Notable UK university alumni

Dana Ivey

film actor · b. 1941

American actress

LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art)

Dave Holland

recording artist · b. 1946

British jazz musician

Guildhall School of Music & Drama

David Blunkett

diarist · b. 1947

British politician (born 1947)

University of Sheffield

David Slade

manufacturer · b. 1969

British film and television director

Sheffield Hallam University

American actress

Loughborough University

Edna Adan Ismail

activist · b. 1937

Somaliland politician

London South Bank University

Ukrainian documentary film producer and director

Imperial College London

Enele Sopoaga

diplomat · b. 1956

Tuvaluan politician and diplomat

University of Oxford · University of Sussex

Francesc Eiximenis

philosopher · 1330–1409

Catalan philosopher, titular Patriarch of Jerusalem, Palestine, and Bishop of Elne

University of Oxford

Frank Bridge

music educator · 1879–1941

English composer and violist (1879–1941)

Royal College of Music

George Blagden

film actor · b. 1989

British actor

Guildhall School of Music & Drama

Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 1st Earl of Minto

diplomat · 1751–1814

Scottish politician (1751–1814)

The University of Edinburgh

Graham McTavish

television actor · b. 1961

Scottish actor

Queen Mary University of London

Harry Johnston

colonial administrator · 1858–1927

British explorer, botanist, linguist and colonial administrator (1858-1927)

King's College London, University of London

Harry Treadaway

film actor · b. 1984

British actor

LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art)

Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux

scholar · 1778–1868

English barrister, politician, and Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (1778-1868)

The University of Edinburgh

Ian Hodder

prehistorian · b. 1948

British archaeologist (born 1948)

ARU London

Jack Whitehall

stand-up comedian · b. 1988

British comedian, television presenter and actor

University of Manchester

James Maynard

mathematician · b. 1987

British mathematician

University of Oxford

James Nasmyth

mechanical engineer · 1808–1890

Scottish mechanical engineer and inventor (1808–1890)

Heriot-Watt University

Jim Ratcliffe

chief executive officer · b. 1952

British chemical engineer turned financier and industrialist

University of Birmingham

Johann Christoph Pepusch

music theorist · 1667–1752

German composer (1667–1752)

University of Oxford

John Compton

politician · 1925–2007

1st and former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia (1925–2007)

Aberystwyth University · London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London

John Hughlings Jackson

neuroscientist · 1835–1911

British neurologist (1835–1911)

University of York

John Ireland

music educator · 1879–1962

British composer and teacher of music (1879-1962)

Royal College of Music

Joseph Delaney

young adult author · 1945–2022

British writer (1945–2022)

Lancaster University

Karen Bardsley

association football player · b. 1984

American-English footballer

Manchester Metropolitan University

Karen Mok

recording artist · b. 1970

Hong Kong actress and singer-songwriter

ARU London

Katherine Parkinson

audiobook narrator · b. 1978

British actress

LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art)

Kevin Warwick

artificial intelligence researcher · b. 1954

British robotics and cybernetics researcher

Aston University, Birmingham · Imperial College London

Member of the British royal family

Middlesex University

Lynne Ramsay

director · b. 1969

Scottish film director, writer, producer, and cinematographer (born 1969)

Edinburgh Napier University

Malcolm Rifkind

politician · b. 1946

British politician (born 1946)

The University of Edinburgh

British singer (1955–2019)

University of Sussex

British historian

University of Oxford

Mick Jackson

producer · b. 1943

English film director (born 1943)

University of Bristol

Mosunmola Abudu

philanthropist · b. 1964

British–Nigerian talk show host and actress (born 1964)

University of Westminster, London

Nicholas Gonzalez

television actor · b. 1976

American actor

University of Oxford

Norman McLaren

producer · 1914–1987

Scottish Canadian animator (1914-1987)

Glasgow School of Art

Paul Kennedy

geopolitical analyst · b. 1945

British historian

Newcastle University

Paul Sweezy

economist · 1910–2004

American economist (1910–2004)

London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London

Peaches Geldof

model · 1989–2014

British journalist, television presenter and model (1989–2014)

Queen Mary University of London

Philip Winchester

film actor · b. 1981

American stage actor, television actor and film actor

LAMDA (London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art)

Princess Tsuguko of Takamado

aristocrat · b. 1986

Japanese princess; eldest daughter of Norihito, Prince Takamado, and Hisako, Princess Takamado

The University of Edinburgh

R.F. Kuang

novelist · b. 1996

Chinese-American writer

University of Oxford

American-Estonian economist (1907-1959)

The University of Edinburgh

Rebecca Clarke

musicologist · 1886–1979

English composer and violist (1886–1979)

Royal Academy of Music, University of London · Royal College of Music

Richard Bright

anatomist · 1789–1858

British pathologist (1789–1858)

King's College London, University of London · The University of Edinburgh

Richard Dannatt, Baron Dannatt

commander-in-chief · b. 1950

British Army officer

Durham University

Richard Doll

epidemiologist · 1912–2005

British physician and epidemiologist (1912–2005)

King's College London, University of London

Roland Dumas

French resistance fighter · 1922–2024

French lawyer and politician (1922–2024)

London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London

Shaun Evans

film actor · b. 1980

British actor

Guildhall School of Music & Drama

Sid Watkins

neurosurgeon · 1928–2012

English neurosurgeon and Formula One doctor

University of Liverpool

Sir William Hamilton, 9th Baronet

philosopher of mind · 1788–1856

Scottish metaphysician (1788-1856)

The University of Edinburgh · University of Glasgow

Skin

songwriter · b. 1967

British singer

Teesside University

Stella Rimington

autobiographer · 1935–2025

British director of MI5 (1935–2025)

The University of Edinburgh · University of Liverpool

Stuart J. Russell

artificial intelligence researcher · b. 1962

British computer scientist (1962-)

University of Oxford

Sunetra Gupta

epidemiologist · b. 1965

Indian novelist and epidemiologist

ARU London · Imperial College London

Tom Payne

film actor · b. 1982

English actor; (born 1982)

Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London

Tommy Flowers

technician · 1905–1998

British engineer, helped to design Colossus during World War II (1905–1998)

ARU London