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List of British Jews

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This page is a list of Jews.
For more on who is considered Jewish, see Who is a Jew?.

List of British Jews is a list that includes Jewish people from the United Kingdom and its predecessor states.

Although the first Jews may have arrived on the island of Great Britain with the Romans, it wasn't until the Norman Conquest of William the Conqueror in 1066 that organised Jewish communities first appeared in England. These existed until 1290 when the Jewish population of England was expelled by King Edward I of England. (Hence plays such as The Jew of Malta and The Merchant of Venice, regarded by many as antisemitic, were written when Jews did not live openly in England.)

There was never a corresponding expulsion from Scotland. Indeed, the eminent Jewish-Scottish scholar David Daiches states in his autobiographical Two Worlds: An Edinburgh Jewish Childhood that there are grounds for saying that Scotland is the only European country with no history of state persecution of Jews.

Jews were re-admitted to England and Wales in 1656 by Oliver Cromwell, and emancipated in 1858. In the late 19th century there was mass Jewish immigration from Russia due to anti-semitism, and in the 1930s an influx of refugees from Nazism. The Jewish population peaked at 450,000, but has since declined due to low birth-rate, intermarriage and emigration. According to the 2001 census, the current population is around 240,000, most of whom live in London, though many experts consider this an underestimate. The following is a list of some prominent British Jews.
List of Jews by
country
Europe
Eastern Europe | North Europe
South-East Europe
West Europe
Americas
Latin America | Caribbean
Canada | United States
Rest of World
Oceania | Sub-Saharan Africa
Arab World | Asia | Israel*
(*most are Jewish)

Contents

Political figures

MPs

British Members of Parliament listed chronologically by first election date (in brackets): "Sir Anthony ... is a representative of the enlightened haute juiverie"

Other

Concise Dictionary of National Biography: "became a Jew"
  • Victor Gollancz [link], publisher and political activist
  • Sidney Hart, Trade Unionist (Obituary, Jewish Chronicle, 15/04/05, p40)
  • Chaim Herzog [link], Israel's sixth president, born in Belfast and known as Vivian Herzog during, and after, his tenure in the British Army
  • Michael Levy, Baron Levy - JYB 2005 p212, 270
  • Ralph Miliband (1924-94) [link] (né Adolphe Miliband) Belgian-Jewish Marxist theorist and father of David and Ed Miliband.
  • Dame Shirley Porter [link], Lord Mayor of Westminster 1991-92
  • David Triesman, Baron Triesman [link], Labour peer and Junior Minister
  • Sir Julius Vogel [link], Prime Minister of New Zealand
  • Walter Wolfgang [link], a founder of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
  • Lord Leonard Wolfson (JYB 2005 p212)
  • Harry Woolf, Baron Woolf [link], Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales 2000-2006

    • Religious leaders

    Scientists

    See also: List of Jewish Fellows of the Royal Society

    Physicists

    Oxford Dictionary of National Biography: "In 1946 Dennis Gabor became a naturalized British citizen."
  • Jeffrey Goldstone (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Ian Grant (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Sir Peter Hirsch, physicist (JYB 2005 p213, 214)
  • Herbert Huppert, 1987 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Brian David Josephson [link], physicist, Nobel Prize (1973)
  • George Kalmus, 1988 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Andrew Keller [link]
  • Olga Kennard, crystallographer 1987 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Nicholas Kurti [link], physicist, Vice-President of the Royal Society 1965-67. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography:
    • "study at the university was open to him, despite being a Jew ... Kurti became a naturalized British citizen just before the outbreak of the Second World War"
  • Frederick Lindemann, 1st Viscount Cherwell [link], physicist and politician
  • Henry Lipson (JYB 1990 p201)
  • Sir Ben Lockspeiser (JYB 1990 p201)
  • Stanley Mandelstam (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Kurt Mendelssohn (Encyclopaedia Judaica 13:492)
  • Leon Mestel, astronomer (Who's Who entry & JYB 2000 p211)
  • F.R. Nunes Nabarro (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Rudolf Peierls (JYB 1995 p193)
  • Michael Pepper (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Douglas Ross [link]
  • Sir Joseph Rotblat [link], physicist, Nobel Peace Prize (1995)
  • Arthur Schuster (Encyclopedia Judaica, 14:1012]]
  • Dennis Sciama, FRS [link], cosmologist
  • David Shoenberg, physics of low temperatures (JYB 1995 p193)
  • Sir Francis Simon, 1941 (Encyclopedia Judaica, 14:1578)
  • David Tabor (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Samuel Tolansky, spectroscopist
    • Concise Dictionary of National Biography: "son of Lithuanian-Jewish immigrants"
  • Felix Weinberg (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Michael Woolfson, crystallographer, computer simulation 1984 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Alec David Young, aero-engineer (JYB 2005 p214)
  • John Ziman [link]

    • Chemists

    father of Prof. James Neuberger, Lord Justice Sir David Neuberger and Prof. Michael Neuberger, and father-in-law of Julia Neuberger
  • Friedrich Paneth (Encyclopaedia Judaica 13:54)
  • Sir Max Perutz [link], molecular biologist, Nobel Prize (1962)
  • Michael Polanyi [link], chemist; naturalised British 1939 (Dictionary of National Biography)
  • Ralph Raphael (JYB 1995 p193)
  • Michael Rossmann [link]
  • Anthony Segal, 1998 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Franz Sondheimer, organic chemist (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Michael Szwarc, polymer chemistry (Encyclopedia Judaica, 15:670]]

    • Biologists

    Mathematicians and statisticians

    "These include the papers of Anglo-Jewish leaders, such as Selig Brodetsky"
  • Jacob Bronowski [link], mathematician & broadcaster
  • Philip Dawid [link], statistician
  • Arthur Erdelyi [link], mathematician
    • Concise Dictionary of National Biography: "became naturalised British citizen, 1947"
  • John Fox, statistician
  • Albrecht Frohlich [link]
  • Benjamin Gompertz [link], mathematician
  • Steven Haberman [link], professor of actuarial science
  • Hans Heilbronn (JYB 1977, p207)
  • Ruth Lawrence [link], mathematician & child prodigy
  • Kurt Mahler, mathematician (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Sir Claus Moser [link], statistician
  • Louis Mordell [link], number theorist
  • Bernhard Neumann, 1959 (JYB 2005 p214)
  • Richard Rado [link], mathematician
  • Klaus Roth [link], mathematician, Fields Medal (1958)
  • James Joseph Sylvester [link], mathematician

    • Computer scientists

    Academic figures

    Philosophers

    "Born less than a week apart, Adolf Hitler and the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein attended the institution together. There is a haunting school photograph of the young, complex, Jewish philosopher just one row away from the most evil tyrant of the 20th century."
  • Richard Wollheim [link]
    • "Wollheim was an outstanding representative of a generation of Central European Jewish intellectuals"

    Social scientists

    "You are a Jewish, Zimbabwean, Mancunian philosopher... I have lived in Manchester more than half my life and am very much at home here."
  • Anna Freud [link], child psychoanalyst
  • Morris Ginsberg [link]
  • Paul Hirst [link], social theorist (Jewish mother)
  • Marie Jahoda [link], psychology of discrimination
  • Melanie Klein [link], psychotherapist
  • Ashley Montagu [link], anthropologist & humanist

    • Medical

    Economists

    Historians

    "Born in Oxford, she had moved to Cheltenham at the age of five when her father, the polymath Jacob Bronowski, author of Ascent of Man, took up a research post with the National Coal Board. So it was that this nice little Jewish family moved in to Cleeve Hill, a small village four miles from town."
  • Bernard Lewis [link], historian
  • Lewis Bernstein Namier [link], historian (converted to Anglicanism)
  • Sir Francis Palgrave (born Cohen) (1768-1861) [link], UK historian
  • Cecil Roth [link], historian and editor of the Encyclopedia Judaica
  • Simon Schama [link], historian
  • Simon Sebag Montefiore [link], historian
  • Sir Aurel Stein [link], archeologist
  • Geza Vermes [link]
    • "Five years or so later, I decided to define publicly my identity as belonging to the Jewish community by becoming a member of the Liberal Jewish Synagogue."

    Theologians and Hebraists

    Arts and literature

    "Waley, born Arthur David Schloss, was a member of an elite Anglo-Jewish family"

    Showbusiness

    Film actors

    TV actors

    Directors/producers/executives

    "Irving Rapper, the Oscar-winning American-Jewish film director" Jewish Chronicle, 10 Feb 1961 p30
  • Karel Reisz [link], director
  • John Schlesinger [link], director
  • Michael Winner [link], director
  • Alan Yentob [link], BBC executive

    • Comedians

    "Eagle-eyed viewers of Channel 4's music show Popworld might have spotted its Jewish presenter Simon Amstell"
  • Ronni Ancona [link], impressionist
  • David Baddiel [link]
  • Sacha Baron Cohen [link], impressionist, Ali G
  • Arnold Brown [link]
  • Sam Costa, comedian: Jewish Chronicle, 2/10/1981 p24 (obituary); "He was a very proud Jew"
  • Barry Cryer [link]
  • Ben Elton [link], comedian & writer
  • Marty Feldman [link], comedian and actor
  • Bud Flanagan [link], comedian & actor
  • Stephen Fry [link], comedian & actor (Jewish mother)
  • Paul Kaye, comedian & actor, Dennis Pennis (The Herald (Glasgow); 07/05/05; Andy Dougan; p. 8)
  • Matt Lucas [link]
  • Denis Norden [link], scriptwriter and radio & TV personality
  • Jerry Sadowitz [link]
  • Alexei Sayle [link]
  • Peter Sellers [link], comedian & actor
  • Bernie Winters [link]
  • Mike Winters [link]

    • Theatre

    Radio

    Other

    Musicians

    Popular musicians

    "Elkie Brooks and Graham Gouldman are two Jewish pop star graduates of Sedgley Park Primary School, Prestwich"
  • Ian Broudie [link], member of The Lightning Seeds
  • Pete Burns [link] of Dead or Alive (Jewish mother)
  • Johnny Clegg [link], UK-born South African musician
  • Alma Cogan [link], singer
  • Victor Feldman [link], jazz musician
  • Justine Frischmann [link], member of Elastica
  • Graham Gouldman, Lol Crème & Kevin Godley [link], members of 10cc
  • Mick Green [link], guitarist for Johnny Kidd and the Pirates
  • Peter Green, guitarist Fleetwood Mac (Celmins 2003).
  • Mick Jones, guitarist, vocalist The Clash (mother of Russian Jewish descent).
  • Jason Kay [link], member of Jamiroquai
  • Paul Kossoff [link], member of Free, son of actor David Kossoff
  • Manfred Mann [link], R&B keyboardist
  • Jon Moss [link], member of Culture Club
  • Kelly Osbourne, singer: Jewish Chronicle 18/6/2004 p38
    • "as JC readers know, Kelly Osbourne is actually Jewish."
  • Keith Reid & Matthew Fisher [link], founding members of Procol Harum
  • Gavin Rossdale [link], member of Bush
  • Ronnie Scott [link]
  • Helen Shapiro [link], singer
  • Rachel Stevens [link], singer & former member of S Club 7
  • Lewis Taylor [link], singer/songwriter
  • Frankie Vaughan [link], singer
  • Louise Wener [link], singer with group Sleeper & novelist
  • Amy Winehouse [link], singer/songwriter

    • Producers/managers

    Classical musicians

    Songwriters

    Other

    Writers

    Authors

    Jewish Chronicle 13/3/1998 p1
    "Dame Muriel Spark, the author of "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" and
    several other celebrated works, is halachically Jewish." (Says her mother was Jewish too.)
    "Israel Zangwill, Anglo-Jewish writer and political activist, was probably the best known Jew in the English-speaking world at the start of the twentieth century."

    Poets

    "Abstract: "Difference at War" is a comparative study of three Jewish poet-soldiers of the First World War: Siegfried Sassoon, Isaac Rosenberg, and U. Z. Grinberg. ... The poetry of each of these Jewish poets was transformed by the War"
  • Jon Silkin [link], poet

    • Playwrights

    Journalists

    "Conrad Black's wife Barbara Amiel, a Jewish writer"
  • Ian Buruma [link], Dutch-born author and journalist
  • John Diamond [link], journalist
  • Oliver Finegold [link], journalist
  • Jonathan Freedland [link], journalist
  • Nigella Lawson [link], Cookery writer
  • Christopher Hitchens http://observer.guardian.co.uk/worldview/story/0,,683899,00.html
  • Bernard Levin [link], journalist & broadcaster
  • Emily Maitlis [link], TV newscaster & reporter
  • Melanie Phillips [link], journalist
  • Marjorie Proops [link], agony aunt
  • Kimberly Quinn [link], publisher
    • "whose 44-year-old Jewish American-born wife, née "Bimberly" Solomon turned Kimberly Fortier turned Kimberly Quinn"
  • Claire Rayner [link], agony aunt
  • Jon Ronson, [link] Journalist, author, documentary filmmaker and radio presenter.
  • Jim Rosenthal, TV sports journalist & presenter (The Observer (London); 18/12/05; p. 6)

    • Artists

    Fine arts

    "London's four leading Jewish painters, including me"
    Listed as a British painter in Hutchinson's Encyclopedia of Britain, 2005
  • Lennie Lee [link], mixed media
  • Tolleck Winner, mixed media
  • Sir William Rothenstein [link]

    • Designers and Architects

    Business and the professions

    Food

    Retail

    Manufacturing

    Arnold Weinstock, Lord Weinstock, Chairman of GEC - JYB 2002, p211

    Civil service

    Law

    5/7/1996 p7: "The Liberal Democrats' sole Jewish MP, Alex Carlile"
    25/6/1999 p10: "Alex Carlile is on his way back to Westminster as one of four Jews among the 36 working peers"
  • Hazel Cosgrove, Lady Cosgrove [link], Scottish Queen's Counsel and sheriff
  • Sir Francis Henry Goldsmid [link], MP for Reading, first Jewish barrister (Q.C. 1858)
  • Brian Green [link] Q.C.
  • Alexis Grower Prominent Entertainment Lawyer, Magrath & Co, London
  • Dame Rose Heilbron [link], Britain's first female Q.C., judge
  • Sir George Jessel [link], Solicitor General, later Master of the Rolls
  • Rosalyn Higgins, President of the International Court of Justice[link]"Was it any more difficult for her to be so critical in the Israel case because she is Jewish?
    • "I don't think so," she says, stressing that she judged the case as an international lawyer and not because of her background. "I also think that the fact you happen to be Jewish doesn't mean you think that everything the State of Israel does is right."

    When the Foreign Office put her name forward for election to the court, there were fears that some countries in the UN would not vote for a Jewish woman.

    She dismisses such concerns. "I don't think I have ever been perceived as Rosalyn Higgins, the Jewish international lawyer - and I hope not Rosalyn Higgins, the woman international lawyer."

    Media

    [link], former teenage dot.com millionaire
    The Times (London); Dec 3, 1992; Ruth Gledhill
    'Lord Rothschild, who is head of the English branch of the Rothschild family, says: "I would not like to disguise that I am first and foremost a secular Jew."'
  • Maurice Saatchi, Baron Saatchi & Charles Saatchi [link], founders of Saatchi and Saatchi
  • Martin Sorrell [link], founder of the WPP Group

    • Finance

    Sports

    Boxing

    Chess

    Other

    Military

    Miscellaneous

    References

    Footnotes

    Bibliography

    See also

     

    From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
    All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

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