The Essex dialect is rapidly disappearing variation of East Anglian English and is now mainly confined to the middle, north and the east of Essex. It shares vast similarities with both Suffolk and Norfolk dialects, with its own peculiarities. With rapid urbanisation in the 20th century as well as the impact of the London overspill, Estuary English, a milder form of the London accent predominant largely along the Thames Estuary and thus the name, has become common, mainly in the southern portion of the county. As a result of the growing London influence, the usage of rural accents everywhere and the rural Essex dialect is now normally, but not always confined to older generations in some of the areas affected and the dialect itself stands in a vulnerable state in those affected parts of the county. Elsewhere in Essex, the dialect and rural accent continues.

For example, in the coastal town of Harwich the Essex dialect is still common, even among the town's youth, and is a defining feature of the area.

Essex ( /ˈɛsɨks/) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west. Essex County Council is the principal local authority for much of the county, sharing functions with twelve district councils. The county town is Chelmsford. The southern Essex boroughs of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea are governed separately as unitary authorities. It was established in antiquity and formed the eastern portion of the Kingdom of Essex. Sections of the county closer to London are part of the Metropolitan Green Belt, which prohibits development. It is the location of the regionally significant Lakeside Shopping Centre and London Stansted Airport; and the new towns of Basildon and Harlow.

The name Essex originates in the Anglo-Saxon period of the Early Middle Ages and has its root in the Old English Ēastseaxe (i.e. the "East Saxons"), the eastern kingdom of the Saxons. Originally (in 527 AD) it occupied territory to the north of the River Thames, incorporating all of what later became Middlesex and most of what later became Hertfordshire, though its territory was later restricted to lands east of the River Lea.Colchester in the north east of the county is Britain's oldest recorded town, dating back to before the Roman conquest, when it was known as Camulodunum and was sufficiently well-developed to have its own mint. Subsequently the Kingdom of Essex was subsumed into the Kingdom of England and Essex eventually became a county.

Charles Edwin Benham JP (pronounced Ben-am; 15 April 1860 in Colchester, Essex, England - 1 April 1929, also in Colchester) was a journalist, editing for many years the Essex County Standard, a published author of works such as Essex Ballads and an amateur scientist-cum-inventor, which led him to create Benham's top, which was named after him.

Born on 15 April 1860 into a family of newspaper proprietors, Benham was educated at Colchester Royal Grammar School but did not attend university. He later returned to the school to become President of the Old Colcestrian Society for old boys of the school. Living in Colchester for all but a handful of years of his life spent with Mebrose printers in Derby - and, in turn, writing about it in many of his books - he helped edit the family-controlled paper the Essex County Standard jointly with his brother William Gurney Benham from 1892 until his death in 1929, which was described as "sudden and unexpected", from angina pectoris whilst in his editorial office for the newspaper. He left a widow.

Keith Lemon is a fictional character, portrayed by English comedian Leigh Francis. Lemon is most famous for his comedy panel show Celebrity Juice.

In a 2006 interview, Francis claimed that Lemon is loosely based on his best friend. Lemon is easily distinguished by his camp demeanour, exaggerated Yorkshire accent, bleached mullet, ginger moustache and fake tan. According to Leigh Francis, Lemon's background is that of a failed businessman, who was most successful in 1993, when he won the prestigious Businessman of the Year award for his innovative creation, the securi-pole".

Lemon was first portrayed in 2000, on a short lived television programme entitled "Whatever I Want", aired on London Weekend Television. The programme also featured Francis' other two main characters, Avid Merrion, and a human version of The Bear. All three characters were in very early stages of development, and in comparison to Francis' appearances in Bo' Selecta! and beyond, his actions and behaviour remain similar, but are noticeably different to that of the final personalities of the characters. An episode of this programme is available to view on YouTube.

James Terry Sherwin (born October 25, 1933) is an American corporate executive and International Master in chess.

Born in New York City in 1933, Sherwin attended Stuyvesant High School, Columbia College (Phi Beta Kappa) and Columbia Law School. He graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Officer Candidate School in 1956 and later became a Lieutenant Commander. He is an attorney admitted to the New York and Supreme Court Bars. He joined GAF Corporation in 1960 serving in various legal and operational roles and eventually becoming its Chief Financial Officer. He was CFO at Triangle Industries from 1983-1984, rejoining GAF Corporation as Vice Chairman from 1985 – 1990.

While at GAF, in 1988, he was indicted by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Rudolph Giuliani, for stock manipulation in connection with the 1986 sale of stock owned by GAF. He was convicted after three trials, but the conviction was reversed on appeal and dismissed with prejudice. In 1991 he was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Hunter Douglas N.V., a Dutch multinational company, in which capacity he served until 1999. Since then he has been a Director and an adviser to Hunter Douglas.