Famous for its streets and squares of white houses and flowered balconies, the ‘Garden of the Costa del Sol’ -that is how Estepona is nicknamed- also stands out for being the birthplace of illustrious personalities of the social and cultural life. In this article we introduce you to some of the famous people born in Estepona.
Celebrities of Estepona from the world of show business: TV, cinema, theater and show business.
Carlos Granada Lima, bullfighter and actor.
Carlos Granada began his bullfighting career by taking the alternative with Sebastián Palomo Linares. In 1996 he entered the world of acting with work in Latin American soap operas and films. In 2016 he moved to Hollywood where he has participated in film productions such as American Poltergeist 3, The Doctor From Hell, Larry the Dream Stealer, Camino del Triunfo, Mansion of Blood, Katyn, The Extra, The Gringo II, Lost Time Matador, television series such as Don Matteo, Pope John Paul II, and soap operas such as Yo soy Betty la fea, Cazando a un Millonario and Milagros.
Daniel Ortiz, magician.
Daniel Ortiz
is a Spanish magician, considered one of the best in the world in the specialty of card magic. Dani DaOrtiz is a combination of exceptional technique and wacky humor. At only 42 years old, he is one of the greatest cartomagicians that Spain has donated to the world. Among his most famous publications are the 3 DVD collections (“Utopia”, “Reloaded” and “Here & Now”), which contain almost all of his practical and theoretical magic, the four lectures given at Penguin, very famous digital downloads such as “Or Not?” and “Inside the Vault” and the most recently published volumes on semi-automatic card magic.
Which musician is from Estepona?
Daniel Casares, guitarist.
Daniel Casares has been one of the most important flamenco guitarists for many years. Daniel Casares’ professional career is premature. When he was only 13 years old, he participated in the recording of the collective album, “A la Guitarra de Estepona”. At the age of 16 he was awarded the prestigious Bordón minero de La Unión, becoming the youngest guitarist, to date, to achieve it. In addition, he won the national guitar prize in Jaén and this made it possible for him to record his first album “Duende Flamenco”. His endearing musical quality is intimately linked to Maestro Juanito Valderrama, whom he accompanied in his last years. There are countless collaborations of Daniel Casares with other artists, from other worlds of artistic and worldly culture, among others, has collaborated live with renowned figures such as Alejandro Sanz, Miguel Poveda, Dulce Pontes, Pasión Vega, Toquinho, Antonio Orozco, José Mercé, etc.. As a result of these collaborations, Alejandro Sanz became the editor of his 5th album “El ladrón del agua”.
Which singer is from Estepona?
Ana Mena, singer and actress.
Ana Mena was passionate about music from a very young age, so much so that she won the twelfth edition of the Veo Veo Awards when she was only 9 years old and began to become famous immediately. In 2007 she released her first single which was followed by appearances in TV series and film movies (La piel que habito (2011), Vive cantando series (2013-2014) and Bienvenidos a Edén (2021) – Netflix series. He achieved worldwide fame in 2016 when his single No soy como tú crees, with which he rose to the top of the most listened list on Spotify. In Italy he becomes a familiar face when he collaborates with Fred De Palma (2018), Riki (2020) and Rocco Hunt (2021). In 2022 Ana Mena has also managed to participate in the famous Sanremo 2022 Festival.
Which singer is from Estepona?
“El Centimito”.
Francisco Bracho Sánchez ‘El Centimito’, flamenco singer, excellent imitator of Manuel Vallejo. A fan of the world of flamenco, he knew all the cantes and cantaores. Great interpreter of the cantes por Saeta, where he coined his own style. He performed on Radio Juventud.
Which athletes are from Estepona?
In the sports field, former football players such as Jaime Ramón Molina Mata (former soccer player and coach), Antonio Monreal Rodríguez (former football player), Francisco Muñoz Pérez (former football player) and former international handball player Nuria Benzal, who has played in national and international teams, her last club being Ciudad de Algeciras. She has been a senior international with the Spanish national team, winning the bronze medal at the 2002 European Junior Women’s Handball Championship (Finland 2002) and the silver medal at the 2008 European Senior Women’s Handball Championship (Macedonia 2008).
Which writers are from Estepona?
Javier Benítez Láinez, poet.
Javier Benítez Láinez, winner of the “Cuadernos del Laurel” Poetry Prize in 1991, has been involved in the cultural and literary field ever since. He has published several books and packages such as “Patio de butacas” (1994), “Día del espectador” (2004) or “todas las mentiras” (2006), appearing in anthologies such as “Cien Sonetos del Siglo XX” (2000) or “Vientos de cine” (2002). Recently, he has published in the collection “Vitolas del Anais” (2008) the vitola number 69, “Cuatro sonetos-rap”. Benítez founded in 2003 the “Asociación Cultural del Diente de Oro”, dedicated to the dissemination of the work of the poet Javier Egea, of which he has been president.
Alejandro Simón Partal, writer and poet.
Alejandro Simón Partal holds a PhD in Hispanic Philology and is a university professor. With Una buena hora (2019), his fifth book of poems, he won the International Poetry Prize Hermanos Argensola, and with La fuerza viva (2017), the Arcipreste de Hita. His latest dramatic work, Resistencia y Sumisión (2019), was selected by Factoría Echegaray and directed by Sigfrid Monleón. He has been resident author at Etopia Centro de Arte y Tecnología, in Zaragoza. He has also worked at universities in France and the Czech Republic. La parcela is his first novel.
Which historical figures are from Estepona?
María Espinosa de los Monteros, activist.
María Espinosa de los Monteros, an activist in the struggle for women’s civil and political rights, was a founding member of the National Association of Spanish Women.
Antonio Cano Chacón, military.
Antonio Cano Chacón, a professional military officer, belonged to the infantry and was promoted to the rank of major by seniority. Captured by Franco’s forces, in October 1939 he was tried and sentenced to twelve years in prison and expelled from the army.
Augusto Suárez de Figueroa, journalist.
Augusto Suárez de Figueroa, journalist and editor of the main newspapers in Madrid. He was the first director of El Heraldo de Madrid, and also directed Diario Universal and El Resumen. His “romantic death” granted him titles such as the ‘first design journalist’ in Spain and the ‘last one to die in a duel of honor’ in Spain.
Tomás de Figueroa y Caravaca, military.
Tomás de Figueroa y Caravaca, was a Spanish military officer executed by the government of Chile for leading a rebellion against the First Government Junta of Chile and reestablishing colonial order in the so-called Motín de Figueroa.
José Carrión y Marfil, clergyman.
José Carrión y Marfil was a Spanish clergyman who held high ecclesiastical positions in the viceroyalties of New Spain, New Granada and Peru. After serving as bishop of Cuenca and Trujillo, he returned to Spain where he directed the Abbey of Alcalá la Real until the last days of his life.
The forgotten.
We are sure that there are many more “famous” characters of our town, please, if you see any unforgivable oversight write us a comment or a message so we can correct it and we will be very grateful.
