By james art Carla Denier, Ed Gamble, Ambika Maud and Gabby Logan: The Most Famous Alumni of Every Durham College
Ever wanted to know which famous celebrities walked the halls of your college, ate in your dining hall, and played pool in your common room? Well, now you can. If you want to become famous after Durham, I’d recommend going into sports, acting or journalism – these seem to be the three most common paths for Durham graduates.
Collingwood: Fiona Crackles
As Collingwood has a reputation as “the most sporting college”, it makes sense that their most famous alumni are sports stars (don’t forget Neil’s father from the Inbetweeners, though).
Fiona Crackles is a Great Britain field hockey player who attends Collingwood during her time in Durham. She has a bronze medal from the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. She graduated with a degree in Sports and Exercise Science in 2024.
Grey: Nish Kumar
Contrary to Gray’s reputation, “Grey by Name, Gray by Nature,” the graduates of this college are pretty cool.
Nish Kumar is Grey’s most notable alumnus. Nish is a stand-up comedian, podcast host and television host. He has appeared on shows such as Mock the Week and Taskmaster. During his time in Durham he was a member of The Durham Revue alongside Ed Gamble. Graduated in 2007.
Hatfield: Ed Gamble
Hatfield’s most notable alumnus is Ed Gamble. Ed is a stand-up comedian who has appeared on TV shows such as Mock the Week and Taskmaster. During Ed’s time in Durham, he was a member of The Durham Revue sketch comedy group. He graduated in 2007. Honorable mentions also go to England flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson and journalist Jeremy Vine.
Jon Snow: Lee Daggett
Snow’s most famous alumnus is Lee Daggett, a cricketer who played for Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire. Graduated in 2005.
Josephine Butler: Claudia McDonald
Butler’s famous alumna is Claudia Macdonald, England rugby union half-back. She plays for the England national team and Exeter Chiefs Women. She graduated in economics in 2018.
South: Sabrina Basson
The infamous tube girl graduated just a year ago in 2023, after three years of law school. Due to South’s short history of only five years, Sabrina is their first graduate of any real note.
St. Aidan’s: Nick Muhammad
Aidan’s most notable graduate is Nick Mohammed. Nick is a famous actor/comedian who appears as Nathan Shelley on the Apple TV+ show, Ted Lasso. He is also the creator of the Sky One TV show, Intelligence, starring himself and David Schwimmer. He is also nominated for an Emmy Award. Graduated from Durham University in 2003.
St. Chad: Carla Denier
Chad’s most famous alumnus is the co-leader of the Green Party, Carla Denier. Carla is the current Member of Parliament for Bristol Central and graduated from Durham University in 2009.
St. Cuthbert: Jack Edwards
Jack Edwards is one of Cutt’s most famous alumni. Jack is a YouTuber and book reviewer who graduated in English Language and Literature in 2020. Fun fact, Jack actually signed up for The Tab as a student, but unfortunately never wrote for us.
St. Hild and St. Trouble: Gabby Logan
Gabby Logan, BBC sports presenter, attended Hilde Bede while in Durham. She graduated in law in 1995. Honorable mentions must also go to cricketer Nasser Hussain and YouTuber Thogdad, who happened to be in the same year and football team at Hild Bede.
St John’s: Justin Welby
Justin Welby attended John and is currently the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. Graduated in 1992.
St. Maria: Ambika Mod
Mary’s most famous alumna is Ambika Maude. Ambika is an actress known for playing Shruti Acharya in BBC’s This Will Hurt and Emma Morley in Netflix’s One Day. During her time in Durham she was a member of The Durham Revue. She graduated in 2017.
Stevenson: Matt Milnes
Stevo’s most notable alumnus is Matt Milnes, an English professional cricketer who plays for Yorkshire Country Cricket Club. Graduated in 2017.
Trevelyan: Sophie Hosking
Trevelyan’s most notable graduate is Sophie Hosking MBE. Sophie won Olympic gold in London in 2012 for lightweight double scull. She graduated in 2007.
University: George Rexstrew
One of Castle’s most notable alumni is George Rexstrut. He is an actor and stars in Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives. George graduated from Durham in 2017.
Van Mildert: George Alagia
Probably Mildert’s most famous alumnus was the late George Alagia. George was a newsreader, journalist, television presenter and one of the main presenters of BBC News. During his time at Durham he was editor-in-chief of the Palatinate from 1976-1977. George graduated in 1978. An honorable mention goes to British triple jumper and Olympian Jonathan Edwards.
Images via YouTube