“One of the markers of a great university is the quality of its alumni. We have a very large community of successful alumni, playing leading roles in education, business and the business sector and of course, it is a genuinely multinational community.”
Professor David Greenaway, former Vice-Chancellor
From Nobel prize winners to Olympic gold medallists, leading edge scientists, international politicians, journalists, novelists and actresses, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½’s alumni continue to make significant contributions in their chosen fields all over the world.
Of course, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½'s most famous former student is novelist DH Lawrence. For more information, .
More recent noteworthy graduates include:
- Dr Stewart Adams OBE, Pharmacologist, created the painkiller Ibuprofen
- Tim Martin is the founder and chairman of JD Wetherspoon
- Dr Amanda Horton-Mastin is Director of Innovation at Comic Relief
- Sir John Sawers is the head of MI6
- Andrew Witty - former Chancellor of the University, and former Chief Executive of GlaxoSmithKline.
Nobel winners
2003 saw The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ gain recognition with two major awards:
- Alumnus Sir Clive Granger won the 2003 Nobel Prize for Economic Science
- staff member and Emeritus Professor, Sir Peter Mansfield, won his for pioneering work in developing Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Arts and the media
ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Alumni have also been active in the arts and media. Former ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students include:
- Ruth Wilson, actress - nominated for BAFTAs and Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal as Jane Eyre in the BBC mini series
- Haydn Gwynne, actress - well known for her roles on the stage and TV
- Helen Willetts - meteorologist and broadcaster
- Jim Moir – Head of BBC Radio 2
- Matthew Bannister - broadcaster and former BBC Head of Production
- Jeff Randall - the BBC’s former Business Editor and now presenter of Jeff Randall Live on Sky News
ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ alumni have been active in media ownership.
- Lord Hollick is former CEO of United News and Media
- Sir Robert Phillis is former Chief Executive of the Guardian Media Group and Deputy Director-General of the BBC
Sports
London 2012 saw the University continue its strong Olympic tradition, with ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ alumni picking up five medals in the competition.
- Canoe experts Etienne Stott and Tim Baillie took Great Britain’s first Olympic golds in Mens Slalom C-2
- David Florence won a silver medal in the Mens Slalom C-2
- Chris Bartley took silver as part of his team in the Men’s lightweight coxless four Rowing event
- Anne Panter was a Bronze medal winner as part of the Women’s Field Hockey squad
These medallists head an amazing list of sporting alumni elite which includes:
- Beijing Olympic gold and bronze medalist, sprint kayaker, Tim Brabants
- Deng Yaping - former international table tennis champion and Chinese Sports Personality of the Century
- Campbell Walsh - former World canoeing champion
- Dr Kristan Bromley - former World and European bobsled champion
- Brian Moore - former England and Lions hooker
- Roger Lewis - Group Chief Executive of the Welsh Rugby Union