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.
John Frederic Daniell
inventor · 1790–1845
English chemist and physicist
University of Oxford
John Mayall
recording artist · 1933–2024
English blues musician (1933–2024)
Manchester Metropolitan University
John William Polidori
physician · 1795–1821
English writer and physician (1795–1821)
The University of Edinburgh
Kathleen Lonsdale
peace activist · 1903–1971
Irish crystallographer (1903-1971)
Royal Holloway, University of London
Lucy Bronze
association football player · b. 1991
English footballer (born 1991)
Leeds Beckett University
Marina Sirtis
television actor · b. 1955
British actress
Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Norman Davies
university teacher · b. 1939
British historian
University of Sussex
Nuruddin Farah
novelist · b. 1945
Somali writer
ARU London
Patrick Geddes
scientific illustrator · 1854–1932
British biologist, botanist and town planner (1854-1932)
Imperial College London
Paul W. S. Anderson
producer · b. 1965
British film director, screenwriter and producer
University of Warwick
Paula Radcliffe
long-distance runner · b. 1973
English long-distance runner
Loughborough University
Princess Märtha Louise of Norway
alternative therapist · b. 1971
Norwegian princess; daughter of Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway
University of Oxford
Roger Williams
debater · 1603–1683
English Baptist theologian and author (1603–1683)
University of Cambridge
Ruth Wilson
film actor · b. 1982
British actress
LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art) · University of Nottingham
Salman bin Hamad, Crown Prince of Bahrain
politician · b. 1969
Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain
University of Cambridge
William Walton
opera composer · 1902–1983
English composer (1902–1983)
University of Oxford
Abubakar Tafawa Balewa
official · 1912–1966
Nigerian politician (1912-1966)
ARU London
Adam Sedgwick
abolitionist · 1785–1873
English geologist (1785–1873)
University of Cambridge
Alex Garland
television writer · b. 1970
British writer, scriptwriter and film director (born 1970)
University of Manchester
Anthony Horowitz
novelist · b. 1955
English novelist and screenwriter (born 1955)
University of York
Bernardine Evaristo
activist · b. 1959
British author and academic (1959-)
Goldsmiths, University of London
Bruce Chatwin
traveler · 1949–1989
English novelist (1940–1989)
The University of Edinburgh
Calouste Gulbenkian
smuggler · 1869–1955
Armenian businessman, art collector and philanthropist (1869-1955)
King's College London, University of London
Carlos Agostinho do Rosário
diplomat · b. 1954
Prime Minister of Mozambique (2015-present)
ARU London
Carol Ann Duffy
university teacher · b. 1955
Scottish poet and playwright (born 1955)
University of Liverpool
Caucher Birkar
mathematician · b. 1978
Kurdish mathematician
University of Nottingham
Eleftheria Eleftheriou
singer · b. 1989
Greek Cypriot singer
University of Surrey
Elton Mayo
sociologist · 1880–1949
Australian psychologist and sociologist
The University of Edinburgh
Eugen d'Albert
composer · 1864–1932
Scottish-born German pianist and composer (1864-1932)
Royal College of Music
Françoise Gilot
draftsperson · 1921–2023
French painter, art critic, writer and beloved of Pablo Picasso (1921–2023)
University of Cambridge · University of London Institute in Paris
George Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen
politician · b. 1946
British politician (born 1946)
University of Dundee
Harold Shipman
serial killer · 1946–2004
English doctor and serial killer (1947-2004)
University of Leeds
Hermann Bondi
university teacher · 1919–2005
Austrian-British mathematician and cosmologist
University of Cambridge
Jack Straw
barrister · b. 1946
British politician (born 1946)
University of Leeds
James Cleverly
politician · b. 1969
British politician (born 1969)
University of West London
James Thomson
poet · 1700–1748
Scottish writer (1700–1748)
The University of Edinburgh
Jerry Fodor
philosopher · 1935–2017
American philosopher (1935–2017)
University of Oxford
John Bradley
film actor · b. 1988
English actor
Manchester Metropolitan University
John Henry Poynting
university teacher · 1852–1914
British physicist (1852-1914)
University of Cambridge
Junius Richard Jayewardene
cricketer · 1906–1996
President of Sri Lanka from 1978 to 1989
ARU London
Lionel Robbins, Baron Robbins
economist · 1898–1984
British economist (1898–1984)
London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
Lytton Strachey
theatre critic · 1880–1932
English writer (1880–1932)
University of Liverpool
Mark Gatiss
science fiction writer · b. 1966
British actor, screenwriter and novelist
University of Leeds
Meaghan Jette Martin
film actor · b. 1992
American musician and actor
LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art)
Mehran Karimi Nasseri
memoirist · 1945–2022
Iranian refugee who spent 18 years in a French airport
University of Bradford
Michael Walzer
philosopher · b. 1935
American philosopher (born 1935)
University of Cambridge
Nick Bostrom
philosopher · b. 1973
philosopher and writer (born 1973)
King's College London, University of London · London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
Norbert Lammert
university teacher · b. 1948
German politician, president of the Bundestag
University of Oxford
Pat Barker
novelist · b. 1943
British writer
Durham University · London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
Paul Davies
non-fiction writer · b. 1946
British physicist (1946-)
ARU London
Peter Shaffer
literary critic · 1926–2016
English playwright and screenwriter (1926-2016)
University of Cambridge
Philip Selway
songwriter · b. 1967
English drummer
Liverpool John Moores University
Ralph Gonsalves
sociologist · b. 1946
former Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
University of Manchester
Stephen Daldry
theatre director · b. 1961
British director
University of Sheffield
Timothy Gowers
university teacher · b. 1963
British mathematician
University of Cambridge
Yiruma
pianist · b. 1978
South Korean pianist and composer
King's College London, University of London
Ahmad Massoud
chief executive officer · b. 1989
Afghan politician and military leader (born 1989)
King's College London, University of London
Archie Panjabi
film actor · b. 1972
British actress (born 1972)
Brunel University of London
Ayad Allawi
head of government · b. 1944
Prime Minister of Iraq from 2004 to 2005
ARU London
Ben Browder
film actor · b. 1962
American actor
Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London