Notable alumni
You're in good company
As a graduate of LJMU you share something special with thousands of others, ranging from local entrepreneurs and business leaders to judges, Olympic medallists, and award-winning figures from the arts and entertainment world.
Graduates from LJMU go on to excel not just in their field of study, but to apply the wider skills and confidence they acquire at the University to achieve in a diverse range of subjects.
Beth Tweddle MBE, BSc Sports Science (Physiology)
Britain’s greatest-ever female gymnast, Beth Tweddle has competed at three Olympic Games, winning Bronze in the Uneven Bars at London 2012. The first gymnast from Britain to win a medal at the World and European Championships, she is a triple World Champion, six-time European Champion, Commonwealth Champion and seven-times consecutive National Champion, having won the title every consecutive year between 2001 and 2007, the year Tweddle graduated from LJMU.
Claire Foy, Drama and Screen Studies
In 2017, Claire received a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV series for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown. Claire garnered wide acclaim for her portrayal of Anne Boleyn in the BBC's Wolf Hall in 2014. She has appeared in a number of dramas, including the title role in the BBC's Little Dorrit and Channel 4's The Promise. In 2013 she returned to the stage as Lady Macbeth opposite James McAvoy at the Trafalgar Studios.
Mohamed Nasheed, BA Maritime Studies
Former President of the Maldives and leader of the Maldivian Democratic Party, which he founded, Nasheed’s political journey began at LJMU in 1984. After graduating in 1989 he returned to the Maldives, becoming a vocal critic of the political regime led by Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Though jailed on thirteen occasions as a ‘prisoner of conscience’ for his condemnation of the government, the democratisation of the political system resulted in him being sworn in as President on November 11, 2008, and he has since attracted worldwide attention for his campaign for action on climate change.
Richard Duncalf, BA Business Studies
Chairman of Hervia Limited, a leading UK retailer of Vivienne Westwood products, Duncalf has helped develop a relationship between Hervia and the esteemed designer that has lasted for fifteen years. Hervia presently have five stand-alone stores dedicated to Westwood’s designs.
Phil Gayle, BSc Sports Science
A newsreader and freelance journalist, Gayle began his career as a DJ on various local radio stations and in the late 90s began work as a TV newsreader, working for both ITV and Channel 4. He also presented the news on Channel 4's morning show The Big Breakfast. Gayle currently works on the BBC Radio Oxford breakfast show and on BBC Radio 2 and Radio 5 Live.
Dr Stephen Ladyman, BSc Applied Biology
After receiving his degree from LJMU, Ladyman went on to work as a research scientist and IT consultant until he was elected to Parliament in the 1997 general election. He was Labour MP for South Thanet from 1997 to 2010, working as a junior minister at the Department for Health until May 2005, when he was appointed Minister of State for Transport. In January 2013 he was appointed chairman of the Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
Rt Hon Andrew Stunell OBE MP, BA (Hons) Architecture
Andrew Stunell was Liberal Democrat MP for Hazel Grove from 1997 to 2015. Following his architecture studies he was an architectural assistant until 1989, when he began working as Political Secretary of the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors. During his time in Parliament Stunell has held various positions, including Deputy Chief Whip, Chief Whip and Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government; he entered the House of Lords in October 2015. Stunell was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1993.
Philip Selway, BA (Hons) English and History
Selway is best known as the acclaimed drummer for alternative rock band Radiohead, regarded as one of the most progressive and inventive rock groups currently active; in addition to working with other bands has also worked with the charity Samaritans since 1991.
Rt Hon Mark Hendrick MP, BSc (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering
The Labour and Co-operative MP for Preston, Mark Hendrick has been involved in politics since 1984 when he became the secretary of the Salford Co-operative Party, a position he held for ten years. Elected at the 1994 European Parliament Election for the Central Lancashire seat he served in Brussels and Strasbourg for five years.
At the 2000 Preston by-election Hendrick was elected to the House of Commons, where he was a member of the European scrutiny select committee for three years, from 2001. He was appointed as the Parliamentary Private Secretary to then Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Margaret Beckett in 2003, continuing in this role in the Foreign Office, and is now a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.
The Honourable Justice Richard Williams, LLB
Having graduated in 1987 Hon Justice Richard Williams practised at the Family Bar in London for fourteen years before moving to the Caribbean to continue his career.
After becoming the Head of Litigation for a firm of attorneys in Turks and Caico Islands, he was called to the Bar of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court where he became Senior Magistrate, Vice and Acting President of the Family Court and Coroner for St. Vincent and the Grenadines in 2001. He took up his role as Resident Magistrate and Coroner, Turks and Caicos Islands from 2002-2004. He went on to become the Chief Magistrate and Chief Coroner there until 2008 where he was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court from 2008-2011. Since 2011 he has been in the role of Judge of the Grand Court, Cayman Islands. He is also currently designated to the International Hague Network of Judges, specialising in family matters.
He is an adviser to UNICEF on the projects: 'Moving the Agenda for Children Forward in the Eastern Carribean' and 'Organization of Eastern Carribean States Family Law and Domestic Violence Legal and Judicial Reform'.
Rt Hon George Howarth MP
George Howarth has been a Labour MP since 1986, originally for Knowsley North and then for its replacement Knowsley North and Sefton East following 1997 boundary changes. After training as an engineer Howarth went first into teaching before joining Cooperative Development Services (CDS) and being appointed Chief Executive of the Wales Cooperative Centre in 1982, holding the position until his election to Parliament.
In 1997 Howarth was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office and was then given the same position in the Northern Ireland Office in 1999; following his departure from Government in 2005 he has become a member of the Privy Council and holds a number of officer positions for several All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPG).
Terence Wynn MEP
Terence Wynn was an MEP for North West England from 1989 to 2006. From 1999 to 2004 he held the position of President of the Budget Committee, which oversees the £110bn budget of the EU.
Rt Hon Ieuan Wyn Jones MP, LLB
A former law student, Ieuan Wyn Jones served as an MP from 1987 and was a Member of the National Assembly for Wales for Ynys Môn from 1999 to 2013. He was Deputy First Minister in the Welsh Assembly Government and leader of Plaid Cymru until 2012. In 2007, Jones was named Wales Politician of the Year by the BBC Wales am.pm programme.
Caroline Aherne, BA Drama
A BAFTA award-winning English comedian, writer and actor best known for her creations Mrs Merton and The Royle Family, the late Caroline Aherne was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy.
Rt Hon Martyn Jones MP, BSc Microbiology
Martyn Jones worked as a microbiologist at the Wrexham Lager Beer Company from 1969 until 1987 when he was elected as a Labour MP for Clywd South, a position he held until 2010. He has been a member of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee and was previously a member of the Agriculture Select Committee.
Kirsty Doyle, BA (Hons) Fashion and Textile Design
The winner of the first series of Project Catwalk in 2006, following which she received a feature in Elle magazine among other prizes, Kirsty Doyle followed her studies at LJMU with an MA in Womenswear at Central St Martins in London. She established her successful Kirsty Doyle womenswear label in 2006.
Roxanne Pallett, BA (Hons) Media and Cultural Studies
After completing her studies at LJMU, Roxanne decided to pursue an acting career, and is most famous for playing the role of Jo Sugden in the ITV soap Emmerdale. She has also appeared on ITV's Soapstar Superstar and Dancing on Ice, and acts as an ambassador for Women's Refuge and Carlisle's Eden Valley Hospice.
Beth Cullen, BA Fine Arts (Sculpture)
After gaining her degree at LJMU in 1994, Beth Cullen went on to study at The Royal College of Art where she was the first artist to be awarded the prestigious commission for the Napoleon Garden Sculpture exhibition in London's Holland Park. Her work has since been displayed in solo and group exhibitions around the country.
Nicholas Roope, BA Fine Arts (Sculpture)
Founder and Executive Creative Director of creative agency Poke and design company Hulger, Nicholas Roope studied at LJMU 1990-94. Hulger’s innovative low energy light Plumen has won a range of awards and been included in the permanent collections of New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Ian Shields, BSc Computing
After completing his degree at LJMU from 1992 to 1996, Ian Shields worked as an IT analyst and consultant before becoming Head of Architecture at global food and beverage leader PepsiCo, whose business portfolio includes brands such as Quaker, Tropicana and Pepsi-Cola. He is currently Chief Information Officer for PepsiCo UK, Ireland and South Africa.
Tony Strudwick, Doctor of Philosophy, Physiology
A graduate of LJMU (1997-2005) and Loughborough University (1992-98), Tony Strudwick has worked with Coventry City, West Ham and Blackburn Rovers football clubs, as well as being Exercise Scientist with the English Football Association. He has been Head of Fitness and Conditioning at Manchester United since 2007.
