Editing Dorking (section)

==Notable residents==
<!--This section only to include people who were born, lived or died in Dorking TOWN. Those associated with nearby villages or country estates should not be listed here. Please discuss on talk page.-->
{{Category see also|People from Dorking}}
Three former residents of Dorking have been awarded the [[Victoria Cross]] (VC):
*[[Lord William Beresford|Sir William Leslie de la Poer Beresford]] was given his VC for rescuing a comrade at [[Ulundi]] (now in South Africa) during the 1879 [[Anglo-Zulu War]]. After retiring from the army, he lived at the Deepdene with his wife, the [[Lily Spencer-Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough|Dowager Duchess of Marlborough]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Obituary: Lord William Beresford |date=31 December 1900 |page=8 |issue=36339}}</ref><ref>{{Who's Who |id=U183701 |doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U183701 |title=Beresford, Lord William Leslie de la Poer}}</ref>
*[[Lewis Halliday|Sir Lewis Halliday]] was awarded the VC for repelling an enemy attack during the 1899-1901 [[Boxer Rebellion]] in [[China]]. He died in Dorking in 1966.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Obituary: Gen. Sir Lewis Halliday VC |date=11 March 1966 |page=14 |issue=56577}}</ref><ref>{{Who's Who |id=U52042 |doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U52042 |title=Halliday, Gen. Sir Lewis Stratford Tollemache}}</ref>
*[[Charles Graham Robertson]] was given his VC for repelling an enemy attack during the [[German spring offensive]] in March 1918. On his return to Dorking after the war, he was honoured with a parade and the presentation of a gold watch. He continued to live in the town until his death in 1954 and is buried in the cemetery.<ref name=Charles_Graham_Robertson/><ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Obituary: Mr G. C. Robertson VC |date=12 May 1954 |page=8 |issue=52929}}</ref>

People born in the town include:
*[[Walter Dendy Sadler]] (1854–1923), artist and painter.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Obituary: Mr Dendy Sadler |date=14 November 1923 |page=10 |issue=43498}}</ref>
*[[Laurence Olivier]] (1907–1989), actor and director. A [[blue plaque]] marking his birthplace can be found in Wathen Road.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Obituary: Lord Olivier |date=12 July 1989 |page=16 |issue=63444}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.exploringsurreyspast.org.uk/themes/places/surrey/mole_valley/dorking/olivier/ |title=Dorking: 26 Wathen Road and Laurence Olivier |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=31 January 2014 |publisher=Exploring Surrey's Past |access-date=19 January 2021}}</ref>
*[[Jamie Mackie]] (born 1985) former [[Scotland national football team|Scotland international]] [[association football|football player]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Bean |first=Graham |date=21 July 2020 |title=Former Scotland striker announces his retirement from football |url=https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/international/former-scotland-striker-announces-his-retirement-football-2920093 |work=The Scotsman |access-date=28 January 2021}}</ref>
*[[Peter George (businessman)|Peter George]] (1943–2007) former chairman and chief executive of [[Ladbrokes Coral|Hilton Group Plc]].<ref>{{Cite web |title='Without Peter George in the post-Stein era, Ladbrokes would not have survived' Chris Bell leads tribute to 'boss, mentor and close friend', who has died aged 63. - Free Online Library |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/'Without+Peter+George+in+the+post-Stein+era,+Ladbrokes+would+not+have...-a0156917228 |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=www.thefreelibrary.com}}</ref>

People who have lived in the town include:
*[[Daniel Defoe]] (c.1660–1731), who attended Rev. James Fisher's boarding school in Pixham Lane, and later mentioned Dorking in his ''[[Tour thro' the whole island of Great Britain]]''.<ref name=SAC_Defoe/>
*[[Peter Labilliere]] (1725–1800), a former Army Major and political agitator lived in a cottage on Butter Hill from 1789.<ref>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=7–8}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=20–21}}</ref> In accordance with his wishes he was [[Burial#Inverted burial|buried head downwards]] 11 June 1800 on the western side of Box Hill.<ref name=Timbs_1866_pp176-178>{{harvnb|Timbs|1866|pp=176–178}}</ref>
*The composer [[Ralph Vaughan Williams]] (1872–1958) lived in Dorking from 1929 to 1951.<ref>{{harvnb|Vaughan Williams|1965|pp=171–179}}</ref> One of his most famous works, ''[[The Lark Ascending (Vaughan Williams)|The Lark Ascending]]'', was inspired by a [[The Lark Ascending|poem of the same name]] published in 1881 by the author [[George Meredith]], who lived at Box Hill.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/vaughan-williams-the-lark-ascending |title=Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending |author=<!--Not stated--> |publisher=British Library |access-date=19 July 2020 |archive-date=2 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103127/https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/vaughan-williams-the-lark-ascending |url-status=live}}</ref>
*Composer [[David Moule-Evans]] (1905–1988)<ref>{{Who's Who |id=U167426 |doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U167426 |title=Moule-Evans, David }}</ref> collaborated with Vaughan Williams on the pageant play ''England's Pleasant Land'', written by [[E.M. Forster]], which was first performed in Dorking in 1938.<ref name=Frogley_Thomson>{{harvnb|Frogley|Thomson|2013|p=177}}</ref>
*[[Absolute Radio]] DJ [[Christian O'Connell]] lived in Dorking for several years until 2018.<ref>{{cite news |last=Johnson |first=Thomas |date=18 May 2018 |title=Absolute Radio DJ Christian O'Connell's best on-air moments as he moves out of Dorking |url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/absolute-radio-dj-christian-oconnells-14650960 |work=Surrey Live |access-date=28 January 2021}}</ref>