Alas! There are plenty of well-known celebs out there that had an educational back-up, had there fame gone wrong. From Neuroscience to Nessa, this list contains someone, somewhere or something for everyone! There are also a few jawdroppers too… like Borat for instance.
Emile Sande is most well-known for her singing and songwriting. She has released beautiful songs such as ‘Heaven’ and ‘Beneath your beautiful.’ However before she rose to fame, she attended the University of Glasgow. Between 2006 and 2009, she worked hard secure an intercalated degree in Neuroscience.
Tom Hiddleston is a British actor that is predominantly known for his his role of ‘Loki.’ Before his time in ‘Thor’ and ‘The Avengers’ however, he was fortunate enough to study at some of the most prestigious places the UK offers. Hiddleston attended Eton College for what is the equivalent of middle and high school. He then went on to graduate with a double first in Classics from the Pembroke College of Cambridge.
Hugh Grant is an award-winning actor who has starred in huge movies such as: Love actually (2003), Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) and Notting Hill (1999). Drawing back to his earlier days, he won the Galsworthy scholarship in 1979 to study English literature at the University of Oxford, graduating with a 2:1.
Sacha Baron Cohen began his education at the private school of Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School in Hertfordshire. Cohen, otherwise known as Ali G or Borat, then went on to to study History at the University of Cambridge. He graduated with a 2:1. Following his degree, he worked on small projects such as modelling and minor presenting roles before securing his big break in 1998 where he appeared as Ali G on The 11 O’Clock Show. Thus for, you know the rest.
Chris Pine was born in Los Angeles but went on to study at the University of California. During his degree, he also spent one year of his studies at the University of Leeds, England. Furthermore, he graduated and received a Bachelor’s degree. Pine also studied acting at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco which inevitably led to the fabulous career that he has had.
Owen Farrell is an English professional rugby union player and is captain of the England National team. He was a product of St George’s School in Harpenden, earning a great education before going on to study Business at Hertfordshire University.
Helen Sharman was the first British astronaut and woman in space as she visited the MIR space station in May 1991. She was born in Grenoside, Sheffield… a city in which she stayed to study her degree. She received a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Sheffield in 1984.
Rowan Atkinson is a well-established British actor, most known for his character of ‘Mr Bean.’ Before this though, he attended Newcastle University to study EE, Electrical Engineering… not a bad thing to fall back on to. Following that, he then studied and graduated with a masters at The Queen’s College Oxford.
Ricky Gervais is an English actor, comedian, director, producer and singer… a man of many talents! He is also a very clever man. After school, Ricky went on to study Biology at the University College London, later switching to Philosophy.
Professor Brian Edward Cox is a British physicist and professor of particle physics at the University of Manchester. He is known and recognised for bringing physics and science generally to the wider audience, he has presented many shows for the BBC over the years. In his education, he graduated from the University of Manchester with a first in Physics. He followed this with a doctorate in 1998. The name of the thesis was “Double Diffraction Dissociation at Large Momentum Transfer”.
James Cracknell OBE is a double Olympic gold rowing champion and British athlete. He began rowing at the independent Kingston grammar school. Following this, in 1993, he graduated from the University of Reading as a Bachelor of science in human geography. After a tough few years, he finally got his gold medal at the 2000 summer Olympics in Australia.
Steven Hawking was an English cosmologist, theorist and author. His theory of black holes drew upon both quantum mechanics and relativity theory. Hawking studied Physics at the University of Oxford (BA) and then followed this with a doctorate at University of Cambridge (PHD).
Chris Tarrant is a very popular British broadcaster and presenter, most well known for his long service to the programme ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire?’ Before this however, he studied English at the University of Birmingham. He did a stint as an English teacher in East London following his graduation before climbing the ranks in Television.
Matt Smith is a popular British actor. He is most commonly known as the Eleventh doctor in Doctor Who and Prince Phillip in The Crown. In his earlier days, he studied Drama and Creative writing at the University of East Anglia, graduating in 2005.
Jessie Ware is an English singer-songwriter, as well as podcaster. She is known for songs such as spotlight, what’s your pleasure and step into my life. She attended the University of Sussex and graduated with a degree in English Literature.
Jamie Laing is known by most for his part in the tv programme, ‘Made in Chelsea.’ He is an English television personality and entrepreneur. Jamie is the founder of confectionary company ‘Candy Kittens’. In his student years, he attended the University of Leeds, studying Theatre and performance.
Annie Mac is an Irish DJ, Broadcaster and writer. She hosts her own podcast, her own radio show and her debut book ‘Mother, Mother’ is set for release in 2021. Well, at least that gives us insight into her degree. The popular DJ, formally known as Annie MacManus, studied English Literature at Queen’s University Belfast in her previous years.
Iain Stirling is a Scottish presenter, comedian, writer and Twitch streamer. His most popular role is that of the comedic voice-over for reality TV show Love Island. His degree is… rather different than what you may expect. Stirling is none other than a law graduate from the University of Edinburgh.
David Walliams OBE is a British actor, presenter, judge, writer, comedian and television personality. His most known role was alongside Matt Lucas on Little Britain. Since then he has taken part and contributed to a multitude of other roles… including being a professional wind-up merchant to Simon Cowell. Naturally, Walliams studied drama as his degree and graduated from University of Bristol in 1992.
Ruth Jones, a.k.a Nessa, a.k.a the best given gift to British television. She co-wrote and co-starred in the award-winning British sitcom Gavin and Stacey. Before her career in acting, she obtained a degree in Theatre studies and dramatic arts at the University of Warwick.