Have you ever wondered whether any of the famous folk that we idolise ever attended lectures at our campus, in pursuit of a degree from the same institution that we are now at? Has it ever crossed your mind to ask who this âEdward Boyleâ bloke actually was? Hereâs my lowdown on the greatest people Leeds University has ever churned out into the real (celebrity) world.
The Hotties
Chris Pine â Yes, thatâs right: an actual Hollywood movie star once raved at Fruity (well, Iâm assuming he did at some point). In 2001, Chris Pine spent a year studying English at Leeds Uni as an exchange student from the University of California, Berkley. Since gaining his degree, Pine has gone on to star in films as the love interest of many A-list actresses, including the likes of Lindsay Lohan, Anne Hathaway and Reese Witherspoon. Speaking in reference to his time studying here, Chris said: âLeeds offered me everything I could have possibly wanted from a university: a challenging course that demanded critical and original thinking, a thriving social scene offered by a myriad of school societies, and a busy City Centre. I loved it, I miss it, and I wouldn’t trade my year for anything in the worldâ. He sounds lovely; if only we had been students here in 2001!
Jamie Laing – Jamie doesnât hide his love for Leeds, and doesnât keep a low profile when he makes return trips to the North, since finding fame on the E4 show, âMade in Chelseaâ. His announced presence in Leeds certainly creates a frenzy on Facebook and Twitter among Leeds students; I distinctly remember him tweeting âWhereâs a house party in Hyde park tonight?â last year. This prompted me to plead with my housemates to throw a last-minute party in the desperate hope that he might actually turn up, but he didnât. Jamie apparently admitted that he originally only chose Leeds because he had âfallen in love with a girl and followed her [here]â; the girl turned out to be a certain Caggie Dunlop. However, during his time at Leeds, a few nights out at some of our infamous nightclubs obviously helped him realise âhow many other fish there were in the sea.â He graduated with a degree in Theatre and Performance, which perhaps lessens the chances of âMade in Chelseaâ being genuine reality.
The Buildings
Edward Boyle â Believe it or not, âEddy Bâ did actually once exist as a real human and not just a building full of books. So Edward Boyle, âBaron Boyle of Handsworthâ, may not have been a student here, but he was the Vice-Chancellor of the University for eleven years, from 1970 until 1981 when he sadly passed away due to cancer. His previous career involved various positions within the Conservative Party, including âEconomic and Financial Secretaryâ to the Treasury.
Roger Stevens – No, he wasnât just an awful architect; he too used to be the Vice-Chancellor for the University of Leeds and was Boyleâs predecessor. Before working at the university between 1963 and 1970, Sir Roger Bentham Stevens was a diplomat and civil servant. For some of his life, he worked as the British Ambassador for Sweden and Persia.
The Girls
Jenni Falconer â She is the lady on the television who might be classified by some as a university âdrop-outâ, after she was offered a full-time job on TV mid-degree; she of course chose fame over a poor student life. You may recognise her these days from shows such as This Morning, GMTV, and The National Lottery. However, she began her presenting career as a fresher in Leeds, working for BBC Scotland at the young age of nineteen. Jenni must have realised how awesome Leeds Uni is, as she chose to commute to and from lectures in Leeds in order to present weekly television episodes on ITV whilst still being able to experience life as a Leeds student. However, she eventually chose to put her Spanish and Italian degree âon holdâ as her career progressed, with the intention of returning to complete a degree at a later date. Leeds is still waiting for you Jenni!
Chelsy Davy â As Davy âbagged the most eligible bachelor in the countryâ, surely this is reason enough for her to be classed as one of the most successful people to have studied at Leeds? During her time at Leeds, photographs of Hyde Park and campus were commonly found in national newspapers due to Chelsy being âpappedâ each time there was a new revelation about her and Prince Harryâs relationship. Reporters were apparently shocked that the socialite had swapped her millionaire lifestyle for a ÂŁ60âa-week room at her Hyde Park student house, which they described as having âcrumbling paintworkâ and âan overflowing skip parked outside its front doorâ. Sure enough, that sounds like Hyde Park. Chelsy graduated with a Law degree, and rumour has it that there are memories of several wild nights out at Tequila to go with it.
The Legends
Alastair McGowan â Alastair graduated from Leeds University in 1986 with a degree in English. If you are unsure of who this is, think back to The Big Impression which was one of the BBCâs highest rated comedy programmes for four years. McGowan is known to be a devoted Leeds United football fan, and has admitted in the past that his reason for choosing to study at Leeds was its closeness to Elland Road.
Mark Knopfler â Mark Knopfler of the British rock band, Dire Straits, would by far be classed as the most famous musician to have come out of Leeds Uni. He attended Leeds in 1970 after having been hired by the Yorkshire Evening Post as a junior reporter, and decided to stay in the City as a student to study for a degree in English. It was during his time as a student in Leeds that Knopfler began to find himself as a guitar player through his relationships with other students he met who taught him a lot about music. It was also during these years that he wrote his first song, which was recorded in Pudsey, and was called âSummerâs Coming My Way.â
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