FLINTSHIRE has produced some big names, with many sports stars, actors, comedians and more hailing from the county.

You’ll certainly recognise some of these famous faces - but did you know that they're all from a lot closer to home than you think?

Here are some of the biggest names that Flintshire has produced. 

 Jade Jones OBE 

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Olympic Taekwondo two-time gold medalist, Jade Jones is a true Flintshire success story. So much so, she even has a leisure centre names after her, 'The Jade Jones Pavillion' in her home town of Flint. 

She picked up gold at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games. 

Jade has also dipped her toe in the waters of reality TV when she appeared on the 2018 series of Celebs Go Dating. 

Michael Owen 

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Ballon d'Or winner, Michael Owen was arguably one of the best footballers of his generation. 

He scored 222 goals in a career which spanned for over 17 years including stints at clubs such as Liverpool, Manchester United, Newcastle, and Real Madrid. 

Born in Chester, Owen attended school in Hawarden and started his footballing journey at Mold Alexandra FC before becoming one of the biggest names in European football. 

His daughter, Gemma, also local to the area gained recognition finishing runner-up in last year's series of Love Island.

Ian Rush MBE

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St Asaph-born Ian Rush is Liverpool Football Club royalty.

Rush is the Red's all-time leading goal scorer, netting 346 times and a true legend on the red half of Merseyside.

He also had brief spells at both Chester and Wrexham. 

Having grown up in Flint, he was awarded an MBE in 1996 for his services to football. 

 

Sir Jonathan Pryce 

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One of the nation's most respected actors, Sir Jonathan has starred in favourites such as Pirates of the Carribean, Evita, Tomorrow Never Dies, The Two Popes, Game of Thrones and more recently, known for his portrayal as Prince Phillip in Netflix's The Crown.

Sir Jonathan was born in Carmel before going to school at Holywell Grammar.

Sian Gibson 

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Mold-born comedy actress, Sian Gibson is best known for her collaboration with comedian, Peter Kay to who she shared the screen with in BAFTA Award winning series, Car Share.

Sian is a former member of the Theatr Clwyd youth theatre. 

Gary Speed

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Late football legend, Gary Speed was a household name in the Welsh game. With over 840 senior appearences for some of England's biggest clubs such as Everton, Leeds and Newcastle; he also held 85 caps for his country, captaining Wales on a number of occasions. 

Speed also had a career in managment which saw him as boss of Sheffield United and the Wales national team. 

Born in Mancot, in 1969 he attended Hawarden High School before embarking on his footballing career.

He sadly passed away in 2011. 

Kevin Ratcliffe 

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Everton Football Club's most succesful captain, Kevin Ratcliffe who comes from Mancot, near Queensferry also represented Wales 59 times. 

His time at Everton in the mid-80's saw him lift the league title twice, the FA cup, four charity shields, and the UEFA cup winners cup. 

Ryan Shawcross

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Former Premier League footballer, Ryan Shawcross who ammassed nearly 500 career appearences across clubs such as Stoke City, Inter Miami, and Manchester United is another footballing name to add to the Flintshire list.

Born in Chester, Shawcross grew up in Buckley, where he attended Mountain Lane Primary School and Elfed High School and played in the youth team at Buckley Town.

Tom Doran

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Connah's Quay boxer, Tom Doran held the WBC International Middleweight title in 2016, making his professional debut in 2009. 

He fought on the undercard of an Anthony Joshua main event in 2016, losing the title to Chris Eubank Jr. 

'Dazzlin' Doran' started his amateur career fighting out of Shotton ABC.