The University of Hertfordshire has very reputable alumni. A number of former students have gone on to be extremely successful in their various fields, and help to promote the Hertfordshire brand. After all, we are a particularly talented bunch! Keep reading to learn about 15 of the most famous names to have used our library resources, ate in our canteen and worked with some of our lecturers. Here are the most famous alumni from University of Hertfordshire.
Tony Banham is the founder of the Hong Kong War Diary project, a study which documents the 1941 Second World War defence of Hong Kong, the defenders and their families, and the fates of all until liberation. He has penned four books on the topic, and is considered one of the most knowledgeable historians on the topic around today. He studied Computer Science on College Lane at Herts. I don’t think he was a Cheeky Wednesday regular though.
Prince Abdulaziz was born to King Abdullah, in Riyadh in 1963. Abdulaziz Bin Abdullah graduated from Hertfordshire with a BA in Political Science in 1986. Prince Abdulaziz is owner of Tower Lane Properties, a multi-million pound development firm. It is reported that the company spent $12 million on five-and-a-quarter acres of land Benedict Canyon, an area of Beverley Hills, Los Angeles in 2009.He is reportedly the richest Alumni to come out of the University of Hertfordshire. Maybe I should stop going to the library for 15 minutes a day, getting bored and going home again.
Luke Scheybeler is a British creative director and entrepreneur best known for his work in sportswear. He is the co-founder and former creative director of the cycling clothing brand Rapha. He is the co-founder of the running sports-wear brand Tracksmith. Scheybeler co-founded Tracksmith in Boston, Massachusetts in 2014 with former ground-breaking business Puma’s marketing executive Matt Taylor. He studied Graphic Design at the University of Hertfordshire.
Kate Bellingham is an English engineer and television presenter most widely known for her role presenting the BBC science show Tomorrow’s World from 1990–1994. Following a period pursuing other interests and bringing up her children, she resumed her broadcasting career in 2010.She has won a variety of awards from Engineering Excellence and the Royal Society of Chemistry. Bellingham is married to BBC maintenance engineer, Martin Young. They have two children and settled in Hertfordshire. Maybe she enjoyed the Hatfield lifestyle so much she couldn’t bear to leave?
Lazarus was born in Llanelli, Wales. Lazarus attended the University of Hertfordshire where she studied her degree in Diagnostic Radiography. She has an array of awards under her sleeve, including being crowned Miss Britain, a finalist in the Miss Universe competition, and recently breaking into the Bollywood film industry with great success after moving to Dubai. Maybe her Hertfordshire degree bore no relevance to her career, but she’s one of us all the same.
I can hear you girls screaming already. Everyone’s famous England Rugby player, maybe Mr. Farrell is the highest profile individual on this list. He also plays for the Saracens, a very prestige team. He reportedly commuted to Hertfordshire University from local Harpenden, and studied for a Business Degree in 2014. I’m upset he finished before I started.
This one is a personal favourite of mine. Flux Pavillion, real name Josh Steele, is a dub step/drum and bass/ electronic DJ hailing from the very Uni Halls of De Havilland Campus. Flux Pavilion has headlined three US tours, two UK tours, and several festival DJ sets, including Glastonbury, Reading, Coachella, and EDC Vegas. Apparently it is not confirmed what exactly he studied, but it is thought to be a music related degree. He regularly comes back to perform at the Forum, and is always a guaranteed sell out night.
He played as a striker from 1983 until 2001, notably in the Premier League for Southampton, Crystal Palace and West Ham United. Since his retirement, he has managed the Northern Irish national team, and worked as a sports television pundit with Sky Sports News. He has a Masters Degree in Engineering from the University of Hertfordshire. Again, not used but hey, we all have passions right?
Gavin Fisher, born 30 August 1964, was formerly Chief Designer of the Williams Formula One team, and has worked with the likes of Lewis Hamilton. He studied mechanical engineering at University of Hertfordshire, which was famous for its aeronautical engineers, graduating with a first class honours degree. He was hired by Williams through an advertisement in the media in 1988. Gavin is known to be one of the most famous alumni from University of Hertfordshire.
The guy keeps a very low profile online, but Charles Wright produces smash hit The X Factor. It’s thought he earns in access of 80k a year for his troubles. He studied Business at Hertfordshire when the University was still a polytechnic. So about 3000 years ago then.
Sanjeev Bhaskar, OBE is a British comedian, actor and broadcaster, best known for being the star of famous sitcom The Kumars at No. 42. He also presented and starred in a documentary series called India with Sanjeev Bhaskar where he travelled to India and visited his ancestral home in today’s Pakistan. He earned a degree in marketing from Hatfield Polytechnic before landing a job as a marketing executive at IBM.
Guvna B is a UK-based urban contemporary gospel rap artist and composer who has four independent album releases, including Odd 1 Out which was the first rap album to top the Official Christian & Gospel Albums Chart. He originated from Accra, Ghana, and commuted to University from East London. He studied Sound Management, and went on to win 3 MOBO’s for his gospel work.
Claire Margaret Ward is a British Labour Party politician. She served as Member of Parliament for Watford from 1997 to 2010, and was a Parliamentary under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice from 2009 to 2010. News Flash: Contrary to Popular Belief, us Herts lot are actually quite clever. You heard it here first.
Sean Hedges-Quinn is a British sculptor, animator, and film model and prop-maker. After graduating from the University of Hertfordshire, Hedges-Quinn worked in the film industry as a model-maker, prop-master and sculptor. He now resides in Ipswich, Suffolk, and his most famous work to date is his sculptures of the famous West Ham heroes, Alf Ramsey and Bobby Moore.
Helen studied drama at the University of Hertfordshire. She is an English comedian, writer and actress who emerged as part of the alternative comedy boom at the beginning of the 1980s. Among her television credits are the BBC Two sketch series Naked Video and BBC One’s Absolutely Fabulous, in which she played the role of Catriona. She’s one of the most famous alumni from University of Hertfordshire.
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