing Masters, leads the Portsmouth Writers Hub, and holds regular writing courses for adults on the Isle of Wight.

   

Caitlin McClatchey

Gold medal-winning swimmer Caitlin McClatchey may have gone on to represent Scotland, but she was born in Portsmouth.

McClatchey represented Team GB at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, being the only Brit to make the 200m freestyle final in Beijing. Her best results came in the 2006 Commonwealth Games where she won two gold medals, in the 200m and 400m freestyle races (beating firm favourite Libby Lenton for the 200m title). McClatchey has also won World Championship bronze medals, took home silver and bronze at the World Swimming Championships and then repeated the feat in the European championships.

In her career McClatchey broke the 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle British records.

In representing Scotland she followed in her family's footsteps; uncle Alan McClatchey won bronze at the 1976 Olympics whilst both her parents swam for Scotland at two Commonwealth Games in the 70s.

   

Geeta Basra

Geeta Basra is now a famous Bollywood actress, married to an international cricketer and living in Mumbai. In March 1984 she was born in Portsmouth, to Punjabi Hindi parents.

After moving to Mumbai in hope of becoming a Bollywood star, Basra joined Kishore Namit Kapoor's acting school, where the likes of Priyanka Chopra and Hrithik Roshan were trained. Upon completion of the training she hired a manager for herself and left for London.

The training paid off as she has since starred in a number of Bollywood hits, including Lock, which was released worldwide in 2016. Basra has more films in the works and has amassed an Instagram following of over 2 million.

   

Kate Arnell (nee Edmondson)

Kate Arnell was born in Portsmouth in November 1983, and went on to attend the University of Portsmouth, where she also presented on student radio station Pure FM.

Following a nationwide search Arnell was selected to present The Loaded Hour on channel TMF. The producers were so impressed with Arnell they put her forward for plenty more work during breaks in The Loaded Hour filming schedule, including gigs on MTV working alongside another rising star in the presenting world, Emma Griffiths (now Emma Willis).

She then appeared as a guest on CBBC before getting a full presenting job and has also held slots on BBC News. Arnell also presented the National Lottery draws for a time.

Recently, Arnell has turned her attention to environmentalism, hosting a web series on zero-waste living and publishing a book on the subject.

   

Lorraine Stanley

We return to Walford for our second Eastenders star from Portsmouth - actress Lorraine Stanley.

Her first acting jobs included small parts in The Bill and London's Burning, as well as British crime drama film Gangster No. 1, but Stanley's breakout came with her role as Kelly in gritty thriller London to Brighton (by Portsmouth writer/director Paul Andrew Williams). She was nominated for British Actress of the Year at the 2006 London Film Critics Circle but lost out to Helen Mirren for her portrayal of The Queen.

In 2017 Stanley took to the cobbles of Albert Road as Karen Taylor - who she played until 2023. It wasn't her first time as an Eastender, however, as Stanley had also previously appeared as a young Mo Harris in a spin-off series about Pat and Mo, as well as in the soap just a year before her recurring role when she played Thelma Bragg (mother of Linzi) for eight episodes.

Stanley was born and raised in Portsmouth, before heading to London to train at the Arts Educational School.

   

Amanda Lamb

Amanda Lamb was born in Portsmouth and raised in nearby Havant. It was here that she got a job as an estate agent - something that would come in very handy later on in Lamb's career.

Before then, however, she was the Scottish Widow in adverts for the eponymous company - appearing in their TV ads for 10 years (around her other career as a model).

That experience as an estate agent came to the fore in 2001 when Lamb took main presenting duties on Channel 4's A Place in the Sun. She has also appeared on shows across Channel 5, Watch and Good Food, as well as guesting on others including Harry Hill's TV Burp and Pointless Celebrities.

   

Nicola Duffet

Get ready for the "doof-doofs", we're going back to Albert Square! This time with Nicola Duffett, who appeared on the soap as Debbie Bates from 1993 to 1995. Duffett followed one soap success with another, taking the role of Cat Matthews in the Channel 5 show Family Affairs. A trinity of soaps was completed with a short run as Lucie Fernsby on Coronation Street in 2020. Before all this she had a supporting part in the Oscar-winning film Howard's End.

As well as her screen roles Duffett has also trod the boards with shows at Chichester Festival Theatre and the Open Air Theatre in Regent's Park - including two parts in Shakespeare adaptations.

Duffett was born in Portsmouth in January 1963.

   

Julia Fordham

Before basing herself in California, singer songwriter Julia Fordham was born in Portsmouth, in August 1962.

Starting off as backing singer for the likes of Mari Wilson and Kim Wilde, Fordham broke off on her own in 1988, releasing her self-titled debut album on Circa Records. It went on to reach the top 20 and was certified Gold by the BPI after more than 100,000 copies were sold.

Fordham's second album, Porcelain, reached number 13 in the UK charts and 74 in the US Billboard 200.

Her most successful single, (Love Moves in) Mysterious Ways, came from third album Swept. It was written for the Demi Moore and Jeff Daniels film The Butcher's Wife and reached number 19 in the UK singles chart (before going on to have enormous success in Asia after being covered by Filipino singer Nina).

Fordham is still recording and releasing music, having racked up more than 15 albums and 20 singles.

   

Alison Owen

Film producer Alison Owen has an impressive CV, having worked on Shaun of the Dead, The Other Boelyn Girl, Brick Lane and more. Owen won a BAFTA for her work on 1998 period drama Elizabeth and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie for 2010's Temple Grandin.

Whilst at Working Title Owen set up the low-budget film division and later went on to establish her own production company, Ruby Films.

Owen was born in Portsmouth to Mary and Peter, who both worked for the Royal Navy. She was once in a relationship with Harry Enfield and was for a time married to comedian Keith Allen (with whom she had two children who are also enormous successes in their own right - Lily and Alfie Allen).

   

Denise Black

Actress Denise Black was born in nearby Emsworth in March 1958. She attended Portsmouth High School for Girls and now lives in Southsea.

After starting out playing a cat at Sheffield's The Crucible Theatre, Black went on to star alongside comedian Josie Lawrence and appeared in Shakespeare plays that toured around the world.

TV beckoned and Black had roles in Casualty, The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, A Touch of Frost, New Tricks, Bad Girls and Doc Martin. She also enjoyed long spells in Coronation Street (playing Ken Barlow's lover Denise Osbourne) and Emmerdale (as Joanie Wright), as well as appearing in all 10 episodes of Queer as Folk.

   

Dillie Keane

Olivier Award-nominated actress, singer and comedian Dillie Keane doesn't just perform in Portsmouth as part of her cabaret trio Fascinating Aida - she was born here too!

Keane was born in the city to Irish parents, and attended Portsmouth High School while her father was a GP practicing in Somerstown.

Before forming the long-standing trio with which she's now best known, Keane was a solo performer and was nominated for the prestigious Perrier award at the 1990 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

She also wrote the songs for Sandi Toksvig's musical comedy Big Night Out at the Little Palace Theatre (going on to star in the show alongside both Toksvig and Bonnie Langford at the Watford Palace Theatre).

Keane's links with Portsmouth were cemented in 2009 when, in recognition of her musical career and her links with the city, she was made an honorary Doctor of Letters by the University of Portsmouth.

As it would turn out, the university's chancellor between 2012 and 2017 would be Keane's old colleague (and bona fide national treasure), Sandi Toksvig.

   

Marilyn Cole

Model Marilyn Cole was born in Portsmouth and worked in the city's Co-Op Fuel Office for £12 a week, before she headed off to London for an audition to become a bunny girl. The audition was a success and Cole became Playmate of the Year (the only Brit to do so). She also broke new ground in becoming the first ever Playboy centrefold to go fully nude.

A relationship with Roxy Music singer Bryan Ferry followed and Cole appeared on the front cover of the band's 1973 album 'Stranded' (as well as a number of Top of the Pops compilations).

Later in life Cole switched career once again and became a journalist with a particular specialism in boxing.

   

Helen Duncan

The Scottish connections continue, this time in the form of spiritualist Helen Duncan - the medium best known as the last person to be imprisoned in the UK under the Witchcraft Act of 1735.

Duncan's notoriety reached new heights after a seance in Portsmouth in 1941 during which she predicted the sinking of HMS Barham. The ship did indeed sink that same month but only the relatives of those on board were informed - the information wasn't released to the public until the following year.

In January 1944, during seance at a Chemist's on Copnor Road, Duncan was arrested and charged with Witchcraft. She was tried at the Old Bailey and was jailed for nine months - making her the last person to be tried for Witchcraft in England as the act was repealed in 1951.

   

Susanna Rowson (nee Haswell)

One of America's foremost early novelists was actually born here, in Portsmouth.

Susanna Rowson's 1791 novel Charlotte Temple was American literature's first ever bestseller (until Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin usurped it). But that wasn't all, as Rowson also penned the first human geography textbook, as well as an opera, musical and many poems and songs. In her later years Rowson became a leader on female education and opened academies across her home state of Massachusetts.

However, it's Charlotte Temple for which Rowson remains best known, the novel having racked up more than 200 editions and featuring on the syllabus of literary courses at many American universities.

   

Dr Una Mulvany

A plaque in Fratton is dedicated to Dr Una Mulvany, who risked her life to help those injured during the Blitz.

Dr Mulvany was born and raised in Portsmouth, beginning her education at the Convent of the Cross, Southsea. She later studied at Durham University School of Medicine but returned to Portsmouth to practice - where she remained.

During World War II, with bombs raining down on Portsmouth, Dr Mulvany was medical officer in charge of a first-aid post in St. George's Square. At the first report of bombs falling (despite real danger that more were to follow) she drove through shrapnel, flames and falling debris to help those who had been injured or were in danger - risking her life time and again.

On one occasion she stayed with victims for two hours in the cellar of a bombed house, even though it was at great risk of collapse at any moment.

For her many acts of bravery, Dr Mulvany was awarded the MBE.

   

Kim Woodburn

The 'Queen of Clean' Kim Woodburn was born in Eastney in March 1942.

An early career as a live-in cleaner (alongside work as a social worker, beautician and model) was the perfect grounding for the job that would make her name, as a co-presenter of hit Channel 4 show How Clean is Your House?

The TV show's success spawned books, DVDs and even a board game. When it was aired in America, Woodburn was invited as a guest onto the Oprah Winfrey show. A version was also created for Canadian audiences, in which Woodburn co-starred.

More recently Woodburn finished runner up on I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here, was third in Celebrity Big Brother and has published her autobiography.

   

Marie Costa

Marie Costa is a local legend, widely referred to as the Grandmother of the City.

She first came to Portsmouth in 1957 having immigrated from Nigeria at the age of 18. However, despite being looked after by the city, diverse cultural activities were still non-existent and there were fewer ethnic minorities than there are today. One time when Portsmouth's diversity could really be showcased and celebrated was the annual Lord Mayor's parade, during which Costa and other Africans teamed up with local Caribbean expats to build a float so loud and colourful it won the cup many times.

Costa started work as a midwife but later enrolled at Portsmouth Polytechnic to study history. After graduation she taught local history to adults, before securing a job at South Downs College.

Outside of work Costa was (and remains) a campaigner for multiculturalism. She was Chair of Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Multicultural Group for ten years and started the African Women’s Forum in 1995.

Costa was made a governor of the University of Portsmouth in 2016 and a Fellow in 2018. She served as Lady Mayoress of Portsmouth for a year from May 2022.

   

Margaret Rock MBE

Margaret Rock was one of the 8,000 female mathematicians who worked in Bletchley Park during the Second World War.

She was originally born in London but the family moved around frequently. They eventually settled in Portsmouth, with Rock's her father serving in the Royal Navy. She attended Portsmouth High School and was encouraged to work hard on her studies in letters from her father.

Rock had a good education and developed excellent maths skills. She put these to good use in a job at Bletchley Park during World War II when she was hired as a codebreaker. In fact, so good was she at the job that Rock was quickly promoted to a senior cryptographer position and was considered to be one of Bletchley's best.

She specialized in German and Russian code breaking and helped decode the Enigma Machine that helped the Allied troops plan for D-Day and ultimately turn the tide of the war.

It was only after her death that Rock's work became more publicly known, with the codebreaker never speaking about the work that was bound up in the Official Secrets Act.

   

White Ribbon Day

This list was first compiled and published in support of White Ribbon Day and its objective of engaging men and boys to end violence against women and girls. With its theme for 2023 of #ChangeTheStory, White Ribbon Day takes place on 25 November, beginning 16 days of activism.

Find out more on the White Ribbon UK website.