Birmingham boasts some seriously talented exports, from movie stars and musicians to world class football players.
We’ve had a look at the famous faces - actors, musicians and even politicians - who were raised in and around the city in recent months. We’ve now taken a look at the famous faces of Sparkhill and Sparkbrook.
Sparkbrook is known as one of Birmingham’s inner-city areas where the Peaky Blinders operated. Sparkhill is also where the BBC sitcom Citizen Khan starring Adil Ray is set.
Let’s take a look at the famous faces that were brought up in the neighbourhoods.
5. John Bentley
Born in Sparkhill, Bentley was a British film actor. He had a successful career as a leading man from the 1940s to the late '50s and was a popular heart-throb who appeared in many British B-movies during that time. Later in his career, in the 1970s he appeared as Hugh Mortimer in Crossroads | Getty
6. Charlie Timmins
The late Coventry City footballer also grew up in Sparkhill. He signed for Birmingham City before the Second World War. However, his registration papers were lost after heavy bombing in the Birmingham area. In the summer of 1948, Timmins signed for Coventry City. | WIki
7. Moazzam Beggs
Born in Sparkhill, Beggs was held in extrajudicial detention by the US government in the Bagram Theater Internment Facility and the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp, in Cuba, for nearly three years. In February 2002, he was transferred to the custody of US Army officers, who held him in the detention centre at Bagram, Afghanistan, before transferring him to Guantanamo Bay, where he was held until January 2005. After his release, Begg became a media commentator on issues pertaining to US, UK and international anti-terror measures. He toured as a speaker about Guantanamo and other detention facilities. | Getty Images
8. Paul Bliss
Paul Bliss was the keyboard player with the Moody Blues, the Hollies and the Bliss Band | Getty Images