Notable UK university alumni
13,528 people who studied at a UK university and have Wikipedia coverage. Ranked by international notability (number of language Wikipedias they appear in). Sourced from Wikidata.
Mohamed Nasheed
journalist · b. 1967
Maldivian politician, 4th president of the second republic of Maldives
Liverpool John Moores University
Nika Melia
official · b. 1979
Georgian politician (born 1979)
Oxford Brookes University
Peter Cushing
explorer · 1913–1994
British actor (1913–1994)
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Richard Aldington
novelist · 1892–1962
English writer and poet (1892–1962)
ARU London
Risto Ryti
head of government · 1889–1956
President of Finland (1889–1956)
University of Oxford
Tiffany Trump
sociologist · b. 1993
American socialite, research assistant and reality television personality (born 1993)
Regent's University London
Amy Johnson
aircraft pilot · 1903–1941
pioneering English aviator (1903–1941)
University of Sheffield
Aphex Twin
club DJ · b. 1971
British electronic musician (born 1971)
Kingston University
Clive Barker
science fiction writer · b. 1952
English author, film director, and visual artist (born 1952)
University of Liverpool
David MacMillan
university teacher · b. 1968
British chemist (1968-)
University of Glasgow
David Thewlis
television actor · b. 1963
British actor
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
George Tupou V of Tonga
politician · 1948–2012
King of Tonga
University of Oxford
Graham Chapman
television actor · 1941–1989
English actor, comedian and writer (1941–1989)
Queen Mary University of London · University of Cambridge
James Bradley
university teacher · 1693–1762
English astronomer; Astronomer Royal
University of Oxford
James Mirrlees
university teacher · 1936–2018
Scottish economist (1936-2018)
The University of Edinburgh · University of Cambridge
Jason Isaacs
film actor · b. 1963
British actor (born 1963)
Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London · University of Bristol
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
head of government · b. 1948
94th Prime Minister of France
ESCP Business School
John Rhys-Davies
film actor · b. 1944
Welsh actor
University of East Anglia UEA
Lang Lang
classical pianist · b. 1982
Chinese pianist
Royal College of Music
Muriel Spark
literary critic · 1918–2006
Scottish novelist and writer (1918–2006)
Heriot-Watt University
Naveen Andrews
television actor · b. 1969
British actor (1969-)
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Peggy Ashcroft
film actor · 1907–1991
British actress (1907-1991)
Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London
Richard Stone
statistician · 1913–1991
British economist, Nobel Memorial Prize winner (1913-1991)
University of Cambridge
Rodney Robert Porter
physiologist · 1917–1985
English biochemist and Nobel laureate (1917–1985)
University of Cambridge · University of Liverpool
Samuel Smiles
journalist · 1812–1904
Scottish author (1812-1904)
The University of Edinburgh
Sonam Kapoor
film actor · b. 1985
Indian actress
University of East London
Thomas Bayes
statistician · 1702–1761
British mathematician and Presbyterian minister (1702-1761)
The University of Edinburgh
Angela Carter
film screenwriter · 1940–1992
English novelist (1940–1992)
University of Bristol
Bryan Ferry
musician · b. 1945
British singer (born 1945)
Newcastle University
Charles Rennie Mackintosh
watercolorist · 1868–1928
Scottish architect, designer, water colourist and artist (1868-1928)
Glasgow School of Art
Charlie Hunnam
film actor · b. 1980
British actor
University of Cumbria
Daron Acemoğlu
university teacher · b. 1967
Turkish-American economist and receiver of the 2024 Nobel Prize in economic sciences (born 1967)
London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London · University of York
Duffy
film actor · b. 1984
Welsh singer (born 1984)
University of Chester
Geoffrey Wilkinson
non-fiction writer · 1921–1996
British Nobel laureate in Chemistry
Imperial College London
Hakainde Hichilema
President of the Republic · b. 1962
7th President of Zambia
University of Birmingham
Heinrich Brüning
trade unionist · 1885–1970
German chancellor (1885-1970)
London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
Homi Jehangir Bhabha
nuclear physicist · 1909–1966
Indian nuclear physicist (1909–1966)
University of Cambridge
Irvine Welsh
short story writer · b. 1958
Scottish writer
Heriot-Watt University
Jamie Dornan
film actor · b. 1982
Northern Irish actor, model and musician
Teesside University
John Boyd Orr
director general · 1880–1971
Scottish nutritionist, Director-General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (1880-1971)
University of Glasgow
John Oliver
film actor · b. 1977
British-American comedian and television host
University of Cambridge
John Vane
biochemist · 1927–2004
English pharmacologist (1927-2004)
University of Birmingham
Joseph Dalton Hooker
scientific collector · 1817–1911
British botanist, lichenologist, and surgeon (1817–1911)
University of Glasgow
Luísa Diogo
economist · 1958–2026
Mozambican politician (1958–2026)
SOAS University of London
Natasha Bedingfield
recording artist · b. 1981
British singer
University of Greenwich
Olaf Stapledon
science fiction writer · 1886–1950
British novelist and philosopher (1886–1950)
University of Liverpool
Otto Jespersen
Idist · 1860–1943
Danish linguist (1860–1943)
University of Oxford
Pedro Pablo Kuczynski
banker · b. 1938
Peruvian politician and economist; Prime Minister (2005–06), President (2016–18)
Royal College of Music · University of Cambridge · University of Oxford
Peter C. Doherty
immunologist · b. 1940
Australian immunologist
The University of Edinburgh
Roger Bannister
autobiographer · 1929–2018
English physician and athlete (1929–2018)
Imperial College London
Saif al-Islam al-Gaddafi
architect · 1972–2026
engineer and politician (1972–2026)
London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
William Petty
demographer · 1623–1687
English scientist, philosopher, statistician and economist (1623-1688)
University of Oxford
Andrey Korotayev
demographer · b. 1961
Russian anthropologist, economic historian, comparative political scientist, and sociologist
University of Manchester
Asma al-Assad
financial analyst · b. 1975
First Lady of Syrian Arab Republic (2000-2024)
King's College London, University of London
Brian Greene
theoretical physicist · b. 1963
American physicist
University of Oxford
David Bohm
nuclear physicist · 1917–1992
American theoretical physicist
University of Bristol
David Irving
essayist · b. 1938
British author and Holocaust denier (born 1938)
Imperial College London
Dominic Raab
minister · b. 1974
British politician (born 1974)
University of Cambridge
Freddie Highmore
film actor · b. 1992
English actor
University of Cambridge
Haider Al-Abadi
electrical engineer · b. 1952
Prime Minister of Iraq from 2014 to 2018
University of Manchester