The Famous Faces of Clan Bell

Born in Edinburgh in 1847, Alexander Graham Bell was an inventor, scientist and engineer who is most famous for inventing and patenting the first telephone in 1876 after a fierce battle with Elisha Gray to be the first to reach the patent office!

Bell was curious about the world around him from a young age and his first invention at the age of 12 was a dehusking machine that was put into operation at the mill owned by his neighbours. His invention of the telephone came about as a result of his work on hearing and speech - both his wife and mother were profoundly deaf - and he spent several years experimenting with hearing devices which eventually led to the invention of the telephone, something we all have to be thankful for to this day!

Also born in Edinburgh, in 1774, Charles Bell was a surgeon, anatomist, physiologist, and neurologist as well as an artist and philosophical theologian - a very busy man! He’s best known for being the first person to discover the difference between sensory nerves and motor nerves in the spinal cord. It was this discovery that led to the naming of Bell’s palsy for him, which is a type of facial paralysis that means the affected person can’t control the facial muscles on the affected side of their face.

A more modern Bell, Jamie was born in County Durham in 1986 and first shot to fame starring as the eponymous Billy in the film Billy Elliot, released in 2000, for which he won the Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award. Since then, he’s also taken leading roles in The Adventures of Tintin (2011) and Fantastic Four (2015) as well as Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool (2018) for which Jamie was nominated for another BAFTA Award.

Ever visited a Taco Bell? It was Glen Bell who founded the chain, back in 1962 in Downey, California. He franchised the company in 1964 and it grew rapidly, being sold to PepsiCo in 1978. At that time, there were 868 restaurants in the chain and they were sold for $125 million in stock.

Henry Bell was born in Torphichen, near Bathgate, in 1767, to a family of millwrights, builders and engineers. He’s famous for introducing the first successful passenger steamboat service in Europe, with the PS Comet, built in 1812. It was named after a comet that had been sighted several times during 1811 and 1812, and it was built at Port Glasgow. The Comet made its first voyage from Port Glasgow to Glasgow, a trip of around 21 miles, and then it sailed 24 miles from Glasgow to Greenock. A passenger service between Glasgow, Greenock and Helensburgh was added in August, running three days a week.

Born in Edinburgh in 1837, Joseph Bell was a surgeon and lecturer at the University of Edinburgh medical school, but he’s best known as being the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes. When teaching, Bell emphasised the importance of observation when making a diagnosis which led him to be thought of as a pioneering figure in forensic science. He was something of a maverick, as science wasn’t widely used in criminal investigations at the time. Bell worked with the police on several occasions, and he provided an analysis of the Ripper murders to Scotland Yard. Sherlock Holmes author Arthur Conan Doyle met Joseph Bell in 1877, and worked as Bell’s clerk for some time at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. When he wrote the Sherlock Holmes stories, he stated that the eccentric detective was loosely based on Bell and his powers of observation.

Award-winning actress Kristen was born in Michigan in 1980 and first received attention for her role as the lead character in the teen television show Veronica Mars, which ran from 2004-2007. She earned a Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television. She was also the voice of the narrator, Gossip Girl, in the series of the same name from 2007 to 2012, although she only appeared on-screen once in a cameo playing herself. Bell has also had a number of film roles, including as the title character in Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) and Anna in Frozen and its sequels. From 2012 to 2016, she played Jeannie van der Hooven, the lead role in comedy show House of Lies, and from 2016 to 2020, she played the lead character of Eleanor Shellstrop in The Good Place, which received widespread acclaim for its acting, storylines and writing. It’s been nominated for 14 Primetime Emmy Awards, and for her role, Bell was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actress - Television Series Musical or Comedy.

Born in 1964, Andy Bell is the lead singer of the synth-pop band Erasure, who are best-known for their songs A Little Respect, Sometimes and Always. The band has written over 200 songs and sold over 28 million albums globally. Between 1986 and 2007, they had an astounding 24 Top 40 UK hits in a row, and they won the award for Best British Group at the 1989 Brit Awards. Bell is also well-known for his work within the LGBT community.

Born in Starkville, Mississippi in 1903, James Thomas Bell - better known as Cool Papa Bell - was a baseball player who’s thought to be one of the fastest men ever in the history of the sport. He was signed to the St. Louis Stars, one of the teams in the Negro National League, in 1922, which is where his nickname was coined. He was called ‘cool’ after striking out star player Oscar Charleston, and he simply thought that ‘papa’ made the name sound better. Bell helped the Stars to win the league title in 1928, 1930 and 1931. He joined the Mexican League in 1938 and stayed there until 1941, becoming the first player in the league to win the Triple Crown. He rejoined the USA leagues in 1942 and was widely considered to be one of the best players around. He was ranked 66th on The Sporting News’ list of Baseball’s Greatest Players in 1999.