20th-century English male writers

Boy George (born George Alan O'Dowd; 14 June 1961) is an English singer, songwriter, DJ and fashion designer. He is the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. At the height of the band's fame, during the 1980s, they recorded global hit songs such as "Karma Chameleon", "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" and "Time (Clock of the Heart)". George is known for his soulful voice and his androgynous appearance. He was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the late 1970s to the early 1980s.

Charles (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the heir apparent as well as Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay from 1952 to his ascension in 2022 and was both the oldest and the longest-serving heir apparent in British history. He is the longest-serving Prince of Wales, having held the title since July 1958. Upon the death of his father on 9 April 2021, Charles also inherited the title of Duke of Edinburgh.

James Hugh Calum Laurie CBE (born 11 June 1959) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and musician. He first gained recognition for his work as one half of the comedy double act Fry and Laurie with Stephen Fry. The two acted together in a number of projects during the 1980s and 1990s, including the BBC sketch comedy series A Bit of Fry & Laurie and the P. G. Wodehouse adaptation Jeeves and Wooster. From 1986 to 1989 he appeared in three series of the period comedy Blackadder, first as a recurring guest star in the last two episodes of Blackadder II, before he joined the main cast in Blackadder the Third, and went on to appear in Blackadder Goes Forth and many specials.

Patrick O'Brian, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, and centred on the friendship of the English naval captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen Maturin. The 20-novel series, the first of which is Master and Commander, is known for its well-researched and highly detailed portrayal of early 19th-century life, as well as its authentic and evocative language. A partially finished 21st novel in the series was published posthumously containing facing pages of handwriting and typescript.

Steven Patrick Morrissey ( MORR-iss-ee; born 22 May 1959), known mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer, songwriter and author. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. Since then, he has pursued a successful solo career. Morrissey's music is characterised by his baritone voice and distinctive lyrics with recurring themes of emotional isolation, sexual longing, self-deprecating and dark humour, and anti-establishment stances.

Stephen John Coogan (born 14 October 1965) is an English actor, voice artist, comedian, screenwriter and producer. He began his career in the 1980s as a voice actor on the satirical puppet show Spitting Image and providing voice-overs for television advertisements. In the 1990s, he began creating original characters. In 1999, he co-founded the production company Baby Cow Productions with Henry Normal.

Stephen William Hawking CH CBE FRS FRSA (8 January 1942 – 14 March 2018) was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who was director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge at the time of his death. He was the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge between 1979 and 2009.

Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate, investor, author and former philanthropist. In the 1970s he founded the Virgin Group, which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields.

Rowan Sebastian Atkinson CBE (born 6 January 1955) is an English actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for his work on the sitcoms Blackadder (1983–1989) and Mr. Bean (1990–1995). Atkinson first came to prominence in the BBC sketch comedy show Not the Nine O'Clock News (1979–1982), receiving the 1981 BAFTA for Best Entertainment Performance, and via his participation in The Secret Policeman's Ball (1979). His other work includes the James Bond film Never Say Never Again (1983), playing a bumbling vicar in Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), voicing the red-billed hornbill Zazu in The Lion King (1994), and playing jewellery salesman Rufus in Love Actually (2003). Atkinson also featured in the BBC sitcom The Thin Blue Line (1995–1996). His work in theatre includes the 2009 West End revival of the musical Oliver!.

Sacha Noam Baron Cohen (born 13 October 1971) is an English comedian, actor, writer, and producer, known for his creation and portrayal of fictional satirical characters, including Ali G, Borat Sagdiyev, Brüno Gehard and Admiral General Aladeen. Baron Cohen adopts a variety of accents and guises for his characters. He interacts with unsuspecting subjects, who do not realise they have been set up for self-revealing ridicule. On these interactions, The Observer states, "his career has been built on winding people up, while keeping a deadpan face". Baron Cohen has been frequently described as a "prankster".