Discover the notable alumni of University Of Birmingham. The list includes people like Tim Curry, Susanne Klatten, Maurice Wilkins, John Stewart Bell & Mo Ibrahim. This list of notable alumni is loosely sorted by popularity and has people from different domains of life, such as writers, intellectuals & academics, scientists, engineers and media personalities etc.
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1
Christine McVie(Singer-songwriter)
Birthdate: July 12, 1943
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Bouth, Lancashire, England
Died: November 30, 2022
Birthdate: April 19, 1946
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Grappenhall, Cheshire, England
Tim Curry, who idolized the Rolling Stones and the Beatles as a teenager, went on to become an actor and singer. He serves as an inspiration to many as he continues to contribute to the film and TV industry even after suffering a major stroke, which has left him wheelchair-bound since 2012.
3
Matthew Goode(English Actor Known for His Films: ‘Chasing Liberty’, ‘Stoker’, and ‘The Imitation Game’)
Birthdate: April 3, 1978
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Devon, England, United Kingdom
Matthew Goode is an English actor who played an important role in the success of the TV show A Discovery of Witches, which is an adaptation of Deborah Harkness' All Souls trilogy. During its initial run, the series performed consistently as Sky One network's most-watched show, thanks to Goode's portrayal of a molecular biologist and vampire named Matthew Clairmont.
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Simon Le Bon(Singer-Songwriter)
Birthdate: October 27, 1958
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Bushey, Hertfordshire, England
Height: 6'2" (188 cm)
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Michaela Coel(British Actress and Screenwriter Known for Her TV Series 'Chewing Gum' and 'I May Destroy You')
Birthdate: October 1, 1987
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: London, England
Ghanaian-origin British actor and screenwriter Michaela Coel was raised according to Pentecostal faith and took to poetry and acting later. A Guildhall scholar, she won a BAFTA for her sitcom Chewing Gum. With I May Destroy You, she became the first Black woman to win an Emmy for writing.
6
Victoria Wood(British Comedian Best Known for the Sketch Series ‘Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV')
Birthdate: May 19, 1953
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Prestwich, Lancashire, England
Died: April 20, 2016
Multi-talented English comedian, Victoria Wood was also an actress, lyricist, singer, composer, pianist, screenwriter, producer, and director. Wood started her career with the TV show That's Life! and established herself as one of Britain's greatest stand-up comedians. She wrote sketches, dramas, and popular sitcoms and her self-deprecating humor got her 14 BAFTA nominations of which she won four.
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Tamsin Greig(Actress)
Birthdate: July 12, 1966
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Maidstone, Kent, England, UK
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
8
Elizabeth Henstridge(Actress)
Birthdate: September 11, 1987
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Sheffield, England
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
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Chris Tarrant(Television presenter, Radio personality)
Birthdate: October 10, 1946
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Reading
Height: 6'2" (188 cm)
Birthdate: December 15, 1916
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Pongaroa, Wairarapa, New Zealand
Died: October 5, 2004
Born in New Zealand, to a doctor father from Dublin, Maurice grew up to be a Nobel Prize-winning biophysicist. His X-ray diffraction studies of DNA helped James D. Watson and Francis Crick, his fellow Nobel laureates, ascertain the DNA structure. He was also part of the Manhattan Project.
Recommended Lists:Birthdate: April 5, 1981
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Maidstone, Kent, England, United Kingdom
Tom Riley is an English actor, director, and producer. He is credited with forming a theater company called Article 19. After starting his acting career with the Royal Court Theatre, Tom Riley went on to make his film and TV debut. He has played important roles in TV series, such as Da Vinci's Demons where he portrayed Leonardo Da Vinci.
12
Jane Wymark(Actress)
Birthdate: October 31, 1952
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Paddington, London, England
Recommended Lists:Birthdate: March 6, 1947
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Urmston, Manchester, England
14
James Clavell(American Writer, Screenwriter, Director, and World War II Veteran)
Birthdate: October 10, 1921
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Died: September 7, 1994
After a motorcycle injury cut his military career short, James Clavell began writing screenplays for films such as The Fly. The Australian author and World War II veteran later penned iconic Asian Saga novels such as King Rat and Shōgun, which have been made into hit films and series.
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Anna Soubry(British Barrister, Journalist and Member of Parliament for Broxtowe (2010 - 2019))
Birthdate: December 7, 1956
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England
Anna Soubry is a British journalist, barrister, and former politician. A vocal critic of Brexit, Soubry left the Conservative Party in February 2019 in order to join the Independent Group for Change (Change UK). Subsequently, Anna Soubry was appointed as the party's leader before the disbandment of Change UK following the party's failure at the December 2019 general election.
16
David Kelly(Welsh Scientist and Authority on Biological Warfare)
Birthdate: May 14, 1944
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Llwynypia, Glamorgan, Wales
Died: July 17, 2003
Recommended Lists:17
Isaac Hempstead Wright(Actor)
Birthdate: April 9, 1999
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Surrey, England, UK
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
18
Lori Saunders(Actress)
Birthdate: October 4, 1941
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Kansas City, Missouri, USA
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
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Chris Addison(Actor, Comedian)
Birthdate: November 5, 1971
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Cardiff
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
20
Chrissie Wellington(English Former Professional Triathlete and Four-Time Ironman Triathlon World Champion)
Birthdate: February 18, 1977
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Height: 5'7" (170 cm)
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Sister Bliss(British Keyboardist, DJ, and a Former Member of Faithless)
Birthdate: December 30, 1970
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: London
British keyboardist Ayalah Deborah Bentovim, better known as Sister Bliss, is one of Britain’s most successful electronica musicians. Starting her career as a pioneering British DJ, she later established the band Faithless. She has also composed for films such as The Beach and Sex and the City 2.
22
Jim Ratcliffe(Businessperson)
Birthdate: October 18, 1952
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Failsworth, Lancashire, England
Recommended Lists:23
William Lane Craig(Philosopher, Theologian, University teacher, Writer)
Birthdate: August 23, 1949
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Peoria
William Lane Craig is an American analytic philosopher and theologian who is known for defending the Kalam cosmological argument for the existence of God. He has authored or edited over 30 books, and a hundred articles in professional journals. Craig is a professor of Philosophy at Houston Baptist University and Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology.
24
Sarah Kane(Playwright, Writer)
Birthdate: February 3, 1971
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Brentwood
Died: February 20, 1999
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Ben Shephard(Journalist, Television presenter)
Birthdate: December 11, 1974
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Epping
26
Ann Widdecombe(British Politician, Author, and Television Personality)
Birthdate: October 4, 1947
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Bath, Somerset, England
Height: 5'1" (155 cm)
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Yanis Varoufakis(Greek Economist & Politician)
Birthdate: March 24, 1961
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Palaio Faliro, Greece
Yanis Varoufakis is a Greek-Australian economist and politician who served as minister of finance for a few months in 2015 under Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. He has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Essex. He began a career in academic economics before entering politics. Along with US Senator Bernie Sanders, he launched the Progressive International.
28
Philip Kerr(British Author Best Known for His Bernie Gunther Series of Historical Detective Thrillers)
Birthdate: February 22, 1956
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
Died: March 23, 2018
Philip Kerr is best remembered for his 13 historical thrillers, clubbed as the Bernie Gunther series, and the children’s series Children of the Lamp, which he penned under the pseudonym P.B. Kerr. He wrote porn stories as a 12-year-old and later also worked as an ad copywriter.
Recommended Lists:Birthdate: June 28, 1928
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Belfast, Northern Ireland
Died: October 1, 1990
Northern Irish physicist John Stewart Bell is remembered for his contribution to quantum physics with his Bell's theorem. His ability to read voraciously earned him the nickname The Prof in childhood. At 16, he joined Queen’s as a technician since he was too young to be admitted to a course.
30
Geoffrey Hutchings(Actor)
Birthdate: June 8, 1939
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Dorchester, England
Died: July 1, 2010
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Desmond Morris(English Ethologist, Zoologist, Author, and Surrealist Painter)
Birthdate: January 24, 1928
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Purton, Wiltshire, England
Desmond Morris is an English ethologist, zoologist, author, and surrealist painter. He is well-known for his book The Naked Ape and for his TV shows, such as Zoo Time. Desmond Morris is also known for his work as the writer and presenter of the popular BBC documentary The Human Animal.
Birthdate: May 3, 1946
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Sudan
Telecom magnate Mo Ibrahim was born in Sudan and educated in Egypt and the U.K. His company Celtel International was one of the pioneers in the mobile phone industry in Africa and the Middle East. He was featured on Forbes’s billionaire’s list and offers scholarships for African students through his foundation.
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Irving Finkel(Philologist, Writer)
Birthdate: 1951
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: London, England
34
Adam Osborne(He introduced the Osborne 1, the first commercially successful portable computer)
Birthdate: March 6, 1939
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Bangkok, Thailand
Died: March 18, 2003
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Gisela Stuart(Politician)
Birthdate: November 26, 1955
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Velden, Bavaria, West Germany
Birthdate: June 4, 1960
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Marylebone, London
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
Recommended Lists:37
April Bloomfield(One of 10 Female Chefs in the United States to Hold a Michelin Star as of 2012)
Birthdate: 1974 AD
Birthplace: Birmingham, England
Birthdate: September 1, 1877
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Harborne, Birmingham
Died: November 20, 1945
Nobel Prize-winning English scientist Francis William Aston was solely a chemist before the advent of X-rays and radioactivity made him focus on physics too. He is best remembered for inventing the mass spectrograph, or the mass spectrometer, which helped him discover 212 of the 287 natural isotopes.
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Jacquie Beltrao(Sports presenter, Rhythmic gymnast)
Birthdate: April 21, 1965
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
40
Valerie Amos, Baroness Amos(Politician)
Birthdate: March 13, 1954
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Georgetown, Guyana
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Prince Seeiso of Lesotho(Younger brother of Lesotho's King Letsie III)
Birthdate: April 16, 1966
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Morija, Lesotho
42
Perry Christie(3rd Prime Minister of the Bahamas)
Birthdate: August 21, 1943
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Nassau, Bahamas
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Gita Gutawa(Actress, Singer)
Birthdate: August 11, 1993
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Jakarta, Indonesia
Height: 5'1" (155 cm)
44
Faisal Naseem(Politician)
Birthdate: July 20, 1973
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Funaadu, Fuvahmulah, Maldives
Recommended Lists:45
Wavel Ramkalawan(5th President of Seychelles)
Birthdate: March 15, 1961
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Mahé, Seychelles
46
John R. Vane(British Pharmacologist Known for His Research on Understanding How Aspirin Produces Anti-Inflammatory and Pain-Relief Effects)
Birthdate: March 29, 1927
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Tardebigge, Worcestershire
Died: November 19, 2004
John R. Vane was a British pharmacologist best remembered for his work that helped understand how aspirin produces anti-inflammatory and pain-relief effects. His work also led to the development of new treatments for blood vessel and heart disease. In 1982, John R. Vane was honored with the prestigious Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine alongside Bengt Samuelsson and Sune Bergström.
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Rodolfo Neri Vela(Mexican Astronaut and the Second Latin American to Travel to Space)
Birthdate: February 19, 1952
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Chilpancingo, Mexico
Rodolfo Neri Vela is a Mexican astronaut and scientist. He became only the second Latin American to travel to space. He achieved this feat in 1985 when he was part of a NASA Space Shuttle mission. Rodolfo Neri Vela is currently working as a researcher in the Faculty of Engineering at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
48
Sophie Bray(English International Field Hockey Player Who Played as a Forward)
Birthdate: May 12, 1990
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Grasse, France
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
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Elmira Minita Gordon(1st Governor-General of Belize)
Birthdate: December 30, 1930
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Belize City, Belize
Died: January 1, 2021
50
Lily Owsley(English Field Hockey Player Who Plays as a Midfielder or Forward)
Birthdate: December 10, 1994
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Bristol, England
Height: 5'7" (170 cm)
Recommended Lists:The University of Birmingham traces its roots back to 1828, and is a public research university located in Edgbaston, Birmingham. Essentially being a research oriented university, it is a founding member of the Russell Group and Universitas 21, it was also in fact the first English redbrick university to receive its own charter. After having been deemed as the University of the Year in 2014, as per the Times Education Awards, Birmingham was ranked 15th in the United Kingdom and 82nd globally, as per the QS World University Rankings 2016-17. It was also ranked 118th in the world as per the 2017 edition of the U.S News & World Report. With the student body touching nearly 34,000 in number, the University of Birmingham is the fourth largest university in UK. The university aims to enhance its renowned research facilities and provide quality education through its six major departments which are – Arts and Law, Engineering and Physical Sciences, Life and Environmental Sciences, Medical and Dental Sciences, Social Sciences and Liberal Arts and Sciences. The alumni of the university are well-known for dedication and quality of work that the institute was rated 90th worldwide and 10th in UK as per the 2016 Global Employability Ranking. Tamsin Greig, Matthew Goode, Chris Tarrant and Tim Curry are some of its notable alumni who have made the university proud. Here is the full-list of celebrities who attended the University of Birmingham.
