Where is Highgate Cemetery, is George Michael buried there and which other famous graves are there?
HISTORIC Highgate Cemetery opened in the 19th century and is the resting place of some of the most culturally significant figures of our time.
Pop icon George Michael has joined the likes of sociologist Karl Marx, scientist Michael Faraday, and hundreds of war heroes after being buried there in March 2017.
We take a look at the colourful history of the Grade I listed grounds, George Michael's planned burial, and which other famous people were laid to rest there.
Where is Highgate Cemetery?
The cemetery can be found on Swain's Lane in Highgate, north London.
Directions to the grounds by various transport links are detailed on the cemetery's website.
What is the history and layout of Highgate Cemetery?
When the grounds opened in 1839 London was facing a crisis around a lack of burial space.
Graveyards and burial grounds were often found crammed between shops, houses, and taverns.
Parliament passed a statute that seven new private cemeteries should be opened in the countryside around London - one of them was Highgate.
The first person who was buried there was Elizabeth Jackson, 36, who had lived in Soho.
Two chapels - one for the Church of England and the other for Dissenters - are housed within one building on the grounds.
Highgate Cemetery, which initially covered 17 acres, became a popular burial site in its first 15 years.
In 1854 the London Cemetery Company was so profitable it expanded the grounds by another 20 acres.
The new ground was named the East Cemetery and is where the sociologist Karl Marx was buried.
English Heritage has listed Highgate Cemetery as a Grade 1 park. Both the East Cemetery and the West Cemetery remain open as active burial grounds with interments taking place every week.
There are more than 170,000 people in 53,000 graves as well as 300 war graves.
Will George Michael be buried in Highgate Cemetery?
Faith singer George Michael was laid to rest in the tree-lined grounds in March 2017.
The pop star was buried next to his beloved mum Leslie.
Highgate Cemetery was forced to post on their website: "Sorry, we have no information about George Michael."
It is believed they added the statement to their homepage because of the amount of enquiries they were receiving.
Their automated phone system states: "If you are phoning about George Michael, I'm sorry we haven't got any information about you."
Michael's boyfriend posted a picture of a church on March 27, sparking rumours the star had already been buried in secret.
Which other famous people are buried there?
George Michael joined a long list of famous names.
Some of the most well known figures buried in Highgate are -
- Karl Marx - Sociologist, politician, historian, writer
- Michael Faraday - Physicist, chemist, scientist, philosopher
- Malcolm McLaren - Manager of the Sex Pistols, impresario, fashion designer
- Jeremy Beadle - TV presenter
- George Eliot - Novelist
- Ralph Miliband - Sociologist and father of Labour party figures Edward and David Miliband
- Opal Whiteley - Diarist and nature writer
- Radclyffe Hall - Novelist
- Elizabeth Siddal - Poet and artist
For a more detailed, see this list on Ranker.
