dʒˈɑːnəθən wˈɪlks wʌz bˈɔːɹn ɪn bˈædɛli ɡɹˈiːn, stˈoʊkˌɔntɹˈɛnt, tʊ ˈaɪliːn wˈɪlks ænd ɡɹˈeɪəm wˈɪlks, ænd spˈɛnt mˈoʊst əv hɪz tʃˈaɪldhʊd ɪn pˈækmoːɹ, ɐn aʊtlˈaɪɪŋ vˈɪlɪdʒ ʌv tʃˈɛl, wɪð hɪz fɹˈɛnd ɹˈɑːbi wˈɪljəmz.
Jonathan Wilkes was born in Baddeley Green, Stoke-on-Trent, to Eileen Wilkes and Graham Wilkes, and spent most of his childhood in Packmoor, an outlying village of Chell, with his friend Robbie Williams.