Honorary Graduates
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ
A
Dr Nighat Arif
(MBBS Medicine, 2007)
Medical Broadcaster, GP specialising in women's health, and author [DSc, 2025]
B
Bobby Baker
Multi-disciplinary artist and activist [DLitt, 2011]
Dame Gillian Beer DBE FBA
King Edward VII Professor of English Literature, University of Cambridge (1994-2002) [DLitt, 2000]
Dr Halima Begum
(PhD Geography, 2005)
Chief Executive at Oxfam UK (2023-) [2024]
Professor David Blanchflower CBE
(PhD Economics, 1985)
Bruce V Rauner Professor of Economics, Dartmouth College, USA (since 2001) [DSc, 2009]
Sr Augusto Boal (1931-2009)
Theatre director and writer [DLitt, 2000]
Emeritus Professor Gustav Born FRCP HonFRCS FRS FKC (1921-2018)
Research Professor then Emeritus, William Harvey Research Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London (since 1989) [DSc, 2006]
Professor Sir Leszek (Boris) Borysiewicz FRCP FMedSci
Chair, Cancer Research UK (since 2016); Vice-Chancellor, University of Cambridge (2010-17); Chief Executive, Medical Research Council (2007-10) [DSc, 2009]
Dame Colette Bowe DBE
(BSc (Econ) Economics, 1969; PhD, 1978)
External member, Financial Policy Committee, Bank of England (since 2019); Chair, UK Banking Standards Board (2014-19); Chair, Ofcom (2009-14); Chair of Council, Queen Mary University of London (2003-09) [DLitt, 2010]
Professor Malcolm Bowie (1943-2007)
Founding Director, Institute of Romance Studies (1989-92); Head, Department of French, Queen Mary University of London (1976-89) [DLitt, 1997]
Professor Alexander Bradshaw BSc PhD
(BSc Chemistry, 1965; PhD, 1968)
Scientific Director, Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (1999-2008) [DSc, 2005]
Stephen Bush
[DLitt, 2022]
Sir David Butler
[DLitt, 2018]
Professor Marilyn Butler FBA (1937-2014)
Literary critic; Titular Professor of English Language and Literature, University of Oxford (1998-2004) [DLitt, 2008]
The Rt Hon Lord Butler of Brockwell KG GCB CVO
Secretary of the Cabinet and Head, Home Civil Service (1988-98) [DLitt, 1998]
C
Professor Lorna Casselton CBE FRS (1938-2014)
Foreign Secretary and Vice-President, Royal Society (2006-11); Professor of Fungal Genetics, then Emeritus, University of Oxford (1997-2003); Professor of Genetics, Queen Mary University of London (1989-91) [DSc, 2009]
The Rt Hon and Rt Revd Richard Chartres
Bishop of London (1995-2017); Bishop of Stepney (1992-95) [DLitt, 1998]
Martha Cover
(LLM Law, 1980)
Barrister, Coram Chambers [LLD, 2022]
The Hon Dame Laura Cox DBE
(LLB Law, 1973; LLM Law, 1975)
Judge of the High Court of Justice, Queen's Bench Division (2002-16) [LLD, 2019]
Jamie Crummie
(LLM Law, 2016)
Co-founder of Too Good To Go [2025]
(William) Jeremy Curtis
Head of Education and Skills, UK Space Agency [DSc, 2017]
D
Professor Dame Sally Davis
[DSc, 2023]
Professor Natalie Zemon Davis PhD [DLitt, 2004] (1928-2023)
Author and historian; Professor of History, University of Toronto, Canada
Mr Jacques Derrida (d 2004)
Philosopher [DLitt, 2004]
Professor Persi Diaconis PhD
Mathematician and statistician [DSc, 2007]
Dr Bruce Dickinson
(BA History, 1979)
Musician and song-writer with Iron Maiden [DMus, 2011]
Ann Dowling
[DSc, 2022]
Professor Marcus du Sautoy
Television and radio presenter, author, writer for the UK’s leading newspapers; Charles Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science and Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford since 2008, Fellow of the American Mathematical Society (2012) [DSc, 2012]
E
Professor George Ellis FRSSA
Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of Cape Town, South Africa (1973-87 and 1989-2005) [DSc, 2000]
Professor Bernadine Evaristo
[DLitt, 2022]
Dr Lorna Ewart
(PhD Pharmacology, 1998)
Chief Scientific Officer, Emulate Inc [DSc, 2023]
F
Peter Florence CBE
Founder of the Hay Festival [DLitt, 2018]
Professor Eric Foner
DeWitt Clinton Professor of History (since 1988) and Professor, Department of History (1982-88), Columbia University, USA; Leverhulme Visiting Scholar, Queen Mary University of London (2008) [DSc, 2012]
Sir Christopher France GCB MA FMedSci (d 2014)
Chairman of Council, Queen Mary University of London (1995-2003) [DSc, 2004]
G
Mr Richard Garriott
Video game developer, scientist and philanthropist [DSc, 2011]
Professor Simon Gaskell
President and Principal of Queen Mary University of London (2009-17) [DSc, 2025]
Professor Michael Green FRS FIP CPhys
John Humphrey Plummer Professor of Theoretical Physics (1993-2009); Lucasian Chair of Mathematics, University of Cambridge (since 2009) [DSc, 2004]
Professor Stephen Greenblatt
John Cogan University Professor of the Humanities, Harvard University, USA (since 2000); Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction (2012) [DLitt, 2001]
H
Professor Sir Peter Hall PhD FBA MAE HonMRITI Hon FRIBA (d 2014)
Professor of Planning and Regeneration, University College London, now Emeritus [DSc, 2004]
Miss Lucy Hawking
Novelist and science communicator [DSc, 2015]
Sir Peter Hendy
Chairman, Network Rail [DLitt, 2018]
Sir Gordon Higginson DL FREng (d 2011)
Vice-Chancellor, University of Southampton (1985-94) [DSc, 1999]
Dame Sue Hill DBE FMedSci FRSB FRCP(Hon) FRCPath (Hon) FHCS (Hon)
Chief Scientific Officer for NHS England and Senior Responsible Officer for Genomics [DSc, 2023]
Professor Sir Tony Hoare MA FRS DRBCS
Principal Researcher, Microsoft Research Ltd, Cambridge [DSc, 2005]
Professor (Allan) Victor Hoffbrand
(MBBS Medicine, 1959)
Professor of Haematology and Honorary Consultant, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine (1974-96), now Emeritus [DSc, 2012]
Sir Martin Holdgate CB PhD Fbiol
Chief Scientist, Department of Environment (1979-85) [DSc, 2006]
Professor Peter Hudson FRS
Willaman Professor of Biology, Director of Huck Institute of Life Sciences, Penn State University, USA [DSc, 2014]
J
Dr Guoni Thorlacius Johannesson
(PhD History, 2004)
President of Iceland (since 2016) [DLitt, 2017]
Ms Eleanor John
Director of Collections, Learning and Engagement, Geffrye Museum of the Home; Founding co-director of the Centre for Studies of the Home, Queen Mary University of London [DLitt, 2016]
K
Professor Julia King CBE FREng
Materials scientist; Vice Chancellor, Aston University (since 2006) [DSc, 2008]
The Rt Hon Sir David Kitchin
Lord Justice of Appeal, Chair of the Advisory Board of the Centre for Commercial Law Studies [LLD, 2015]
L
Mr Stephen Legg MA FIET
Chief Technology Officer for Storage, IBM UK [DSc, 2016]
M
Sir Richard MacCormac CBE FRSA (d 2014)
Chairman, MJP Architects (1972-2010) [DSc, 2007]
Professor Ian Macdonald MA FRS
Professor of Pure Mathematics, Queen Mary University of London (1976-87), now Emeritus [DSc, 2005]
Professor Doreen Massey FBA ASS FRSA (d 2016)
Emerita Professor of Geography, Open University (1982-2010) [DSc, 2010]
Professor Tom Meade DM FRCP FinstMed FRS
Professor of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London (1992-2001), now Emeritus [DSc, 2010]
The Rt Hon Lord Millett of St Marylebone MA
Lord of Appeal in Ordinary (1998-2004); Non-permanent Judge, Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong (since 2000) [LLD, 1999]
Professor Chen Minsheng
President of Southern Medical University (SMU), China (since 2011) and Chairman of the University Council (since 2012) [DSc, 2019]
O
Professor Paul O'Brien CBE FRS
Professor of Inorganic Chemistry, Queen Mary University of London (1984-94); Head of School of Chemistry and Professor of Inorganic Materials, University of Manchester (since 1994) [DSc, 2016]
P
Dame Caroline Palmer Yeates
(BA History, 1979)
Chief Executive of The Royal Marsden and National Cancer Director for NHS England [DSc, 2023]
Dr D Maxwell Parkin
Cancer epidemiologist; Editor of Internal Agency for Research on Cancer publications; Project Epidemiologist, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London [DSc, 2014]
Professor Simon Peyton Jones
Computer Scientist and researcher at Microsoft Research [DSc, 2017]
Professor JGA (John Greville Agard) Pocock
Historian and pioneer of the historical methodology, contextualism [DLitt, 2016]
Q
Professor Wang Qian
Vice-President, Southern Medical University (SMU) and President, Zhujiang Hospital, China [DSc, 2019]
R
Dr Padmavati Ramachandran
Director of the Schizophrenia Research Foundation [DSc, 2024]
Professor Sir Peter Ratcliffe FRS FMedSci
(NBBChir Medicine, 1978)
Clinical Director, Francis Crick Institute (since 2016); jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2019 alongside William Kaelin and Gregg Semenza
[DSc 2020]
Dr Marjorie Reeves (d 2003)
(PhD Heretical Mystics of the Middle Ages)
Fellow and Tutor in History, St Anne's College, University of Oxford (1938-74) [DLitt, 1997]
Mr Gerry Reilly BSc MSc FBCS CEng CITP
(BSc Physics and Electronics, 1982)
Director, IBM WebSphere Application Server Development [DSc, 2015]
Professor Arturo Reyes-Sandoval
[DSc, 2023]
Professor John Charles Reynolds PhD (d 2013)
Professor of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University, USA [DSc, 2007]
Professor John E Roemer
Elizabeth S and A Varick Stout Professor of Political Science and Economics, Yale University [DLitt, 2017]
Professor Pierre Rosanvallon
Director of Studies, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, France; Chair of Early Modern and Modern Political History, Collège de France, France [DSc, 2008]
Dr Martine Rothblatt
(PhD Medical Ethics, 2001)
Chair and CEO of United Therapeutics [DSc, 2025]
S
Navjot Sawhney
(MEng Aerospace Engineering, 2013)
Founder of The Washing Machine Project [DSc, 2025]
Sir Charles Saumarez Smith
[DLitt, 2019]
Professor Jean-Pierre Serre FRS
Mathematician; Chair of Algebra and Geometry, Collège de France, France (1956-94) [DSc, 2001]
Ms Peggy Shaw
Actor, writer and producer [DLitt, 2017]
Dr Eliana Sousa Silva
Social activist and author [DLitt, 2017]
Professor Sir Adrian Smith FRS
Principal, Queen Mary, University of London (1998-2008); Vice-Chancellor, University of London (2012-18) [DLitt, 2009]
Dr Christopher Smith BSc MB BChir PhD FRCPath
(MBBChir Medicine, 1995)
Consultant virologist, Addenbrookes Hospital; founder and leader of radio talk show The Naked Scientists [DSc, 2016]
Professor Susan Smith
Emerita Honorary Professor of Social and Economic Geography at the University of Cambridge [DLitt, 2025]
Professor Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak
University Professor (since 2007) and Founding member, Institute for Comparative Literature and Society, Columbia University, USA [DLitt, 2003]
Professor Peter Stallybrass
Annenberg Professor in the Humanities and Professor of English and of Comparative Literature and Literary Theory, University of Pennsylvania, USA (since 1988) [DLitt, 2012]
Professor George Steiner MA DPhil FBA FRSL
Writer; Fellow, Churchill College, University of Cambridge (since 1961); Professor of English and Comparative Literature, University of Geneva, Switzerland (1974-94) [DLitt, 2006]
The Rt Hon Lord Steyn
Lord of Appeal in Ordinary (1995-2005); Chairman of the Advisory Council, Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London (1993-94) [LLD, 1997]
Dame Janet Suzman
Actress and director [DLitt, 1997]
T
Gareth Thomas CBE
Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league player [DSc, 2024]
Professor Joanne Tompkins
Associate Dean (Research), Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Professor in Drama, University of Queensland; Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Queen Mary University of London (2008) [DLitt, 2015]
Dr Ashitey Trebi-Ollennu
(BEng Avionics, 1991)
Assistant Division Manager for Formulation, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA [DSc, 2023]
V
Professor Sir Tejinder Singh Virdee FRS
(BSc Physics, 1974)
Professor of Physics, Imperial College London; Fellow of the Royal Society and the Institute of Physics; Key Scientist behind the discovery of the Higgs boson at CERN [DSc, 2013]
Professor Karen Vousden CBE, FRS, FRSE, FMedSci
(BSc Genetics and Microbiology, 1978; PhD Genetics, 1982)
Group Leader, The Francis Crick Institute; Chief Scientist, Cancer Research UK (2016-22) [DSc, 2023)
W
Mr Martyn Ware
Record producer and artist; Founder member of The Human League and Heaven 17; Visiting Professor, Centre for Digital Music, Queen Mary University of London [DSc, 2012]
Professor Mark Wilson OBE
Consultant Neurosurgeon and Pre-Hospital Care Specialist, Imperial College and Founder of co-founder, GoodSAM [DSc, 2024]
Professor Sir Tony Wrigley MA PhD ScD FBA
Historical demographer; Co-Director, Cambridge Group for History of Population Social Structure (1974-94); Master, Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge (1994-2000) [DLitt, 2004]
Professor Rosemary Wyse
(BSc Physics and Astrophysics, 1977)
Alumni Centennial Professor in the Henry A Rowland Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University [DSc, 2018]
Z
Professor Graham Zellick CBE QC PhD LLD ASS
Dean, Faculty of Laws (1984-88); Head, Department of Law (1984-90); Drapers' Professor of Law (1988-91) and Professor of Law (1991-98), now Emeritus, Queen Mary University of London; Vice-Chancellor, University of London [DLitt, 2010]