List of Durham University people

This is a list of people associated with Durham University, divided for user convenience into multiple subcategories. This includes alumni, those who have taught there, conducted research there or played a part in its founding.

Durham University is a collegiate university, so where known and if applicable, they are shown alongside their associated college. Note that college membership was not always compulsory. Staff candidates who have read for higher degrees, like the geologist Gillian Foulger or the historian Jeremy Black, did not join a college either. Alumni who did not take up membership of a college or society are therefore listed as Unattached.

This list is divided into categories indicating the field of activity in which people have become well known. Alumni who have achieved distinction in more than one field are listed in the field in which it is felt they are most associated, or have been involved in more recently.

Durham alumni are active through organizations and events such as the annual reunions, dinners and balls. By 2009, the university claimed 67 Durham associations, ranging from international to college and sports affiliated groups, catered for the more than 109,000 living alumni.

Academics
Scientific entries who were, or are, Fellows of the Royal Society, have the Post-nominal letters FRS listed after their name

Astronomers and Physicists

 * Karen Aplin – Professor of Space Science and Technology, University of Bristol
 * David Axon (Hatfield) – Professor at the University of Hertfordshire and Rochester Institute of Technology
 * Gilbert Ronald Bainbridge (Hatfield) – Wolfson Professor of Energy Studies at Newcastle University
 * John Barrow FRS (Van Mildert) – Gresham Professor of Geometry (2008–2011); Templeton Prize (2006)
 * Richard Christopher Carrington FRS – "Observer" at Durham University Observatory (1849–1852)
 * Martyn Chamberlain – Emeritus Professor of Physics at Durham University; Master of Grey College (2003–2011)
 * Emma Chapman – Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow at Imperial College London
 * Temple Chevallier – Director of Durham University Observatory (1839–1871)
 * Roger Davies – Philip Wetton Professor of Astrophysics at Oxford University; President of the Royal Astronomical Society (2010–2012)
 * George Efstathiou FRS (Grad Soc) – Savilian Professor of Astronomy at Oxford University (1988–1997)
 * Richard Ellis FRS – Professor of Astronomy at UCL; Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (2011)
 * Keith Ellis FRS – Professor of Physics at Durham University; Dirac Medal of the IOP (2019)
 * Andrew Fisher – Professor of Physics at University College London
 * Carlos Frenk FRS – Ogden Professor of Fundamental Physics at Durham University
 * Nigel Glover FRS (Hatfield) – Professor of Physics at Durham University
 * Monica Grady (St Aidan's) – Professor of Planetary and Space Science at the Open University
 * Alexander Stewart Herschel FRS – first Professor of Physics at the College of Physical Sciences
 * Harold Jeffreys FRS (Armstrong) – Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy at Cambridge University (1946–1958)
 * Hans Kronberger – Scientist-in-Chief of the Reactor Group at UKAEA (1962–1969); Leverhulme Medal (1969)
 * Alan Martin FRS – former Head of the Physics Department at Durham; Max Born Prize (2007)
 * Tom McLeish FRS – Chair of Natural Philosophy at the University of York
 * M. A. Wazed Miah – Chairman of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (–1999)
 * Ben Moore – Director of the Center for Theoretical Astrophysics and Cosmology at the University of Zürich; Philip Leverhulme Prize (2001)
 * A. W. Pryor – Fellow of the Australian Institute of Physics; David Syme Research Prize (1964)
 * George Rochester FRS (Armstrong) – British physicist known for having co-discovered, with Sir Clifford Butler, a subatomic particle called the kaon
 * Brian Scarlett (Hatfield) – Professor of Chemical Technology at Delft University of Technology (1983–2000)
 * Caleb Scharf – Director of the Columbia Astrobiology Center at Columbia University
 * Paul Sutcliffe – Professor of Theoretical Physics at Durham University; Whitehead Prize (2006)
 * Elizabeth J. Tasker – Associate Professor at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
 * Sarah Thompson – Head of Physics Department at the University of York
 * Samuel Tolansky FRS (Armstrong) – Professor of Physics at Royal Holloway College (1947–1973)
 * Richard S. Ward FRS – Professor of Theoretical Physics at Durham University
 * Arnold Wolfendale FRS – Emeritus Professor of Physics at Durham University; Astronomer Royal (1991–1995)

Chemists

 * Cyril Clifford Addison (Hatfield) – Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at University of Nottingham (1960–78)
 * Jas Pal Badyal FRS - Professor of Chemistry at Durham University; Edward Harrison Memorial Prize (1993)
 * Neil Bartlett FRS (King's) – chemist best known for his discovery of noble gas compounds
 * Geoffrey E. Coates – Head of the Chemistry Department at Durham University (1953–1968)
 * Jacqui Cole – Head of Molecular Engineering at Cavendish Laboratory
 * James Feast FRS – President of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2006–08), Royal Medal (2007)
 * Rebecca Goss (Hatfield) – Professor of Organic Chemistry at University of St. Andrews
 * Peter J. H. Scott - Professor of Radiology and Pharmacology at University of Michigan
 * James Finlay Weir Johnston FRS – Professor in Chemistry and Mineralogy, first Durham FRS (elected 1837)
 * Judith Howard FRS – Professor of Chemistry at Durham University
 * Jeremy Hutson FRS – Professor of Physics and Chemistry at Durham University
 * Rachel McKendry (Trevs) – Professor at London Centre for Nanotechnology
 * Friedrich Paneth FRS – Professor of Chemistry at Durham, 1939–1953
 * David Parker FRS – Professor of Chemistry at Durham (1992–); twice Head of Department

Classicists and Archaeologists

 * John Atkinson (Hatfield) – Emeritus Professor of Classics at University of Cape Town
 * Eric Birley – Master of Hatfield College (1949–1956)
 * David Breeze (Castle) – Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments for Historic Scotland (1989–2005)
 * Martin Carver – Professor of Archaeology at the University of York
 * Robin Coningham – Professor of Early Medieval Archaeology; UNESCO Chair in Archaeological Ethics and Practice in Cultural Heritage
 * Brian Dobson (Hatfield) – Reader Emeritus of Durham University; President of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle
 * Alan Greaves (Grey) – Lecturer in Archaeology at University of Liverpool
 * William Greenwell FRS (Castle) – archaeologist, canon at Durham Cathedral
 * Birgitta Hoffmann (Ustinov) – Director of the Roman Gask Project
 * Michael Jarrett (Hatfield) – Professor of Archaeology at Cardiff University
 * Iain MacIvor (Hatfield) – Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments for Scotland (1980–1989)
 * Charlotte Roberts - Professor of Archaeology at Durham University (since 2004)
 * J. E. H. Spaul (Hatfield) – British epigrapher
 * Malcolm Todd – Principal of Trevelyan College (1996–2000)
 * Leslie Peter Wenham – Head of History at St. John's College, York
 * Tony Wilkinson – Professor of Archaeology (2006–2014)

Computer scientists

 * Sue Black – Professor of Computer Science and Technology Evangelist at Durham University
 * Leslie Blackett Wilson (King's) – former Chair of Computer Science at the University of Stirling
 * Keith Clark (Hatfield) – Emeritus Professor in the Department of Computing at Imperial College London
 * Simon Colton (St Aidan's) – Professor of Computational Creativity at Queen Mary University of London
 * Max Garagnani (Grad Soc) – Lecturer, Department of Computing, Goldsmiths University of London
 * David Gavaghan (Grey) – Professor of Computational Biology at University of Oxford

Economists and Political scientists

 * Ewan Anderson – Emeritus Professor of Geopolitics at Durham
 * Alexander Betts - Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs at University of Oxford
 * Luiza Bialasiewicz – Jean Monnet Professor of EU External Relations at the University of Amsterdam
 * Philip Booth (Hatfield) – Senior Academic Fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs
 * Thom Brooks – Professor of Law and Government; Dean of Durham Law School
 * Gordon Cameron (Hatfield) – Professor of Land Economy at Cambridge University; Master of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge (1988–1990)
 * Neil Carter (Hatfield) – Professor of Politics at the University of York
 * Anoush Ehteshami – Professor and Joint Director of the ESRC Centre for the Advanced Study of the Arab World, Durham
 * Anthony Forster – Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex
 * Andrew Gamble (Grad Soc) – Professor of Politics at the University of Sheffield (1986–2007)
 * Mark N. Katz – Professor of Government and Politics at George Mason University; William Luce Fellow (April–June 2018)
 * Eduardo Mendieta – Professor at Penn State University; former fellow at Institute of Advanced Study
 * Roger Scully – Professor of Political Science at Cardiff University
 * Steven B. Smith (Cuths) – Professor of Political Science at Yale University; Master of Branford College (1996-2011)
 * Gareth Stansfield (Hatfield) – Professor of Middle East Studies at University of Exeter
 * Suha Taji-Farouki – Lecturer in Modern Islam at University of Exeter
 * Giles Ji Ungpakorn – Thai dissident; Professor of Political Science at International University of Humanities and Social Sciences (Costa Rica)

Engineers and Mathematicians

 * Julian Besag FRS – Professor of Mathematics at Durham University; Guy Medal (1983)
 * Ed Corrigan FRS – Professor of Mathematics at the University of York, Principal of Collingwood College (2008–11)
 * H. Martyn Evans – Professor in Humanities in Medicine at Durham University; Principal of Trevelyan College (2008–2019)
 * Ian Fells – Emeritus Professor of Energy Conversion at Newcastle University, Michael Faraday Prize (1993)
 * Ruth Gregory – Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Durham University
 * Julian Higgins – Professor of Evidence Synthesis and Director of Research at the Department of Population Health Sciences
 * Frank Kelly FRS (Van Mildert) – Professor of the Mathematics of Systems in the Statistical Laboratory, University of Cambridge; Master of Christ's College, Cambridge since 2006
 * Peter Kyberd (Hatfield) – Head of the School of Energy and Electrical Engineering at Portsmouth University
 * Nigel Martin – Senior Lecturer in Mathematics at Durham University; Principal of Trevelyan College (2000–2008)

Geographers and Earth Scientists

 * John Anthony Allan (Castle) – Professor in Geography at King's College, London; Stockholm Water Prize (2008)
 * Ash Amin – Professor of Geography at Cambridge University
 * Richard Arculus (Hatfield) – Professor in School of Earth Sciences at Australian National University
 * Gerald Blake – Geographer and Principal of Collingwood College (1987–2001)
 * Andrew Blowers (Hatfield) – Geographer known for his work on nuclear waste management
 * Martin Bott FRS – Emeritus Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences; Wollaston Medal (1992)
 * George Malcolm Brown FRS (Castle) – Director of the British Geological Survey; Murchison Medal (1981)
 * William Campbell (College of Science) – metallographer to the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey
 * Mike Crang – Professor of Cultural Geography at Durham University
 * Sarah Curtis – Professor of Health and Risk at Durham University
 * John Frederick Dewey – Professor of Geology at Oxford University (1986–2000)
 * Kingsley Charles Dunham FRS (Hatfield) – Director of the British Geological Survey; winner of the Wollaston Medal
 * Ghazi Falah (Hild Bede) – Geographer at University of Akron
 * Gillian Foulger (Unattached) – Professor of Geophysics at Durham University; Price Medal (2005)
 * Paul Lewis Hancock (Castle) – Editor of Journal of Structural Geology
 * Peter Liss (Castle) – Emeritus Professor of Environmental Science at the University of East Anglia
 * David Harper – Professor of Palaeontology in Earth Sciences; Principal of Van Mildert College (2011–2021)
 * Joseph Holden (Hatfield) – Professor of Physical Geography at University of Leeds
 * Arthur Holmes – Chair of Geology at the University of Edinburgh; Vetlesen Prize (1964)
 * Claire Horwell – Professor of Geohealth at Department of Earth Sciences, Durham University
 * Ray Hudson – Lecturer in Geography; Director of the Wolfson Research Institute (2003-2007)
 * Malcolm K. Hughes (Castle) – Regents' Professor of Dendrochronology at the University of Arizona; co-producer of the hockey stick graph
 * Basil Charles King (Hatfield) – Professor of Geology at Bedford College; Bigsby Medal (1959)
 * Gordon Manley – Professor of Geography at Bedford College (1948–1964); President of the Royal Meteorological Society (1945–1947)
 * Stewart McPherson – TV presenter and conservationist; David Given Award for Excellence in Plant Conservation (2012)
 * Frank Pasquill (Castle) – Deputy Chief Scientific Officer at the Met Office
 * Roger Powell FRS – Emeritus Professor in the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Melbourne
 * David Sadler (Castle) – Professor of Human Geography at the University of Liverpool
 * David Vaughan (Hatfield) - Scientist at British Antarctic Survey; Lead Author of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report
 * Lawrence Wager FRS – Professor of Geology at Durham University
 * Philip Woodworth (Hatfield) - Oceanographer; former Director of the Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level

Historians and Antiquarians

 * Michael Aris (Cuths) – Author on Bhutanese, Tibetan and Himalayan culture and Buddhism; Lecturer in Asian history at St John's College, Oxford and later at St Antony's College, Oxford
 * Jeremy Black – Professor of History at the University of Exeter
 * Richard Britnell – Emeritus Professor of History at Durham University
 * Bertram Colgrave (Hatfield) – Reader in English at Durham University; Editor of Early English Manuscripts in Facsimile
 * Anthony Crichton-Stuart (St Chad's) – Head of Old Master Paintings at Christie's, New York
 * Robin Donkin (King's) – Reader in Historical Geography in Cambridge University
 * Jo Fox – Director of the Institute of Historical Research
 * Roy Martin Haines (St Chad's) – Professor of Medieval History at Dalhousie University
 * James Holland (St Chad's) – Popular historian, author of books on World War II
 * Jean Hood – Author of maritime history
 * Liz James (Van Mildert) – Professor of the History of Art at the University of Sussex
 * Judith Jesch (St Aidan's) – Professor of Viking Studies at the University of Nottingham
 * Clifford Kinvig (Cuths) – Senior Lecturer in War Studies at RMA Sandhurst
 * Deborah Lavin – Principal of Trevelyan College (1979–95)
 * Dominic Montserrat (Grey) - British egyptologist and papyrologist
 * Jack Ogden – Visiting Professor of Ancient Jewellery, Material and Technology at Birmingham City University; President of the Society of Jewellery Historians (since 2018)
 * George Ornsby (Castle) – Antiquarian; editor with the Surtees Society
 * David Reeder (Hatfield) – Lecturer in Urban History, University of Leicester
 * Nicholas Reeves (Van Mildert) – Egyptologist; Director of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project (1998–2002)
 * James Rutherford - Chair of History (1934–63) at University of Auckland
 * Alec Ryrie – Professor of the History of Christianity at Durham University; Gresham Professor of Divinity
 * Alan Schom (Hatfield) – Biographer of Napoleon and Napoleon III
 * Peter Snowdon (Castle) – specialist in contemporary British political history; contributor to Parliamentary Brief
 * Joanna Story (Trevs) – Professor of Early Medieval History at the University of Leiecester
 * Michael Swanton – Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at Exeter University
 * George Macaulay Trevelyan – Chancellor of Durham University (1950–57)
 * Andy Wood, Professor of Social History at Durham University
 * Benjamin Woolley (Cuths) – historian and biographer
 * Julian Wright – Professor of History at Northumbria University; co-editor of French History

Language and Literature academics

 * Kenneth Allott (Armstrong) – Kenneth Muir Professor of English at Liverpool University
 * Thomas Blackburn (Hatfield) – Lecturer at College of St. Mark and St. John
 * Philip Bullock – Professor of Russian Literature and Music at the University of Oxford
 * Seán Burke – Reader in English at Durham University
 * Paul Edwards (Hatfield) – Professor of English and African Literature at the University of Edinburgh
 * Mikhail Epstein – Anglo-American and Russian literary theorist; Director of the Centre for Humanities Innovation at Durham University
 * Ruth Etchells – Principal of St John's College, Durham (1979–88)
 * Gary Ferguson (St Chad's) – Douglas Huntly Gordon Distinguished Professor of French at the University of Virginia
 * Clifford Nelson Fyle (Hatfield) - Sierra Leonean Professor of English; wrote lyrics to the Sierra Leone National Anthem
 * Eldred D. Jones – literary critic from Sierra Leone
 * Malcolm Guite – author, poet (Sounding the Seasons, The Singing Bowl), priest, and singer-songwriter; current Bye-Fellow and Chaplain of Girton College, Cambridge
 * Maebh Long – Irish academic, known for writings on the novelist and playwright Brian O'Nolan
 * Margaret Masson – Lecturer in English, Principal of St Chad's College (2016–present)
 * Patrick O'Meara – Professor of Russian and Russian history; Master of Van Mildert College (2004–11)
 * John Robert O'Toole - Professorial fellow at the University of Melbourne
 * Ann Moss – Professor of French at Durham University (1996–2003)
 * Harold Orton (Hatfield) – Professor of English Language and Medieval English Literature, University of Leeds (1946–64)
 * Jennifer Smith (sociolinguist) - FRSE Professor of Sociolinguistics, University of Glasgow
 * Ida C. Ward (St Mary's) – Professor of Linguistics, known for work on African languages

Life scientists
Entries defined as having backgrounds in Biology and its various sub-disciplines e.g. Botany, Ecology, Neuroscience, Pathology etc.


 * David Barker – Emeritus Professor of Zoology
 * David Bellamy – Lecturer in Botany; President of The Wildlife Trusts (1995–2005)
 * Kathleen Bever Blackburn (Armstrong) – botanist
 * John Lawton FRS – RSPB Vice President; previously head of Natural Environment Research Council; the last chair of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
 * Marie Lebour – marine biologist
 * Simon Parson – Regius Professor of Anatomy at University of Aberdeen (since 2018); President of the Anatomical Society (since 2019)
 * Joe Smartt (Hatfield) – Reader in Biology at Southampton University (1990–1996)
 * Mark A. Smith (Hatfield) – Professor of Pathology at Case Western Reserve University
 * David H. Valentine - Head of Department of Botany from 1945 as Reader, then from 1950 as Professor. Subsequently at University of Manchester
 * Stan Woodell (Hatfield) – Lecturer in Botany at Oxford University (1959–1988); Emeritus Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford (1989–2004)
 * Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock (Hatfield) – Ecologist; contributor to the Journal of Ecology

Philosophers and Theologians
(See for theologians better known for their ordained ministry)
 * Lewis Ayres – Professor of Catholic and Historical Theology at Durham University; Bede Chair of Catholic Theology (2009–2013)
 * Charles Kingsley Barrett – Professor of Divinity at Durham University (1958–1982)
 * Joan Bernard – Principal of Trevelyan College (1966–1978)
 * Stephen R. L. Clark – Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Liverpool
 * Dan Cohn-Sherbok – Emeritus Professor of Judaism at the University of Wales
 * David E. Cooper – Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Durham University
 * Douglas Davies (St John's) – Professor in the Study of Religion at Durham
 * James Dunn – Lightfoot Professor of Divinity at Durham University (1990–2003)
 * Christopher Evans – Lightfoot Professor of Divinity (1959–1962)
 * Stanley Eveling – Professor of Moral Philosophy at Edinburgh University
 * Simon J. Gathercole (Hatfield) – Reader in New Testament Studies and Director of Studies at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
 * David Jasper (Hatfield and St Chad's) – Professor of Theology and Literature at the University of Glasgow
 * R. W. L. Moberly – Professor of Theology and Biblical Interpretation at Durham University
 * Tim Crane - Former Knightbridge Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge

Physicians and Psychiatrists

 * Ephraim Anderson FRS – bacteriologist known for his research on plasmids
 * Francis Arthur Bainbridge FRS – Professor of Physiology at Durham University (1911–1915), later chair of physiology at St. Bartholomew's Hospital
 * George Stewardson Brady FRS (College of Medicine) – Professor of Natural History at the Hancock Museum (1875–1906)
 * John Charles – Chief Medical Office (1950–1960)
 * Thomas Dutton – dietitian and opponent of teetotalism
 * Reginald Hall – endocrinologist known for his research on the thyroid gland
 * William Edmund Hick – President of the Experimental Psychology Society (1958–1959)
 * Tom Main – doctor, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, coined the term Therapeutic community
 * Flora Murray – doctor and suffragist, founder of Women's Hospital for Children
 * Ruth Nicholson – obstetrician and gynaecologist
 * Thomas Horrocks Openshaw – Victorian surgeon and recipient of a Jack the Ripper letter
 * Joseph Stoddart FRS – Consultant anaesthetist at Royal Victoria Infirmary, influenced the development of Intensive Care in the UK
 * John Walton, Baron Walton of Detchant – former President of British Medical Association, General Medical Council and the Royal Society of Medicine

Sociologists and Social Anthropologists

 * Gëzim Alpion – Lecturer in Sociology at University of Birmingham
 * Robert Burgess (Bede) – President of the British Sociological Association (1989–1991)
 * Stanley Cohen – Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics
 * Iain R. Edgar – Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology at Durham University
 * Mathew Guest - Professor of Sociology of Religion at Durham University
 * Robert Hugh Layton – Emeritus Professor of Anthropology at Durham University
 * Tariq Modood (Cuths) – Professor of Sociology, Politics and Public Policy at the University of Bristol (1997-); co-founder of the journal Ethnicities
 * Henrietta Moore (Trevs) – William Wyse Professor of Social Anthropology (2008-2014)
 * Caroline Moser – Emeritus Professor of Urban Development at University of Manchester; Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution (2004–2007)
 * Sue Scott – Visiting Professor at the University of Newcastle; President of the British Sociological Association (2007–2009)
 * Ian Taylor (Hatfield) – Professor of Sociology at Salford University (1989–1998); Principal of Van Mildert College (1999–2000)
 * Alan Warde – Professor of Sociology at Manchester University (1999-)
 * Frank Webster (Cuths) – Head of the Department of Sociology at City University London (2008–2012); Theories of the Information Society (1995)

Other academics

 * Michael Alcorn – Director of the School of Music and Sonic Arts at Queen's University, Belfast
 * Robert Allison – Vice-Chancellor of Loughborough University from 2012
 * Roy Ascott (King's) – Founder and President of the Planetary Collegium at Plymouth University (2003–present)
 * Tim Blackman – Vice-Chancellor of the University of Middlesex
 * Ernest Bullock – Gardiner Professor of Music at the University of Glasgow and Principal of the Scottish National Academy of Music (1941–1952); Director of the Royal College of Music (1953–1960)
 * Kenneth Calman – Vice-Chancellor of Durham University (1998–2006); Chancellor of the University of Glasgow (2006–present)
 * Anne Campbell – Professor of Psychology at Durham University
 * John Casken – Professor of Music at the University of Manchester (1992–2008)
 * Joe Elliott – Principal of Collingwood College (2011–present) and Professor of Education at Durham (2004–present)
 * Peter Evans (Cuths) – Professor of Music at Southampton University (1961–1990)
 * Robert Michael Franklin, Jr. – President of Morehouse College (2007–2012)
 * David Grant – Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University (2001–2012)
 * Chris Higgins (Grey) – Vice Chancellor of Durham University (2007–2014)
 * George Wilberforce Kakoma – Professor of music, composer of Uganda's national anthem
 * Richard Ovenden (St Chad's) – Deputy Director and Head of Special Collections at the Bodleian Library
 * Hugh Pearman (St Chad's) – architecture and design critic of The Sunday Times (1986–2016)
 * Octavius Pickard-Cambridge FRS (Castle) – Clergyman and arachnologist
 * Frank Rhodes, President of Cornell University (1977–1995)
 * Akilagpa Sawyerr – Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana (1985–1992)
 * Charles Thorp FRS – Warden of the University
 * Peter Ustinov – Chancellor of the University of Durham (1992–2004)
 * Paul Wellings – Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University (2002–2012)
 * Ted Wragg (Hatfield) – Professor of Education at the University of Exeter (1978–2003)
 * Zu'bi M.F. Al-Zu'bi (Ustinov) - Pro Vice-Chancellor at the University of Jordan (2013–2017); Director of Development at the University of Sydney

Business people

 * Richard Adams (St John's) – pioneer of Fair Trade and founder of Traidcraft
 * Adam Applegarth (Grey) – CEO of Northern Rock bank (2001–07)
 * David Arkless (Hatfield) – former president, CDI Corporation
 * James Averdieck (Hild Bede) – entrepreneur known for dessert brand Gü
 * John Cadman, 1st Baron Cadman – Chairman of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company
 * Cecil Chao – A Hong Kong billionaire, the Chairman and owner of Cheuk Nang Holdings
 * Edwin Davies, businessman and philanthropist
 * Steve Easterbrook (St Chad's) – CEO of McDonald's
 * Ron Emerson – founding Chairman of the British Business Bank
 * Leslie Ferrar (St Mary's) – Treasurer to Charles III
 * James Hoffmann - co-founder of Square Mile Coffee Roasters and World Barista Champion
 * Tom Hume (King's) – first Director of the Museum of London
 * Herbert Loebl (King's) – co-founder of Joyce, Loebl & Company
 * John Laurent Giles – yacht designer
 * Sir Robert Malpas (King's) – engineer and industrialist
 * Lady Edward Manners – manager of Haddon Hall and founder of Beau Bra Lingerie Company
 * Ian Marchant (Hatfield) – CEO of SSE plc
 * Sir Peter Ogden (Castle) – co-founder of Computacenter
 * Peter Owen Edmunds (Hatfield) – telecoms entrepreneur, co-founder of Peterstar
 * Richard Paniguian (Hatfield) – former vice-president, BP
 * Richard Pease (Hatfield) – fund manager
 * Alison Rose – former CEO of NatWest Group
 * Nick Scheele (Cuths) – president and COO of the Ford Motor Company
 * David Sproxton (Collingwood) – co-founder (with Peter Lord) of Aardman Animations

Actors

 * Delaval Astley, 23rd Baron Hastings (Hatfield) – actor, The Archers
 * Biddy Baxter (St Mary's) – TV producer (Blue Peter) and inventor of the Blue Peter badge
 * Arthur Bostrom (St Chad's) – actor, early member of the Durham Revue, played Officer Crabtree in  'Allo 'Allo!
 * Andrew Buchan (Cuths) – actor
 * Daniel Casey (Grey) – co-star of Midsomer Murders
 * Nathan Kiley – actor
 * George Lazenby (Bede) – portrayed James Bond in the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service
 * Alex MacQueen (Collingwood) – actor
 * Ambika Mod (St Mary's) – actress, This Is Going to Hurt and One Day
 * Adam Rayner – actor, Tyrant
 * Charlotte Riley (Cuths) – actress
 * Patrick Ryecart (Bede) – actor (never graduated)
 * John Schwab – actor and voice artist
 * Lily Travers – actress, Viceroy's House
 * James Wilby (Grey) – film, television and theatre actor known for Maurice and Howards End
 * Christina Wolfe – actress, The Royals
 * Fenella Woolgar – actress, Bright Young Things

Comedians

 * James Cary (Hatfield) – TV and radio comedy writer, Think the Unthinkable and Bluestone 42
 * Tim FitzHigham (St Chad's) comedian, actor and explorer
 * Ed Gamble (Hatfield) – presenter and performer, The Peacock and Gamble Podcast and Mock the Week
 * Nish Kumar (Grey) – stand-up and host, The Mash Report
 * Nick Mohammed (St Aidan's) – comedian and actor
 * Naz Osmanoglu (Van Mildert) – British-Turkish comedian

Correspondents and Presenters

 * George Alagiah (Van Mildert) – broadcaster; BBC TV News at Six since 2003
 * Matthew Amroliwala (St Chad's) – BBC news presenter
 * Guy de la Bédoyère (Collingwood) – British historian and broadcaster, Time Team
 * Lucy Beresford (Trevs) – broadcaster, host of #MindOverMatterMondays and agony aunt on This Morning
 * Lionel Blue (Grey) – rabbi, broadcaster, author; Honorary Doctor of Divinity and Fellow at Grey College
 * Allan Cartner (Castle) – Continuity announcer, Border Television
 * Jonny Dymond, BBC Radio presenter, former BBC Washington, Europe and Middle East Correspondent, and current BBC Royal Correspondent
 * Marc Edwards – Welsh and Chinese television presenter on China Central Television
 * Jonathan Gould (Hatfield) – Channel 5 television presenter of MLB on Five (1997–2008)
 * Judith Hann (St Aidan's) – freelance broadcaster and writer, former Tomorrow's World presenter
 * Gavin Hewitt (St John's) – Special Correspondent for BBC News
 * Chris Hollins (Hild Bede) – broadcaster, sports presenter for BBC Breakfast
 * Nina Hossain (Cuths) – broadcast journalist
 * Catherine Jacob – Sky News journalist
 * Gabby Logan (Hild Bede) – TV presenter
 * Dominic Montserrat (Grey) – TV Egyptologist
 * Rory Morrison (Castle) - BBC Radio 4 newsreader and continuity announcer
 * Maryam Nemazee – Bloomberg presenter
 * Kjartan Poskitt (Collingwood) - TV presenter and author
 * Mark Pougatch (Hatfield) – BBC sports presenter and radio host
 * Jonny Saunders (Collingwood) – BBC Radio 2 Sports Presenter
 * David Shukman (Hatfield) – BBC correspondent
 * Gareth Sibson (Castle) – writer and broadcaster
 * Kate Silverton (Cuths) – Broadcast journalist
 * Bill Steel – presenter and announcer, Tyne Tees Television
 * Jeremy Vine (Hatfield) – BBC radio and television presenter
 * Tim Willcox (St Chad's), BBC television presenter

Directors and Producers

 * Simon Ardizzone – film editor and producer, Hacking Democracy
 * Jamie Campbell (St John's) – documentary filmmaker; writer in the New Statesman, The Guardian and The Mail on Sunday
 * Charles Mark Townshend Colville (St Chad's) – 5th Viscount Colville of Culross, BBC producer and director, elected as hereditary peer in 2011
 * George Entwistle (Castle) – journalist, TV producer and former Director-General of the BBC
 * John Exelby (Castle) – co-founder and editor of BBC News World Service
 * Shelagh Fogarty – host of the BBC Radio 5 Live breakfast show
 * Fiona Foster (Van Mildert) – television presenter of BBC Business News and ITV London Tonight
 * Alastair Fothergill (Cuths) – BBC Nature producer and co-producer of The Blue Planet
 * Pippa Greenwood (Trevs) – plant pathologist, appears on BBC Gardeners World
 * Lorraine Heggessey (Collingwood) – controller of BBC One 2000–2004
 * Sally El Hosaini (Collingwood) – filmmaker
 * Cecil McGivern – Controller of BBC Television Service (1950–1957)
 * Chris Terrill (Collingwood) – documentary maker, writer and adventurer

Musicians and artists



 * Sir Thomas Allen - operatic baritone, former Chancellor of Durham University
 * Ralph Allwood (Van Mildert) – Director of Music at Eton College
 * Marian Arkwright (Unattached) – composer, one of the first British women to receive a doctorate in music
 * Frederic Austin – English baritone singer, musical teacher and composer from 1905 to 1930
 * Edward Bairstow – organist and composer in the Anglican church music tradition
 * H. Hugh Bancroft – British organist and composer who was organist of five cathedrals
 * Philip Best – pioneer in power electronics
 * Jon Boden – English fiddle player and folk singer
 * Thomas Frederick Candlyn – organist and choirmaster, St. Thomas Church, New York
 * Andrew Cantrill (Hild Bede) – organist and choirmaster, St. Paul's Cathedral, Buffalo, New York
 * Justin Chancellor – bassist, Tool
 * King Charles – indie rock artist
 * J. Michael Clarke (St Chad's) – composer and musician
 * Rod Clements (Cuths) – musician in folk-rock band Lindisfarne
 * (Alfred) Melville Cook – British organist and conductor
 * Jonathan Darlington (Hatfield) – conductor and Music Director of Vancouver Opera
 * Howard Davies (Cuths) -– theatre and television director
 * Bryan Ferry – Roxy Music singer (only studied for one year before moving to Newcastle)
 * Margot Fonteyn – ballet dancer, Chancellor of Durham University
 * Noel Forster (King's) – British artist
 * Rumon Gamba - conductor, Chief Conductor of Oulu Symphony Orchestra
 * Ruth Gipps – British composer, conductor, oboist and pianist
 * Malcolm Goldring (Hatfield) – English conductor and oboist
 * Dan "Nu:Tone" Gresham – drum and bass musician
 * J. P. E. Harper-Scott – Professor of Music History and Theory at Royal Holloway, University of London
 * Ted Harrison – Canadian artist
 * Patrick Hawes (St Chad's) – composer and Classic FM's Composer in Residence
 * Gwyneth Herbert (St Chad's) – singer-songwriter and jazz musician
 * Arthur Hutchings – professor of music in Durham, author of books on Mozart's piano concertos and Jean-Philippe Rameau
 * David Jennings (Castle) – composer
 * John Joubert – composer of choral music
 * James MacMillan (Hild Bede/Grad Soc) – Scottish composer
 * Stuart MacRae (Hild Bede) – composer
 * Anthony Payne (Cuths) – composer and Elgar specialist
 * Giles Ramsay (St Chad's) – theatre director, producer and playwright, Fellow of St Chad's
 * Michael F. Robinson – composer and musicologist, faculty member (1961-1965)
 * Tom Rosenthal (Cuths) – English singer-songwriter
 * Alec Roth (Hatfield) – English composer
 * Janet Mary Salsbury - English author, composer and organist
 * Malcolm Sargent – English conductor, organist and composer
 * Tim "Exile" Shaw – drum and bass and IDM musician
 * Robert Simpson – composer, writer, BBC producer
 * Ronald Smith – English classical pianist, composer and teacher
 * Alexander Talbot Rice (Cuths) – portrait artist
 * Richard Terry – organist and revivalist of Tudor period music
 * Alan Walker – musicologist and biographer of Franz Liszt
 * John B. Williams (Van Mildert) – drum and bass musician and DJ
 * George Dyer - Theatre Musical Director, Supervisor and Orchestrator

Members of the House of Commons
Excluding current members of the Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet, who are listed above (if any), and former MPs who went on to be members of the House of Lords, who are listed below

Basketball players

 * Mike Allison – basketball player for Gifu Swoops
 * Monika Bosilj – Croatian basketball player
 * Mollie Campbell – basketball player for Great Britain

Cricketers

 * Ajaz Akhtar – Cambridgeshire cricketer
 * Paul Allott (Bede) – Lancashire and England cricketer
 * Caroline Atkins (Hild Bede) – England cricketer
 * Colin Atkinson – former Somerset cricket captain
 * Jamie Atkinson (St Mary's) – Hong Kong cricket captain
 * Steve Atkinson (Bede) – Durham, the Netherlands and Hong Kong cricketer (1970s)
 * David Balcombe – Hampshire cricketer
 * Jonathan Batty (St Chad's) — Surrey and Gloucestershire wicket-keeper and opening batsman
 * Chaitanya Bishnoi (Hatfield) – Indian cricketer
 * Mark Chilton – former Lancashire captain
 * Holly Colvin (St Mary's) – England cricketer; holds the record of being the youngest Test cricketer of either sex to play for England
 * Nick Compton (Hatfield) – cricketer
 * Matthew Creese – Middlesex (1999) and Durham UCCE (2002)
 * Tim Curtis (Hatfield) – England cricketer
 * Lee Daggett (John Snow) – Northamptonshire (2009–2013)
 * Peter Deakin (Hatfield) – Dorset (1999–2006) and Cambridge University (1996)
 * Brian Evans (St Chad's) – Hertfordshire batsman
 * Laurie Evans (St Mary's) – English cricketer
 * Robert Ferley (Grey) – English cricketer
 * James Foster (Collingwood) – Essex and England wicketkeeper
 * Graeme Fowler (Bede) – former England and Lancashire cricketer; current coach of the MCC Centre of Excellence
 * James Freeling, 7th Baronet (Castle) – represented MCC and Oxford University
 * Cordelia Griffith – Middlesex Women batter
 * Steve Henderson (Hatfield) – Worcestershire (1977–1981), Cambridge University (1982–1983) and Glamorgan (1983–1985) all-rounder
 * Simon Hughes (Castle) – writer, cricket analyst and former Middlesex and Durham bowler
 * Nasser Hussain (Hild Bede) – former captain of the England cricket team
 * Ben Hutton – Middlesex batsman
 * Thomas Jameson (Hatfield) – Warwickshire (1970) and Cambridge University (1970)
 * Will Jefferson (Hild Bede) – former Essex country cricketer
 * Douglas Lockhart – Scotland wicket-keeper
 * Alex Loudon (Collingwood) – Warwickshire and England all-rounder
 * Shan Masood - Pakistan Test cricketer
 * Gehan Mendis (Bede) – Sussex and Lancashire cricketer
 * Matt Milnes (Stephenson) – Kent seam bowler
 * Gavin Moffat (Hatfield) – Cambridge University seam bowler
 * Tim O'Gorman (St Chad's) – Derbyshire batsman (1987–1996)
 * Ed Pollock (Collingwood) – Warwickshire batsman (2016–2021)
 * Mia Rogers (Collingwood) – wicket-keeper for Berkshire Women and Sunrisers
 * James Rowe (Hatfield) – Durham UCCE and Kent Cricket Board batsman (2002)
 * Will Smith (Collingwood) – Durham batsman (2007–2013)
 * Martin Speight (St Chad's) – former Durham County Cricket Club wicketkeeper
 * Alexander Stead – Durham UCCE and Staffordshire cricketer
 * Andrew Strauss (Hatfield) – former captain of the England Test cricket team
 * Frank 'Typhoon' Tyson (Hatfield) – England fast bowler and Wisden Cricketer of the Year (1956)
 * Freddie van den Bergh (Hatfield) – Surrey spin bowler
 * Nathaniel Watkins (Hatfield) – Durham MCCU and Jersey cricketer
 * Thomas Westley (Cuths) - England and Essex Cricketer, and Essex captain
 * James Wilkes-Green (Hatfield) – Durham MCCU and Guernsey cricketer
 * Robbie Williams (St Mary's) – Durham MCCU and Leicestershire fast bowler
 * Matthew Windows (Hild Bede) – Gloucestershire cricketer

Footballers

 * Thomas Blyth (Armstrong) – centre forward for Newcastle United
 * Eddy Brown – Coventry City and Birmingham City centre forward
 * Warren Bradley (Hatfield) – Manchester United and England footballer
 * Oliver Gill (Cuths) – footballer for Manchester United Football Club
 * Michael King (St Aidan's) – former Burnley winger
 * Rory Lonergan – Hong Kong FC left-back
 * Matt Perrella – goalkeeper for Utica City FC
 * Joe Shaw (Armstrong) – Hull City forward
 * Jim Shoulder (Cuths) – Scarborough F.C. footballer
 * Wouter Verstraaten (Grey) – South Shields defender
 * Layla Young – footballer, Brighton & Hove Albion, Doncaster Belles and England

Field Hockey players

 * Jamie Cachia (St Mary's) – goalkeeper for Scotland national team
 * Fiona Crackles (Collingwood) – represented Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics
 * Steph Elliott (Collingwood) – defender for England women's team
 * Tessa Howard (Castle) – midfielder for England women's team
 * Ollie Payne (Josephine Butler) – represented Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics
 * Sean Rowlands – represented Great Britain at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona
 * Rui Saldanha (Hatfield) – represented Great Britain at the 1972 Summer Olympics
 * Rhys Smith (St Mary's) – midfielder for England national team
 * Jack Turner – forward for England national team
 * Jack Waller (Hild Bede) – defender for England and Great Britain

Rowers

 * Simon Barr (Hatfield)
 * Colin Barratt
 * Roger Brown (Hild Bede)
 * Andy Butt
 * James Clarke (Cuths)
 * Philippa Cross
 * Suzie Ellis (Trevs)
 * Angus Groom (Hatfield)
 * Will Fletcher (Hild Bede)
 * Alice Freeman (Hatfield)
 * Lucinda Gooderham (Hild Bede)
 * Wade Hall-Craggs (Grey)
 * Naomi Hoogesteger (Hild Bede)
 * David Hosking (Grey)
 * Tracy Langlands (St Mary's)
 * Ian Lawson (Cuths)
 * Lindsey Maguire (Ustinov)
 * Callum McBrierty (St John's)
 * Malindi Myers
 * Louisa Reeve (Hatfield)
 * Matt Rossiter (Cuths)
 * Peter Rudge (Van Mildert)
 * Emily Taylor (Hatfield)
 * Kim Thomas
 * Lily van den Broecke (Castle)

Rugby players

 * Toby Allchurch (Hatfield) – participated in 1979 England rugby union tour of Japan, Fiji and Tonga
 * Josh Beaumont (St. Aidan's) – Sale Sharks and England national rugby union team player
 * Mark Bailey (Hild Bede) – former English national rugby union player, Professor of Later Medieval History at the University of East Anglia
 * David Barnes – Bath Rugby prop
 * Beth Blacklock (Stephenson and Hatfield) – centre, Harlequins Women and Scotland women's national team
 * Richard Breakey (Hatfield) – Scotland rugby player
 * Adam Brocklebank (Collingwood) – Newcastle Falcons prop
 * Jeremy Campbell-Lamerton (Hatfield) – former Scottish rugby union lock
 * Will Carling (Hatfield) – rugby union player for Harlequin F.C., former captain of the England national rugby union team (1988–1996)
 * Fran Clough (Collingwood) – England rugby player
 * Jon Dunbar – Scotland flanker
 * Phil de Glanville (Castle) – former captain of the England national rugby union team
 * P.J. Dixon (Grey) – Captain of England Rugby Union Team 1972; as an uncapped player, played in the Lions' first Test victories against New Zealand in 1971
 * Maurice Fitzgerald, England A and Biarritz prop
 * Coreen Grant (St John's) – centre, Saracens Women and Scotland women's national team
 * Will Greenwood (Hatfield) – England rugby player
 * Simon Hammersley – Sale Sharks fullback
 * Charlie Hannaford (Hatfield) – England rugby player
 * Duncan Hodge – Scotland full back
 * Charlie Hodgson – England rugby player
 * Ed Kalman – Scotland prop
 * Heather Kerr (St Mary's) – represented England at 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup
 * Peter Lillington (Hatfield) – participated in 1981 Scotland rugby union tour of New Zealand
 * Stuart Legg (Hatfield) – former rugby union full-back for Newcastle Falcons and Treviso
 * Claudia MacDonald – England women scrum-half
 * Alan Old – England international and British and Irish Lion, participated in 1974 South Africa tour
 * Ollie Phillips (Van Mildert) – captained England sevens
 * Sean Robinson – second row for Newcastle Falcons
 * Marcus Rose (Hatfield) – England rugby union international full back
 * Peter Rossborough (Bede) – former England rugby fullback
 * Andy Mullins (Hatfield) – England rugby player
 * Ben Stevenson – wing for Newcastle Falcons
 * Tim Stimpson (Grey) – rugby union player and England international (1996–2002)
 * Rob Vickers – Newcastle Falcons hooker
 * Dave Walder (Hatfield) – rugby union footballer, fly-half for the Mitsubishi Sagamihara DynaBoars in Japan
 * Peter Warfield (Hatfield) – England rugby player
 * Ben Woods (Hatfield) – former rugby union player who played for Newcastle Falcons and Leicester Tigers as an openside flanker

Runners

 * Mark Hudspith (Hatfield) – long-distance runner, 1994 Commonwealth Games medallist
 * Colin Kirkham (Cuths) – marathon runner, competed at 1972 Summer Olympics
 * Rahul Mehta (S. Mary's) – Indian long-distance runner, most famous for his victory in the 2001 Great North Run
 * Jon Solly (Hatfield) – long-distance runner, 1986 Commonwealth Games champion

Tennis players

 * Mallory Cecil (St Mary's)
 * Gabriela Knutson (Hatfield and Ustinov)
 * Henry Patten (Collingwood)
 * Romana Tabak
 * Finn Tearney
 * Julius Tverijonas
 * Filip Veger

Other sports people

 * Peter Elleray (Collingwood) – Formula One and Le Mans Race Car designer
 * Katharine Ford (Hatfield) – 4 times world-record holding Ultracyclist and the first ever Briton to ride for 12 Hours or more on an Indoor Velodrome and Static bicycle
 * Shirin Gerami – first Iranian woman triathlete
 * Michael Knighton (Cuths) – Chairman of Carlisle United F.C.
 * Eli Schenkel (born 1992) - Canadian Olympic fencer
 * Robert Swan (St Chad's) – Honorary Fellow of St Chad's, Explorer – the first person to reach both the South and North Pole on foot
 * Jock Wishart (Bede) – set a new world record for circumnavigation of the globe in a powered vessel and organising the Polar Race

Authors

 * Poppy Adams (Hatfield) – novelist
 * Russell Ash (Cuths) – author of 'Top 10 of Everything'
 * Oliver Balch (Hatfield) - travel writer
 * Simi Bedford – Nigerian novelist
 * John Blackburn (King's) – thriller writer
 * Edward Bradley (Castle) – novelist and clergyman known by the pen name Cuthbert M. Bede; author of The Adventures of Mr. Verdant Green
 * Bill Bryson – writer and former University Chancellor
 * Barbara Cleverly – author of mystery novels
 * William Farquhar Conton – Sierra Leonean author best known for The African
 * Tim FitzHigham (St Chad's) – award-winning British comedian, author, and world record holder
 * Stephen Davies (Collingwood) – children's author
 * Mark Elliott (Collingwood) – travel writer
 * Justin Hill (Cuths) – award-winning young author
 * Lorna Hill (St Mary's) – children's writer, author of the Sadlers Wells series
 * Khaled Khalifa – Banipal fellow at St Aidan's College
 * Baret Magarian (Castle) – novelist and freelance journalist
 * Allan Mallinson (St Chad's) – military historian and author of the Matthew Hervey novels
 * Guy Mankowski – author
 * Alice Oseman - novelist
 * Katharine Preston (Hatfield) – author and public speaker
 * Rosa Rankin-Gee (Hatfield) - novelist
 * Ernest Raymond (Unattached) – novelist
 * Mary Stewart (Hild) – novelist
 * Patrick Tilley – science fiction author (The Amtrak Wars)
 * Dan van der Vat (Cuths) – journalist, author
 * Annabel Venning (Castle) – journalist, author
 * Minette Walters (Trevs) – bestselling author and crime writer
 * Peter Watson (Castle) – journalist, author
 * Charles Gidley Wheeler – screenwriter (The Sandbaggers) and novelist

Journalists

 * George Arbuthnott – investigative journalist
 * Tim Atkin (Castle) – wine correspondent
 * Katy Balls – political editor of The Spectator
 * Peter Cadogan – writer and protester
 * Dominic Carman (Hatfield) – journalist and Liberal Democrat politician
 * Benjamin Cook (Collingwood) – journalist and author
 * Adrian Dannatt (Chads) – child actor, artist and journalist
 * Hunter Davies (Castle) – journalist and author of The Beatles: The Only Authorised Biography
 * Jonny Dymond – BBC journalist
 * Harold Evans (Castle) – journalist; former editor of The Sunday Times and The Times; author of The American Century
 * Nigel Farndale (Grad Soc) – writer in the Sunday Telegraph
 * Jonah Fisher (Collingwood) – BBC journalist
 * Alexander Frater (Hatfield) – travel writer, journalist
 * Tom Harwood (St Mary's) - journalist, political commentator
 * Annabel Heseltine (St Mary's) – editor of School House Magazine
 * Graham Hancock (Cuths) – co-editor of New Internationalist magazine, 1976–1979; East Africa correspondent of The Economist, 1981–1983
 * Andrew Holgate – Literary Editor, The Sunday Times
 * John Kay (Hatfield) – former chief reporter with The Sun
 * Christopher Lamb – Rome correspondent for The Tablet
 * Colin McDowell (Hatfield) – fashion writer and journalist
 * Andrew Norfolk – chief investigative reporter for The Times, known for work exposing the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal
 * Sebastian Payne (Van Mildert) – journalist
 * Manveen Rana – reporter, Today Programme
 * Jeremy Vine (Hatfield) – journalist and early member of The Durham Revue
 * Jonathan Wilson – football journalist, founder and editor of The Blizzard

Poets, dramatists and translators

 * Richard Caddel – poet, publisher and editor
 * Julia Copus (St Mary's) – poet, children's writer and biographer, winner of the Forward Prize for Best Single Poem and the National Poetry Competition
 * James Kirkup (Grey) – travel writer, poet, novelist, playwright, translator, broadcaster, Hon. Fellow Grey College from 1992
 * Liz Lefroy (St Mary's) – poet, winner of Roy Fisher prize (2011)
 * Alan Plater (King's) – playwright and TV writer
 * Tina Kover (Ustinov) – translator
 * Rachel McCarthy (Castle) – poet, critic and broadcaster
 * David Mercer (King's) – English playwright and dramatist
 * Michael O'Neill – poet and academic

Miscellaneous

 * Dave Anderson (Collingwood) – cartoon and animation writer
 * Lucy Beresford (Trevs) – writer, psychotherapist and media commentator
 * John Galbraith Graham (St Chad's) – crossword compiler, "Araucaria" of The Guardian; Chaplain and tutor at St Chad's 1949–52
 * Jack Edwards (St Cuthbert's) - YouTuber and author
 * Joseph Stevenson (Castle) – English Catholic archivist

Explorers

 * Stephanie Solomonides, first Cypriot to reach both the North and South Poles

Other notable people

 * Stephen Bicknell (St Chad's) – leading British organ builder and lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music
 * Patrick Carter, Baron Carter of Coles (Hatfield) – Chairman of Sport England (2002–06)
 * E. C. B. Corlett – naval architect and consultant, pivotal in the restoration of the SS Great Britain
 * Sarah Everard (St Cuthbert's) – marketing executive murdered by a Metropolitan Police officer on 4 March 2021
 * Sir Terry Farrell (King's) – architect (the MI6 Building, Charing Cross railway station, KK100, Shenzhen)
 * Katharine Gun (St Mary's) – former translator for GCHQ and whistle-blower of information concerning USA activities in their push for the 2003 invasion of Iraq
 * Dame Elisabeth Hoodless (King's) – Executive Director of Community Service Volunteers
 * Jack Lynn (King's) – architect
 * Ian McCafferty (Van Mildert) – member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee
 * David Rock (King's) – architect RIBA President 1997-99
 * Gordon Ryder (King's) – architect
 * Thomas Sharp – town planner, academic in the School of Architecture at King's College 1937–1945, president of the Town Planning Institute
 * Tim Smit (Hatfield) – horticulturalist and creator of the Eden Project
 * Alison and Peter Smithson (King's) – pioneers of brutalist architecture
 * Michael Spurr (St Chad's) – Director of Operations, HM Prison Service
 * David Walton (Van Mildert) – economist, member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee
 * Rupert Whitaker (Hild Bede) – founder and chairman of the Tuke Institute; co-founder of the Terence Higgins Trust
 * Sir William Whitfield (King's) – architect
 * Assistant Commissioner Robert Beckley (University) - Police Officer