08 Feb 2023
Arguably the most famous scientist of modern times, physicist, author and cosmologist Stephen Hawking spent his formulative years in St Albans before leaving to begin a career which was to change our very perceptions of the universe.
Born in Oxford in 1942, Stephen’s family had fled their home in Highgate to avoid the Blitz, and after the war moved moved to St Albans following the relocation of his father’s workplace.
The National Institute for Medical Research, where Dr Frank Hawking was director of the Department of Chemotherapy (Biological), moved from Hampstead to new premises at Mill Hill – which was on the train line from St Albans.
At the age of eight, Stephen attended St Albans High School for Girls, which at the time took boys at primary level, before moving to Radlett Preparatory School. After passing the 11-plus selection exam he went on to attend St Albans School.
In 1958, with the help of his maths teacher, he built a computer from an old telephone switchboard and other recycled components, an achievement which was celebrated in the Herts Advertiser at the time.
Stephen commenced his learning at Oxford University aged just 17, and said he found his academic work “ridiculously easy”.
Received a First Class Honours degree, he then moved to Trinity Hall, Cambridge, to study physics.
It was at this time that he was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), and expected to live just a few more years.
But in spite of this diagnosis, he married Jane Wilde in 1965, and the disease subsequently progressed more slowly than expected.
Stephen continued with his studies, receiving a PhD in 1966 in applied mathematics and theoretical physics, specialising in general relativity and cosmology.
But MND played an increasingly major part in his life, with his motorised wheelchair becoming a frequent sight in Cambridge. This did not prevent him from publishing A Brief History of Time in 1988 – a book written for non-scientists which sold over 25 million copies.
In 1989, he was appointed a Companion of Honour, having reportedly declined a knighthood.
Having needed a tracheostomy, Hawking required a speech-generating device and his computer-generated voice became instantly recognisable throughout the English-speaking world.
In 2014 The Theory of Everything, an Oscar-winning film based on his life, was released. He continued to receive many international awards until he passed away in March 2018.
To commemorate his remarkable life, a blue plaque will be installed at his old family home at 14 Hillside Road, St Albans, at 12 noon on Saturday February 18.
This is the seventh plaque to be installed by Blue Plaques St Albans (BPSA), a voluntary organisation, established to commemorate famous men and women who have lived and worked in St Albans.
Professor Tim Boatswain, chairman of Blue Plaques St Albans, said: “Stephen Hawking, who received some of his education in St Albans, was a remarkable physicist and best-selling author.
“Throughout most of his life he battled with motor neurone disease but still managed to survey the cosmos from his wheelchair, theorising on the nature of gravity and the origins of the universe.
“It is absolutely appropriate that St Albans recognises this amazing man with a blue plaque. Stephen Hawking is a wonderful symbol both of brilliant thinking and extraordinary human determination.”
