This is a list of notable people who are from British Columbia, Canada, or have spent a large part or formative part of their career in that province.
Premiers[edit]
See List of premiers of British Columbia.
Members of Parliament[edit]
- Jim Abbott
- David Anderson
- Thomas Speakman Barnett
- Dave Barrett, former Premier of British Columbia
- Ron Basford
- Don Bell
- Thomas Berger
- Hewitt Bostock
- Margaret Bridgman
- Chuck Cadman
- Iona Campagnolo, later Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia
- Kim Campbell, also Prime Minister of Canada
- Pat Carney
- Raymond Chan
- Mary Collins
- Chuck Cook
- Jean Crowder
- Nathan Cullen
- John Cummins
- Libby Davies
- Stockwell Day
- Amor De Cosmos, second Premier of British Columbia
- Edgar Dewdney, later Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia
- Herb Dhaliwal
- Ujjal Dosanjh, former Premier of British Columbia
- Tommy Douglas
- John Duncan
- David Emerson
- Paul Forseth
- Hedy Fry
- Jim Gouk
- Gurmant Grewal
- Nina Grewal
- Herbert Wilfred Herridge
- Russ Hiebert
- Jay Hill
- Betty Hinton
- Frank Howard
- William Irvine
- Pauline Jewett
- Peter Julian
- Douglas Jung
- Jim Karpoff
- Sophia Leung
- Gary Lunn
- Grace MacInnis
- Ian Alistair Mackenzie
- Roy MacLaren
- Len Marchand
- Keith Martin
- Gerry McGeer
- James Moore
- Henry Nathan, Jr.
- Stephen Owen
- George Pearkes, later Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia
- Art Phillips, former mayor of Vancouver
- Elmore Philpott
- John Reynolds
- Nelson Riis
- Svend Robinson
- Paul St. Pierre
- Tom Siddon
- Bill Siksay
- Bob Skelly
- Darrel Stinson
- Chuck Strahl
- John Turner, also Prime Minister of Canada
- Ian Waddell
- Mark Warawa
- Randy White
Jurists[edit]
Other politicians[edit]
Scientists[edit]
- Ian Affleck, physicist
- Robert Edward Bell, nuclear physicist
- Margaret Benston, chemist, computer scientist
- Michael Bigg, marine biologist
- Jim Chamberlin, aerodynamicist
- Wade Davis, ethnobotanist
- James E. Gill, geologist
- John R. Hendricks, mathematician
- Abram Hoffer, biochemist, physician
- Frances Oldham Kelsey, pharmacologist
- Vit Klemes, hydrologist
- Mel Krajden, medical scientist
- Robert T. Lackey, fisheries scientist, ecologist, zoologist
- Robert Langlands, mathematician
- Jerrold E. Marsden, applied mathematician
- Bill Mathews, geologist, volcanologist, engineer
- Brian McConaghy, forensic scientist
- Ian McTaggart-Cowan, ecologist
- Patrick McTaggart-Cowan, meteorologist
- Faron Moller, computer scientist
- Barth Netterfield, astrophysicist
- Edward Faraday Odlum, geologist
- Santa J. Ono, biologist
- David Pearson, computer scientist
- Robert Methven Petrie, astronomer
- Jerilynn Prior, medical scientist, endocrinologist
- Scott D. Sampson, paleontologist
- Martin Schechter, epidemiologist
- Robert Fletcher Shaw, engineer
- John Alexander Sinton, medical scientist, doctor, malariologist
- Frank Smith, psycholinguist
- Michael Smith, biochemist
- Wayne Smith, statistician
- David Suzuki, biologist, ecologist
- Robert Thirsk, engineer, physician, astronaut
- John Lancelot Todd, physician, parasitologist
- Bjarni Tryggvason, engineer, astronaut
- Paul Tseng, applied mathematician
- William Vickrey, Nobel Prize-winning economist
- Andrew J. Weaver, climate scientist
- Franklin White, public health scientist
Entertainment industry personalities[edit]
- Bryan Adams, singer (Kingston Ont)
- Evan Adams First Nations actor (Smoke Signals) and medical doctor
- Pamela Anderson, actress (Baywatch, V.I.P.)
- Aaron Ashmore, actor (Warehouse 13)
- Shawn Ashmore, actor (X-Men)
- Fadi Awad, artist, musician, producer, art projects manager, director
- Randy Bachman, musician (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) (Winnipeg)
- Long John Baldry, musician, songwriter
- Fairuza Balk, actress (The Wizard of Oz)
- Gil Bellows, actor
- Peter Breck, actor
- Michael Bublé, singer
- Raymond Burr, actor (Perry Mason)
- Jim Byrnes, musician, actor (Highlander)
- Nicholas Campbell, actor (Da Vinci's Inquest)
- Chris Carter, screenwriter, producer, director (X-Files)
- Kim Cattrall, actress (Sex in the City)
- Sarah Chalke, actress (Scrubs)
- William B. Davis, actor (X-Files)
- Yvonne De Carlo, actress (The Munsters)
- Edward Dmytryk, film director
- James Doohan, actor (Star Trek)
- Aryana Engineer, actress (Orphan)
- Roy Forbes (Bim), musician
- Judith Forst, opera singer
- David Foster, songwriter, record producer
- Michael J Fox actor, producer and health activist
- Nelly Furtado, singer
- Chief Dan George, actor (Little Big Man, Cariboo Cowboy)
- Matthew Good, musician
- June Havoc, actress
- Ben Heppner, opera singer
- Jacob Hoggard, musician (Hedley)
- John Ireland, actor
- Robert Ito, actor
- Carly Rae Jepsen, musician
- Alexz Johnson, singer, actress
- Joe Keithley, musician, songwriter (D.O.A.)
- Elias Koteas, actor (The Thin Red Line)
- Diana Krall, musician
- Kristin Kreuk, actress (Smallville)
- Nicholas Lea, actor (X-Files)
- Leon Mandrake, illusionist (Mandrake the Magician)
- Eric McCormack, actor
- Sarah McLachlan, musician
- Rosa Mendes, professional wrestler
- Joni Mitchell, singer/songwriter
- Cory Monteith, actor, singer
- Carrie-Anne Moss, actress
- Barbara Parkins, actress
- Jason Priestley, actor
- John Qualen, actor
- Mike Reno, musician, songwriter
- Ryan Reynolds, actor
- Donnelly Rhodes, actor (Da Vinci's Inquest)
- Coco Rocha, fashion model, Jehovah's Witness
- Seth Rogen, actor, comedian, writer, producer (The 40-Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Zack & Miri Make A Porno)
- Michael Shanks, actor
- Nell Shipman, actress, film director
- Alexis Smith, actress
- Cobie Smulders, actress (How I Met Your Mother)
- Dorothy Stratten, actress, model
- Bobby Taylor, Motown singer (Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers)
- Jon Mikl Thor, singer, performer and bodybuilder
- Meg Tilly, actress
- Tina Tyler, pornographic actress
Sports personalities[edit]
Artists[edit]
- Emily Carr, artist
- Iris Hauser (born 1956), painter
- Fred Herzog, photographer
- Clive Holden, poet, filmdirector and visual artist
- Attila Richard Lukacs, artist
- Len Norris, editorial cartoonist
- Sophie Pemberton, painter
- Bill Reid, artist
- Jack Shadbolt, artist
- Godfrey Stephens, artist
- Shane Wilson, artist
Journalists and writers[edit]
- Doug Beardsley, poet and educator
- Bill Bissett, poet
- George Bowering, author
- Robert Bringhurst, poet
- Douglas Coupland, author (genX fiction)
- Ranj Dhaliwal, author (crime-fiction)
- Philip K. Dick, author (science fiction)
- Ralph Edwards, naturalist/author (Caruso of Lonesome Lake)
- Timothy Findley, author
- Allan Fotheringham, columnist (politics, often satirical)
- Austin Gary, author
- William Gibson, author (Neuromancer)
- Terry Glavin, columnist/author and naturalist (ecology, fisheries, politics)
- John Stephen Hill, playwright Steve Hill (When I'm 64)
- Bruce Hutchison, editor/columnist and author (The Fraser)
- W.P. Kinsella, author/columnist (Shoeless Joe Goes To Iowa)
- Malcolm Lowry, novelist (Under the Volcano, October Ferry To Gabriola)
- Eswyn Lyster, genealogist and war bride author (Most Excellent Citizens, Trafford Press 2010)
- Daphne Marlatt, poet
- Alan Morley, journalist and historian (Vancouver: From Milltown to Metropolis)
- Margaret Lally "Ma" Murray, editor, columnist
- Susan Musgrave, poet
- Kliph Nesteroff, writer, broadcaster
- Stan Persky, author and journalist
- Eden Robinson, novelist (Monkey Beach)
- Spider Robinson, author (science fiction)
- George Ryga, playwright (The Ecstasy Of Rita Joe)
- Paul St. Pierre (Breaking Smith's Quarter Horse)
- Robin Skelton, poet
- Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun religion reporter
- William Fraser Tolmie, (Physician and Fur-Trader) HBC Fur trade employee, medical doctor and later politician.
- Margaret Trudeau, author
- Jack Wasserman, columnist (society, show biz, politics)
References[edit]
