The first of each identity in the VGG face dataset.

vgg_full_scrape.sh

#!/bin/bash
# Author: Boaz Sender
#
# Script for downloading all the good images in the VGG data set.
#
# VGG is available for download from www.robots.ox.ac.uk/~vgg/data/vgg_face/
#
# usage: from the root of a vgg_face_dataset download, run:
# mkdir full_scrape && ./vgg_full_scrape.sh

# Loop over all the files in the vgg data set that we downloaded
for file in `ls -1 files`
  do
    # Figure out the name of the person who we are downloading an image for
    # from the file name
    identity=$(echo $file | rev | cut -c5- | rev)
    declare -i count=1

    # make a file to log all the dead images in
    touch dead_images.txt

    function scrape_image()
    {
      # download the image
      wget $1 --output-document=scrape_full/$2 --timeout=6 --tries 2;

      # If the download creates a recognizeable image, then figure out the format,
      #  give it the correct extension, and move on
      if file "scrape_full/$2" | grep "image"; then
        format=$(file -0 -F" " "scrape_full/$2" | grep -aPo '\0\s*\K\S+' | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')
        mv "scrape_full/$2" "scrape_full/$2.$format"

        echo "******************************************************************"
        echo "Images successful! for ${identity} at count number ${count}!"
        echo "******************************************************************"

        # Otherwise, if we got an unrecognizeable image delete that garbo
        # and log that is was a bad image
      else
        echo "******************************************************************"
        echo "Images download failed for ${identity} at count number ${count}! Recording and moving on"
        echo "******************************************************************"
        echo $identity $2 >> dead_images.txt
        rm scrape_full/$2
      fi

      # Increment the counter, and call this function again with the next line
      ((count++))
      arg=$count
      arg+="p"
      nextarr=(`sed -n $arg 'files/'$file`)
      scrape_image ${nextarr[1]} ${identity}_${nextarr[0]}
    }

    # Kickoff this shindig with the first line of the current file
    arr=(`sed -n 1p 'files/'$file`)
    scrape_image ${arr[1]} ${identity}_${arr[0]}
done;

vgg_process_files.sh

#!/bin/bash
# usage: from the root of a vgg_face_dataset download run
# ./vgg_process_files.sh > vgg_face_dataset_first_image_per_identity.txt
for i in `ls -1 files`
do
   head 'files/'$i -n1 -v
done;

vgg_process_files_and_scrape.sh

#!/bin/bash
# Author: Boaz Sender
#
# Script for processing the data in vgg_face_dataset and downloading a single
# image for each identity (person) in the data.
#
# The VGG data is available for download from
# www.robots.ox.ac.uk/~vgg/data/vgg_face/
#
# At the time of this writing, about 12% of the first images of each identity
# are no longer available, or borken in some way. This script tries
# downloading until it finds a good image.
#
# usage: from the root of a vgg_face_dataset download, run:
# mkdir scrape && ./vgg_process_files_and_scrape.sh

# Define our scraper function
function scrape_image()
{
  # download the image, and if it downloads and creates a recognizeable image,
  # then figure out the format, give it the correct extension, and move on
  if wget $1 --output-document=scrape/$2 -q --timeout=6 --tries 2 && file "scrape/$2" | grep "image" && (( $(identify -format %n scrape/$2) < 2)); then
    format=$(file -0 -F" " "scrape/$2" | grep -aPo '\0\s*\K\S+' | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')

    mv "scrape/$2" "scrape/$2.$format"
    echo "******************************************************************"
    echo "Images successful! for ${identity} at count number ${count}!"
    echo "******************************************************************"

  # otherwise, if the wget fails, or downloads and empty file, or something
  # that is not an image delete that garbo, and try again with the next line
  # of the identity's file
  else
    ((count++))
    echo "******************************************************************"
    echo "Image failed, moving on to image number ${count} for ${identity}"
    echo "******************************************************************"
    rm scrape/$2

    arg=$count
    arg+="p"
    nextarr=(`sed -n $arg 'files/'$file`)
    scrape_image ${nextarr[1]} ${identity}_${nextarr[0]}
  fi
}


# Loop over all the files in the vgg data set that we downloaded
for file in `ls -1 files`
  do
    # Figure out the name of the person who we are downloading an image for
    # from the file name
    identity=$(echo $file | rev | cut -c5- | rev)
    declare -i count=1


    # Kickoff this shindig with the first line of the current file
    arr=(`sed -n 1p 'files/'$file`)
    scrape_image ${arr[1]} ${identity}_${arr[0]}
done;

vgg_scrape.sh

#!/bin/bash
# usage: from the root of a vgg_face_dataset download run
# mkdir scrape && ./vgg_scrape.sh
while read p; do
  arr=(`echo ${p}`)
  wget ${arr[2]} --output-document=scrape/${arr[0]}.jpg --timeout=6 --tries 2
done < vgg_face_dataset_first_image_per_identity.txt

Great point, updated!