Bristol is one of the most popular university cities in the UK with more than 60,000 combined students estimated to be studying at the University of Bristol (UoB) and the University of the West of England (UWE).
The city has always been, mostly, welcoming to those studying and has been repaid with plenty of industry-leading graduates who have paid homage to their time in Brizzle. From politicians to award-winning comedians to gold medal-winning athletes, the list of famous Bristol alumni is rather extensive. They might not all be born and bred in Bristol but we’re certainly staking some claim to them.
Bristol World has picked 10 of the many notable alumni for this article, let us know who else is worthy of a spot in a future article.
1. Simon Pegg, UoB (BA, 1991)
Simon Pegg graduated from the University of Bristol in 1991 with a BA in theatre, film, and television. He transitioned into stand-up comedy before starring in TV comedy series such as Black Books and Spaced. He is perhaps most well-known for his portrayals in the ‘Cornetto Trilogy’ films; Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End.
2. Bear Grylls OBE, UWE
Bear Grylls OBE studied Spanish and German at the University of the West of England. Outside of his studies, from 1994–1997, Grylls served in the Territorial Army with 21 SAS as a trooper. Here he was trained in, amongst other things, unarmed combat, desert and winter warfare, survival, climbing, parachuting, and explosives. He would later become a survival instructor and was twice posted to North Africa. His time in the SAS ended as the result of a free-fall parachuting accident in Kenya in 1996 when his parachute failed to open, causing him to break three vertebrae. In 2004, he was awarded the honorary rank of lieutenant commander in the Royal Naval Reserve. Later, in 2013, he was awarded the honorary rank of lieutenant colonel in the Royal Marines Reserve, and was then promoted to Honorary Colonel in 2021. He is best known for his survival scenario TV shows including Born Survivor, Man vs. Wild, Bear Grylls Wild Adventure, etc.
3. Eboni Usoro-Brown, UoB (LLB 2009, MSc 2011), UWE
Eboni Usoro-Brown is an internationally renowned netball player who was part of the England squad which captured a historic commonwealth games gold medal in 2018. She is now the captain of Team Bath. Eboni graduated from the University of Bristol with an LLB Law degree in 2009, before completing the LLM degree in 2010 at the same Law School. Usoro-Brown went on to complete the Legal Practice Course at UWE.
4. Matt Lucas, UoB (1995, Hon DLitt 2017)
Matt Lucas began studying at UoB in 1995, decision which was influenced by his comedy partner David Walliams, who had recently studied drama there and met Lucas at the National Youth Theatre. He would end his studies before graduating due to the success of his role as George Dawes on the popular TV show, Shooting Stars. He is best-known for creating and starring in comedy sketch show, ‘Little Britain’ alongside fellow UoB and longtime collaborator, David Walliams. He was awarded an honorary degree in 2017.