This is a list of people associated with Durham University, founded in 1832 in England. This includes alumni, those who have taught there, done research there or were involved in its founding. Durham is a collegiate university, so where known and if applicable, they are shown alongside their associated college.
Durham alumni are active through organizations and events such as the annual reunions, dinners and balls. 67 Durham associations ranging from international to college and sports affiliated groups cater for the more than 109,000 living alumni. A number of Durham alumni have made significant contributions in the fields of government, law, science, academia, business, arts, journalism, and athletics, among others.
Ephraim Anderson (King's) - bacteriologist, best known for his work highlighting the human health dangers of drug-resistant bacteria created by antibiotics
Jas Pal Badyal - chemist.
Francis Arthur Bainbridge - physiologist, professor of physiology, chair of physiology at St. Bartholomew's Hospital
John Barrow (Van Mildert) - cosmologist, winner of the 2006 Templeton Prize
Neil Bartlett (King's) - chemist best known for his discovery of noble gas compounds
Julian Besag - statistician, awarded Guy Medal in Silver in 1983 for his contributions to spatial statistics
Martin Bott - geologist, Emeritus Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences, Vice-President of Christians in Science, 1992 Wollaston Medal
George Stewardson Brady (College of Medicine) - professor of natural history at the Hancock Museum
George Malcolm Brown (Castle) - geologist, scientist to NASA Apollo 11 mission; winner of the Murchison Medal; former director of the British Geological Survey
Richard Christopher Carrington - Solar astronomer; "Observer" at Durham University Observatory 1849 – 1852
Richard Chambers - chemist
Ed Corrigan - mathematician; theoretical physicist; professor at the University of York, Principal of Collingwood College (2008–11)
Kingsley Charles Dunham (Hatfield) - geologist and mineralogist; Director of the British Geological Survey; winner of the Wollaston Medal
Richard Ellis - Steele Professor of Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, awarded the 2011 Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
James Feast - chemist, President of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2006–08), Royal Medal (2007)
Carlos Frenk - cosmologist, inaugural Ogden Professor of Fundamental Physics at Durham University
William Greenwell (Castle) - archaeologist, canon at Durham Cathedral
Harold Jeffreys (Armstrong) - mathematician and geophysicist
James Finlay Weir Johnston - Professor in Chemistry and Mineralogy, first Durham FRS (elected 1837)
Nigel Glover - particle physicist
Alexander Stewart Herschel - First professor of Physics at the College of Physical Sciences
Judith Howard - chemist
Jeremy Hutson - chemist
Frank Kelly (Van Mildert) - professor of the Mathematics of Systems in the Statistical Laboratory, University of Cambridge, and Master of Christ's College, Cambridge since 2006
John Lawton - RSPB Vice President; previously head of Natural Environment Research Council; the last chair of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
Alan Martin - theoretical physicist
Friedrich Paneth - Professor of Chemistry at Durham, 1939–1953
David Parker - Professor of Chemistry at Durham (1992-); twice Head of Department; elected FRS 2002, aged 45
Octavius Pickard-Cambridge (Castle) - priest and zoologist
George Rochester (Armstrong) - British physicist known for having co-discovered, with Sir Clifford Butler, a subatomic particle called the kaon
Charles Thorp - First Warden of the University
Samuel Tolansky (Armstrong) - physicist and Nobel Prize nominee
Lawrence Wager - geologist, explorer and mountaineer, Chair of Geology at Durham
Richard S. Ward - mathematical physicist
Classicists and archaeologists
J. Alan Biggins TD - scientist and surveyor of Hadrian's Wall, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (London)
Eric Birley - historian and archaeologist, Master of Hatfield College (1949–1956)
David Breeze - scholar of Hadrian's Wall, the Antonine Wall and the Roman Army
Martin Carver - Professor of Archaeology at the University of York
Brian Dobson (Hatfield) - former Reader Emeritus of Durham University
Alan Greaves (Grey) - archaeologist, University of Liverpool
Birgitta Hoffmann - archaeologist, director of the Roman Gask Project
Charlotte Roberts, professor of archaeology, Fellow of the British Academy
Malcolm Todd - historian and archaeologist, Principal of Trevelyan College (1996-2000)
Leslie Peter Wenham - archaeologist, head of history at St. John's College, York.
Tony Wilkinson - Professor of Archaeology from 2006 to 2014
Historians and antiquarians
Michael Aris (Cuths) - leading Western author on Bhutanese, Tibetan and Himalayan culture and Buddhism; husband of Aung San Suu Kyi; 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 - Professor of History
Bertram Colgrave (Hatfield) - medieval historian, antiquarian and archaeologist
Anthony Crichton-Stuart - art historian, head of Old Master Paintings at Christie's, New York
Robin Donkin FBA (King's) - historian and geographer, reader in Historical Geography in Cambridge University
Jo Fox - historian specialising in the history of film and propaganda in twentieth-century Europe
Roy Martin Haines (St Chad's) - Professor of Medieval History Dalhousie University, life member of Clare Hall, Cambridge
Deborah Lavin - South African historian, Principal of Trevelyan College (1979–95)
Dominic Montserrat (Grey) - British egyptologist and papyrologist
Nicholas Reeves - English egyptologist
G. M. Trevelyan - historian
Language and literature academics
Kenneth Allott (Armstrong) - poet, academic, Kenneth Muir Professor of English at Liverpool University
Archie Barnes - lecturer in Chinese
Seán Burke - literary theorist, Reader in English
Mikhail Epstein - Anglo-American and Russian literary theorist, founder and director of Centre for Humanities Innovation at Durham University
Ruth Etchells - poet, 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
The Reverend Dr Malcolm Guite - author, poet (Sounding the Seasons, The Singing Bowl), priest, and singer-songwriter; current Bye-Fellow and Chaplain of Girton College, Cambridge
Patrick O'Meara - professor of Russian and Russian history; former Master of Van Mildert College (2004–11)
Harold Orton (Hatfield) - Professor of English Language and Medieval English Literature, University of Leeds (1946–64)
Ji Ungpakorn - professor of Thai
Mathematicians, medics and scientists
Cyril Clifford Addison (Hatfield) - Professor of Inorganic Chemistry, University of Nottingham (1960–78)
Gilbert Ronald Bainbridge - nuclear physicist, engineer; University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Wolfson Professor of Energy Studies
David Barker - zoologist and neurologist, professor emeritus of zoology
David Bellamy - botanist and environmental campaigner
Kathleen Beyer (Armstrong) - botanist
William Campbell (College of Science) - metallographer to the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey
Martyn Chamberlain - Emeritus Professor of Physics, Master of Grey College
Temple Chevallier - clergyman, astronomer, and mathematician, founding director of Durham University Observatory
Geoffrey Coates - chemist, head of the chemistry department at Durham University (1953)
John Frederick Dewey - structural geologist, proponent of the theory of plate tectonics
H. Martyn Evans - Professor in Humanities in Medicine at Durham University; Principal of Trevelyan College since 2008
Ian Fells - Emeritus Professor of Energy Conversion at Newcastle University, Michael Faraday Prize 1993
Andrew Fisher - Professor of Physics at University College London
Gillian Foulger - Professor of Geophysics, Durham University, awarded the 2005 Price Medal
David Gavaghan - director of the Life Sciences Interface Doctoral Training Centre, University of Oxford
Monica Grady - Professor of Planetary and Space Science at the Open University
Ruth Gregory - theoretical physicist
Arthur Holmes - geologist, early exponent of plate tectonics
Hans Kronberger - former Scientist-in-Chief at UKAEA
Marie Lebour (1876-1971), marine biologist
Gordon Manley - climatologist
Nigel Martin - mathematician and politician, Principal of Trevelyan College (2000-2008)
M. A. Wazed Miah - physicist
Thomas Horrocks Openshaw (1856–1929) - Victorian surgeon and recipient of a Jack the Ripper letter
A. W. Pryor - physicist
Christopher Melhuish - geologist, Founder and Head of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL), Professor of Robotics at University of Bristol and University of the West of England
Caleb Scharf - American astronomer
Paul Sutcliffe - mathematical physicist
John Walton, Baron Walton of Detchant - former President of British Medical Association, General Medical Council and the Royal Society of Medicine
Michael Alcorn - Director of the School of Music and Sonic Arts at Queen's University, Belfast
Robert Allison - Vice-Chancellor of Loughborough University
Ash Amin - professor of geography, University of Cambridge
Ewan Anderson - Emeritus Professor of Geopolitics at Durham
Roy Ascott (King's) - British artist and theorist and professor at Plymouth University
David Axon - professor at the University of Hertfordshire and Rochester Institute of Technology
Lewis Ayres - catholic theologian, Bede Chair of Catholic Theology at Durham
Charles Kingsley Barrett - biblical scholar, Professor of Divinity
Joan Bernard - Principal of Trevelyan College, University of Durham from its foundation in 1966 to 1978
Luiza Bialasiewicz - Polish political geographer, University of Amsterdam
Leo Blair - barrister, law lecturer and father of Tony Blair (former Prime Minister of United Kingdom)
Gerald Blake - geographer and Principal of Collingwood College (1987-2001)
Ernest Bullock - Gardiner Professor of Music, Glasgow and Director of the Royal College of Music
Robert Burgess (Bede) - Vice Chancellor of Leicester University since 1999
Kenneth Calman - Vice-Chancellor of Durham University, then Chancellor of University of Glasgow
Gordon Cameron (Hatfield) - Professor of Land Economy, Cambridge University, and Master at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge from 1988
Anne Campbell - Professor of Psychology
David Carter - Bursar at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge University
John Casken - composer, Professor of Music at the University of Manchester, 1992-2008
Stephen R. L. Clark - philosopher and professor emeritus of philosophy at the University of Liverpool
Stanley Cohen - Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics
Dan Cohn-Sherbok - Jewish theologian and author on religion, Professor Emeritus of Judaism at the University of Wales
David E. Cooper - Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Durham University
Mike Crang - Professor in cultural geography
Douglas Davies (St John's) - theologian, Professor in the Study of Religion at Durham
Ronan Deazley - scholar of copyright lawyer, Professor of Commercial Law at University of Glasgow
James Dunn - British New Testament scholar, Lightfoot Professor of Divinity
Iain R. Edgar - social anthropologist
Anoush Ehteshami - Professor and Joint Director of the ESRC Centre for the Advanced Study of the Arab World, Durham
Joe Elliott - Principal of Collingwood College and Professor of Education at Durham
Christopher Evans - theologian, authority on the New Testament, appointed to Lightfoot Professorship at Durham
Stanley Eveling - English playwright and academic at Edinburgh University
Ghazi Falah - geographer at University of Akron
Anthony Forster - political scientist, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex
Robert Michael Franklin, Jr. - president of Morehouse College
David Grant - Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University
David Harper - Professor of Palaeontology in Earth Sciences, Principal of Van Mildert College (2011–present)
William Edmund Hick - British psychologist, pioneer in experimental psychology
Chris Higgins (Grey) - Academic, Vice Chancellor of Durham University 2007 – 2014
David Jasper (St Chad's) - Professor of Theology and Literature at the University of Glasgow
George Wilberforce Kakoma - professor of music, composer of Uganda's national anthem
R. W. L. Moberly - British Old Testament scholar, Professor of Theology and Bilical Interpretation
Muhamad Rasat Muhamad, President of the Multimedia University, Malaysia
Richard Ovenden (St Chad's) - Deputy Directior and Head of Special Collections, Bodleian Library, University of Oxford
Hugh Pearman (St Chad's) - architecture and design critic for The Sunday Times since 1986
Peter Ustinov - Chancellor of the University of Durham
Paul Wellings - Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University
Ted Wragg (Hatfield) - Educationalist and academic, Professor of Education at the University of Exeter (1978-2003)
Richard Adams (St John's) - pioneer of Fair Trade and founder of Traidcraft
Adam Applegarth (Grey) - Chief Executive Officer of Northern Rock bank (2001–07)
Ian Baggett, real estate entrepreneur
Stephen Bicknell (St Chad's) - leading British organ builder and lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music
John Cadman, 1st Baron Cadman FRS - executive of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company
Patrick Carter, Baron Carter of Coles (Hatfield) - Chairman of Sport England (2002–06)
Cecil Chao - A Hong Kong billionaire, the Chairman and owner of Cheuk Nang Holdings Ltd
E. C. B. Corlett - naval architect and consultant, pivotal in the restoration of the SS Great Britain
Edwin Davies, businessman and philanthropist
Steve Easterbrook (St Chad's) - CEO of McDonald’s
Leslie Ferrar - Treasurer to Charles, Prince of Wales
David French - Chief Executive of the Westminster Foundation for Democracy
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
Tom Hume (King's) - first Director of the Museum of London
Julian Knight - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of climate change campaign Global Cool
Herbert Loebl (King's) - co-founder of Joyce, Loebl & Company
John Laurent Giles - yacht designer
Sir Robert Malpas - engineer and industrialist
Ian Marchant - CEO of SSE plc
Ian McCafferty - member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee
Peter Middlebrook - CEO of Geopolicity Inc.; international political economist
Sir Peter Ogden - co-founder of Computacenter
Nick Scheele (Cuths) - President and COO of the Ford Motor Company
Tim Smit - horticulturalist and creator of the Eden Project
David Sproxton (Collingwood) - co-founder (with Peter Lord) of Aardman Animations
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
Michael Warrender, 3rd Baron Bruntisfield - director of Jardine Fleming Investment Management and Atlas Capital
Rupert Whitaker (Hild Bede) - founder and chairman of the Tuke Institute; co-founder of the Terence Higgins Trust
Jill Black (Trevelyan) - Lord Justice of Appeal and Privy councillor
Charles Ernest St. John Branch - Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka and 23rd Chief Justice of Sri Lanka
James Goss (University) - Justice of the High Court (Queens Bench Division)
Anthony Hughes (Van Mildert) - Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom; former Lord Justice of Appeal; Vice-President of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales
Henry M. Joko-Smart - Justice of the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone
David George Maddison (Grey) - Justice of the High Court (Queens Bench Division)
Andrew McFarlane (Collingood) - High Court Judge, Lord Justice of Appeal
Robert Strother Stewart (Hatfield & Armstrong) - Justice of the Supreme Court of the Gold Coast Colony and Member of the West African Court of Appeal.
Caroline Swift (St Aidan's) - leading counsel to the Inquiry in the Shipman Inquiry and Justice of the High Court (Queens Bench Division)
Mark Waller - former Lord Justice of Appeal and Vice-President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales
Lawyers and others
Deryck Beyleveld - founding Director of the Sheffield Institute of Biotechnological Law and Ethics; current Head of Durham Law School
David Campbell - former Head of the Law Department and specialist in contract law
Tufyal Choudhury - international human rights lawyer
David O'Keeffe - Professor of European Law
Broadcasters and entertainers
George Alagiah (Van Mildert) - broadcaster; BBC TV News at Six since 2003
Matthew Amroliwala (St Chad's) - BBC news presenter
Biddy Baxter (St Mary's) - TV producer (Blue Peter) and inventor of the Blue Peter badge
Lionel Blue (Grey) - rabbi, broadcaster, author; Honorary Doctor of Divinity and Fellow at Grey College
Arthur Bostrom (St Chad's) - actor, early member of the Durham Revue, played Officer Crabtree in 'Allo 'Allo!
Andrew Buchan (Cuths) - actor
Jamie Campbell (St John's) - documentary filmmaker; writer in the New Statesman, The Guardian and The Mail on Sunday
James Cary (Collingwood) - TV and radio writer
Daniel Casey (Grey) - co-star of Midsomer Murders
Charles Mark Townshend Colville (St Chad's) - 5th Viscount Colville of Culross, BBC producer and director, elected as hereditary peer in 2011
Guy de la Bédoyère (Collingwood) - British historian and broadcaster
Marc Edwards - Welsh and Chinese television presenter on China Central Television
George Entwistle (Castle) - journalist, TV producer and former Director-General of the BBC
John Exelby - 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
Ed Gamble - Comedian
Jonathan Gould (Hatfield) - Channel 5 television presenter of MLB on Five
Pippa Greenwood (Trevelyan) - plant pathologist, appears on BBC Gardeners World
Judith Hann (St Aidan's) - freelance broadcaster and writer, former Tomorrow's World presenter
Lorraine Heggessey (Collingwood) - controller of BBC One 2000-2004
Gavin Hewitt (St John's) - Special Correspondent for BBC News
Chris Hollins (Hild Bede) - broadcaster, sports presenter for BBC Breakfast
Sally El Hosaini (Collingwood) - filmmaker
Nina Hossain (Cuths) - broadcast journalist
Louise Hulland (St Chad's) - BBC reporter (Watchdog); ITN journalist (ITV London News); radio presenter
Nish Kumar (Grey) - Comedian and actor, host of Newsjack
George Lazenby (Bede) - actor, portrayed James Bond in the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Gabby Logan (Hild Bede) - 1999 Commonwealth Games gymnast and TV presenter
Alex MacQueen - actor
Cecil McGivern - Controller of BBC Television Service (1950-1957)
Nick Mohammed (St Aidan's) - comedian and actor
Dominic Montserrat (Grey) - TV Egyptologist
Roger Moore (Bede) - actor, never graduated due to national service, seven times "James Bond" actor
Maryam Nemazee - Bloomberg presenter
Mark Pougatch (Hatfield) - BBC sports presenter and radio host
Charlotte Riley (Cuths) - actress
Patrick Ryecart (Bede) - actor (never graduated)
Jonny Saunders (Collingwood) - BBC Radio 2 Sports Presenter
David Shukman (Hatfield) - BBC correspondent
Gareth Sibson (Castle) - writer and broadcaster
Kate Silverton (Cuths) - Broadcast journalist
Chris Terrill (Collingwood) - documentary maker, writer and adventurer
Jeremy Vine (Hatfield) - BBC radio and television presenter
James Wilby (Grey) - film, television and theatre actor
Tim Willcox (St Chad's), BBC television presenter
Fenella Woolgar - actor
General Sir Richard Dannatt, Baron Dannatt (Hatfield) - current Constable of the Tower; former Chief of General Staff of the British Army
Rear Admiral Amjad Hussain (Collingwood) - British Royal Navy (first Admiral from an ethnic-minority group and the highest ranking ethnic-minority officer in the UK armed forces)
Vice Admiral Sir Richard Jeffrey Ibbotson - former Naval Secretary and Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet
Rear Admiral Clive Johnstone - Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff
Vice Admiral Tony Johnstone-Burt (Van Mildert) - Chief of Staff to NATO's Supreme Allied Command Transformation
Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence - Vice-Admiral of the Royal Navy, husband of Princess Anne
Rear Admiral Matthew John Parr - Commander Operations (Royal Navy)
Alan Percy, 8th Duke of Northumberland - army officer
Major-General Peter Grant Peterkin - former Sergeant at Arms and Military Secretary
Major-General Timothy Radford (St Chad's) - General Officer Commanding, Force Troops Command and former Chief of Staff, International Security Assistance Force HQ (Afghanistan)
Air Chief Marshal Sir James Milne Robb - senior Royal Air Force commander; former Air Chief Marshal; Vice-Chief of the Air Staff; Inspector-General of the RAF
Air Vice Marshal Adam Henry Robson (Armstrong) - officer in the Royal Air Force and Director of Educational Services for the RAF
Vice Admiral Sir David George Steel - former Second Sea Lord
Major-General John Christopher Blake Sutherell - former Director Special Forces
John Vane, 11th Baron Barnard - army officer, Lord Lieutenant of Durham
Air Marshal Peter Brett Walker - former assistant Chief of Staff at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe; current Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey
Musicians and artists
Ralph Allwood - Director of Music at Eton College
Frederic Austin - English baritone singer, musical teacher and composer from 1905–30
Edward Bairstow - organist and composer in the Anglican church music tradition
H. Hugh Bancroft - British organist and composer who was organist of five cathedrals
Jon Boden - English fiddle player and folk singer
Thomas Frederick Candlyn - organist and choirmaster, St. Thomas Church, New York
Andrew Cantrill - 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
Joseph Crabtree (Collingwood) - drummer, Wishbone Ash
Jonathan Darlington - conductor and Music Director of Vancouver Opera
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
Ruth Gipps - British composer, oboist and pianist
Dan "Nu:Tone" Gresham - drum and bass musician
Ted Harrison - Canadian artist
Patrick Hawes (St Chad's) - composer and Classic FM's Composer in Residence
Gwyneth Herbert - singer-songwriter and jazz musician
Arthur Hutchings - professor of music in Durham, author of books on Mozart's piano concertos and Jean-Philippe Rameau
John Joubert - composer of choral music
James MacMillan - 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
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
Richard Terry (musicologist)
Alan Walker - musicologist and biographer of Franz Liszt
John B. Williams (Van Mildert) - drum and bass musician and DJ
For former MPs who went on to be members of the House of Lords, see "Members of the House of Lords" below
Heidi Alexander (Grey) - Labour Member of Parliament for Lewisham East, Shadow Secretary of State for Health (2015 – 2016)
David Anderson - Labour, Blaydon (2005 – present), Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland (2016 – present)
Jon Ashworth (St Aidan's) - Labour Member of Parliament for Leicester South (2011 – present), Shadow Minister without Portfolio (2015 – present)
Emerson Muschamp Bainbridge - Liberal Member of Parliament for Gainsborough (1895 - 1900)
Crispin Blunt (Castle) - Conservative MP for Reigate (1997 – present) and former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice
James Boyden - Labour Member of Parliament for Bishop Auckland (1959 – 1979)
Graham Brady (St Aidan's) - Conservative Member of Parliament for Altrincham and Sale West (1997–present); Chairman of 1922 Committee
Robert Buckland (Hatfield) - Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Swindon South (2010 – present)
Jenny Chapman - Labour Darlington (2010 – present)
John Robert Davison QC - Liberal Member of Parliament for the City of Durham (1868 – 1871)
Jackie Doyle-Price (Castle) - Conservative, Thurrock (2010 – present)
Bill Etherington - Labour MP for Sunderland North (1992 – 2010)
Nick Gibb (Hild Bede) - Conservative MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (1997 – present), Minister of State for Schools
Paul Goggins (Ushaw) - Labour Member of Parliament for Wythenshawe and Sale East (1997 – 2014)
Jane Griffiths (St Mary's) - linguist and Labour MP for Reading East (1997–2005)
Peter Kilfoyle - Labour Member of Parliament for Liverpool Walton (1991 – 2010)
Sir Edward Leigh (Castle) - Conservative MP for Gainsborough and Horncastle (1993 – 1997) and Gainsborough (1997 – present); Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee
Malcolm MacDonald - National Labour cabinet minister, Governor-General of Malaya, Governor-General of Kenya, chancellor of Durham University; Labour MP for Bassetlaw (1929 – 1931), National Labour MP for Bassetlaw (1931 – 1935) and Ross and Cromarty (1936 – 1945)
Shona McIsaac (St Aidan's) - Labour Member of Parliament for Cleethorpes (1997 – 2010)
Piers Merchant (Castle) - Conservative MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (1983 – 1987) and Beckenham (1992 – 1997), JCR "Senior Man" and President of Durham University Conservative Association
Alan Meale - Labour, Mansfield (1987 – present)
Sir Fergus Montgomery (Bede) - Conservative member of Parliament Newcastle upon Tyne East (1959 – 1964), Brierley Hill (1967 - 1974) and Altrincham and Sale (1974 – 1997), aide to Margaret Thatcher
Mo Mowlam (Trevelyan) - Labour cabinet minister, MP for Redcar (1987 – 2001)
Oswald O'Brien (Cuths) - Labour MP for Darlington (1983)
John Pugh (Cuths) - Liberal Democrat MP for Southport (2001 – present)
Nathan Raw (1866 – 1940) - Conservative Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree (1918 – 1922)
Edward Shortt - Home Secretary (1919 – 1922) and Chief Secretary for Ireland (1918 – 1919); Liberal MP for Newcastle upon Tyne (1910 – 1918) and Newcastle upon Tyne West (1918 – 1922)
Sir John Sinclair, 3rd Baronet (1825 – 1912) - Liberal Member of Parliament for Caithness (1869 – 1885)
Rachel Squire (Trevelyan) - Labour MP for Dunfermline West (1992 – 2005)
Thomas Charles Thompson (University) - Liberal Member of Parliament for the City of Durham (1874 & 1880 – 1885)
Edward Timpson - Conservative Member of Parliament for Crewe and Nantwich (2008 – present)
Henry Villiers-Stuart (1827-1895; Castle) - Soldier, clergyman, author and Liberal Member of Parliament for County Waterford (1873 – 1874 & 1880 – 1885)
James Wharton (Castle) - Conservative MP for Stockton South (2010 – present)
Jenny Willott (St Mary's) - Liberal Democrat MP for Cardiff Central (2005 – 2015), junior whip from 2012
Esmond Wright - Conservative MP for Glasgow Pollok (1967 – 1970), historian and Director of the Institute of United States Studies
For Lord Bishops see under "Religion" below.
Charles Colville, 5th Viscount Colville of Culross (St Chads) - Crossbencher
Jack Cunningham, Baron Cunningham of Felling (Bede) - former Labour Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Jack Dormand, Baron Dormand of Easington - British educationist, former Government whip and Parliamentary Labour Party chair
Oliver Eden, 8th Baron Henley (Collingwood) - Conservative spokesman on Constitutional and Legal Affairs in the House of Lords
Dianne Hayter, Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Trevelyan) - Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town; former General Secretary of the Fabian Society; former chair of the Labour Party
Henry Holland, 1st Viscount Knutsford - Secretary of State for the Colonies, 1887-1892
Michael Jopling, Baron Jopling (King's) - former Conservative MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale
Herbert Laming, Baron Laming - Convenor of the Crossbench Peers
Roger Lumley, 11th Earl of Scarbrough - former MP
Sally Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Huyton (Van Mildert) - British Labour Party politician, former Minister of State for Women and Board Member of the Olympic Delivery Authority
Fred Peart, Baron Peart - former Labour Leader of the House of Commons, Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Lords; Member of Parliament for Workington (1945–1976)
Henry Percy, 7th Duke of Northumberland - 19th-century MP, Chancellor of Durham University
Joyce Quin, Baroness Quin - former tutor at Durham University
Randolph Quirk, Baron Quirk - former professor at Durham University
John Sewel, Baron Sewel - former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland
Maeve Sherlock, Baroness Sherlock (St Chads) - Honorary Fellow of St Chad's; former Chief Executive of the Refugee Council and policy advisor to Gordon Brown
Edward Short, Baron Glenamara (Bede) - former Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council; Labour Member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (1951–1976)
Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 7th Marquess of Londonderry - former Conservative MP, Chancellor of Durham University
Members of regional assemblies and parliaments
Nick Ramsay (St Johns) - Conservative Assembly Member for Monmouth (2007 – present); Shadow Finance Minister
Ambassadors and High Commissioners
Asif Ahmad - British Ambassador to the Philippines
Nick Archer (St Chad's) - British Ambassador to Denmark
Norman Aspin - (St John's) - High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to Malta
David Carter - British High Commissioner to Bangladesh (2000 to 2004)
Anwar Choudhury - British High Commissioner to Bangladesh
Fergus Cochrane-Dyet (Grey) - Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Liberia
Sir Kim Darroch - British Ambassador to the United States, former National Security Advisor, former British Permanent Representative to the European Union
Judith Farnworth - British Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan
Sir James Hennessy (King's) - High Commissioner to Kampala, Uganda, non-resident Ambassador to Rwanda, Governor of British Honduras and Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
Paul Madden - British High Commissioner to Australia
Sir John Richmond - British Ambassador to Kuwait and Sudan
Samir Sumaidaie - Ambassador of Iraq to the USA
Crispin Curtis Adeniyi-Jones - President of the Nigerian National Democratic Party; member of the legislative council of Nigeria, 1923-1938
Rodney Atkinson - eurosceptic campaigner and economist
Charles Bruzon (Ushaw) - Gibraltarian government minister and curate
John Douglas - Premier of Queensland
Ruth First - anti-apartheid activist assassinated by the South African security services
George Gretton - Commissioner of the Scottish Law Commission
Kerryann Ifill (Durham Business School) - President of the Senate of Barbados since 2012 (first woman and first person with a disability to hold that position)
Sir Cadwaladr Bryner Jones - Welsh Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture
Phyllis Kandie - Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism, appointed 25 April 2013
Norman Lacy (Durham Business School) - Australian politician
Eduardo J. Lopez-Reyes (Ustinov; School of Government and International Affairs) - National Vice Chairman of the Republican Liberty Caucus, United States
Sir Milton Margai - first Prime Minister of Sierra Leone
Steven Marshall - leader of the Liberal Party in South Australia; elected member for Norwood, South Australia; Shadow Minister for Industry and Trade, Defence Industries, Small Business, Science and Information Economy, Environment and Conservation and Sustainability and Climate Change
Maurice Berkeley Portman - Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
Francis Ambrose Ridley - Marxist, secularist and President of the National Secular Society (1951-1963)
Graham Savage - civil servant and educationalist
Reresby Sitwell, 7th Baronet (Grey) - Hon. Fellow of Grey from 2001
Mike Tomlinson - Chief Inspector of Schools and chair of the Working Group for 14–19 Reform
Elsie Tu (Armstrong) - elected member of the Urban Council of Hong Kong, and member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong
Archbishops and Primates
Walter Robert Adams (Castle) - former Archbishop of Yukon and Acting Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada
Drexel Gomez (St Chad's) - Archbishop of the West Indies (1998–2009)
Alastair Haggart (Hatfield) - professor of theology and Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church (1977–1985)
James Horstead - Archbishop of West Africa (1955 – 1961)
Edward Hutson - Archbishop of the West Indies (1922–1936)
Mesrob Krikorian (St John's) - late Armenian Archbishop and former Primate of the Armenian Church Diocese of Germany
Michael Ramsey (St Chad's) - Baron Ramsey of Canterbury; former Van Mildert Professor of Divinity; Fellow, Governor and Visitor of St Chad's' Archbishop of Canterbury (1961-1974)
Justin Welby (St John's) - previously Bishop of Durham, succeeded Rowan Williams as Archbishop of Canterbury in 2013
Joseph Osei-Bonsu (Ushaw) - Catholic Bishop of Konongo-Mampong and President, Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference
Thomas Makinson Armour - Bishop of Wangaratta
Robert Ronald Atwell - Bishop of Stockport
Clifford Conder Barker (St Chad's) - Bishop of Whitby (1976–1983) and Bishop of Selby (1983–1991)
Frederic Beaven (University) - Bishop of Mashonaland (1911–1925)
James Harold Bell (St John's) - the Bishop of Knaresborough
David Williams Bentley (Cuths) - 7th Bishop of Barbados
Richard Blackburn (St John's) - Bishop of Warrington
John Boys (Hatfield) - Provincial Commissary to the Archbishop of Cape Town, 4th Bishop of Kimberley and Kuruman
Ronald Brown - Bishop of Birkenhead
Mark Bryant - Bishop of Jarrow
Cyril Bulley - Late Bishop of Penrith and Bishop of Carlisle
Edmund Capper - Bishop of St Helena (1967 –1973)
Sydney Caulton (St Chad's) - Dean of Auckland, Bishop of Melanesia
Alan Chesters (St Chad's) - Bishop of Blackburn 1989-2003, made Hon. Fellow at St Chad's in 2010
Steven Croft (St John's) - Bishop of Sheffield
Harold Darby - former Bishop of Sherwood
David Edwardes Davies - Bishop of Bangor 1944 –1949
Mark Davies (Ushaw) - Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury
Peter Dawes (Hatfield) - Bishop of Derby, 1988–95
Michael Doe - former Bishop of Swindon
Christopher Paul Edmondson (St John's) - Bishop of Bolton
Christopher Foster (Castle) - Bishop of Portsmouth
George Frodsham (University) - Bishop of North Queensland (1902 –1913)
John Gaisford - Bishop of Beverley
Michael Frederick Gear (St John's) - former Suffragan Bishop of Doncaster
John Gladwin (St John's) - Bishop of Chelmsford
John Goddard - Bishop of Burnley
Frederick Goldie (Hatfield) - Bishop of Glasgow and Galloway (1974-1980)
Alastair Haggart (Hatfield) - Bishop of Edinburgh in 1975-85
Temple Hamlyn (Hatfield) - Bishop of Accra (1908 – 1910)
Clive Handford (Hatfield) - Bishop in Cyprus and the Gulf (1996–2007)
Ralph Hawkins (Hatfield) - Bishop of Bunbury
Robert Hay - Bishop of Tasmania (1919 –1943)
Samuel Heaslett - Bishop of South Tokyo (1921 – 1941)
Michael Henshall (St Chad's) - former Bishop Suffragan of Warrington (1976–96)
George Hills (Castle) - first bishop of the Diocese of British Columbia
Nick Holtham (Collingwood) - Bishop of Salisbury
William Walsham How (Castle) - first Bishop of Wakefield
John Howe - Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane (1955– 1969)
John Taylor Hughes (Bede) - former Bishop of Croydon and Bishop to the Forces
John Inge (St Chad's) - Bishop of Worcester, Honorary Fellow of St Chad's
Michael Ipgrave (St Chad's) - Area Bishop of Woolwich
Francis Johnston (Hatfield) - Bishop of Egypt (1952-1958)
Thomas Sherwood Jones - Bishop of Hulme 1930 –1945
William Stanton Jones - Bishop of Sodor and Man 1928–1942
Donald Knowles (Hatfield) - Bishop of Antigua (1953 – 1969)
Libby Lane (St John's) - Bishop of Stockport, first woman consecrated a Church of England bishop
James Linton - Anglican Bishop in Persia
Evered Lunt (University) - Bishop of Stepney 1957 –1968
Peter Maurice - Bishop of Taunton
Sandy Millar - Anglican bishop appointed by the Church of Uganda as a Bishop in Mission to London
Vernon Nicholls - Bishop of Sodor and Man (1974–1983)
Cecil Norgate (St Chad's) - former Bishop of Masasi, Tanzania
Robert Paterson (St John's) - Bishop of Sodor and Man
Geoffrey Seagrave Pearson (St John's) - Bishop of Lancaster
Anthony Russell (Chad's) - Honorary Fellow, retired Lord Bishop of Ely
Mark Rylands (Hild Bede) - Bishop of Shrewsbury
Frank Sargeant - Bishop of Stockport (1984–1994); Bishop at Lambeth (1994–1999)
John Saxbee (St John's) - Bishop of Lincoln
Bertram Simpson - Bishop of Kensington (1932–1942); Bishop of Southwark (1942–1959)
David Stancliffe - Fellow of St Chad's, retired Bishop of Salisbury
William Nigel Stock (Cuths) - current Bishop at Lambeth, former Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich
Cyril Swaby - Bishop of Jamaica 1968–1975
Proctor Swaby - Bishop of Guyana and Bishop of Barbados
Gordon Tindall (Hatfield) - Bishop of Grahamstown (1964 – 1969)
John Tinsley - Bishop of Bristol
Michael Turnbull (St John's) - Bishop of Durham (1994–2003)
James Turner - Second Bishop of Grafton and Armidale, Australia
William Van Mildert - former Bishop of Durham
Martin Warner (St Chad's) - Bishop of Chichester
Martin Wharton (Van Mildert) - Lord Bishop of Newcastle
John Wilson (Ushaw) - Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster
Paul Gavin Williams (Grey) - Bishop of Kensington
Alexander Chriholm - Archdeacon of Carlisle
Richard Gillings (St Chad's) - Archdeacon of Macclesfield (1994–2004)
Thomas Hodgson - Archdeacon of Huntingdon 1915–1921
Andrew Spens - Archdeacon of Lahore (1892–1900)
Charles Thorp - former rector of Ryton; former Archdeacon of Durham; virtual founder and first Warden of the University, first master of University College
Paul Wheatley - Archdeacon of Sherborne 1991–2003
Thomas Williams - Archdeacon of Craven
Bill Baddeley - Dean of Brisbane
Edward Frossard - Dean of Guernsey
John Robert Hall (St Chad's) - Dean of Westminster from 2006, Dean of the Order of the Bath since 2006, made a Hon. Fellow of St Chad's in 2009
William Kay (Hatfield) - Provost of Blackburn Cathedral, 1936–61
John Anthony McGuckin, Orthodox Christian priest, scholar, and poet
Robert Pope - Dean of Gibraltar 1977–1982
John Seaford (St Chad's) - Dean of Jersey and Rector of St Helier (1993–2005)
Michael Tavinor - Dean of Hereford
Provosts, Canons and Presbyters
Peter Adam (St John's) - Australian Christian minister, vicar of St Jude's Church in Carlton, Melbourne, and principal of Ridley Melbourne
Joseph Cassidy - Principal of St Chad's College, non-residentiary canon of Durham Cathedral
George Dragas - Orthodox Christian priest, theologian, and writer, currently professor of patristics at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology
Margaret Dryburgh - missionary in Singapore, where she was captured in the Second World War; the plight of Dryburgh and her fellow inmates in a Japanese prisoner of war camp inspired the 1997 film Paradise Road
John Galbraith Graham (St Chad's) - British crossword puzzle writer, 'Araucaria' of The Guardian
Robert William Bilton Hornby (Castle) - antiquarian and priest at York Minster
Alan Horsley (St Chad's) - Provost of St. Andrew's Cathedral, Inverness (1988 to 1991)
. John Anthony McGuckin (Ushaw College), Nielsen Professor of Church History, Union Theological Seminary New York - Orthodox Archpriest, Fellow of the Royal Historical Society
Hugh McIntosh (Hatfield) - Provost of St Mary's Cathedral, Glasgow (1966 - 1970)
John McManners (St Chad's) - Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History at Oxford and winner of the Wolfson History Prize
Christopher Pullin (St Chad's) - Canon Chancellor of Hereford Cathedral
Neil Thompson (Bede) - Canon Precentor at Rochester Cathedral
Richard Turnbull (St John's) - Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford
Stephen Warner (Castle) - Rector of Holy Trinity, Eastbourne
John Henry Blunt - English divine
Houn Jiyu-Kennett - Zen Buddhist teacher of the Sōtō school; founder of Shasta Abbey in the United States
Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, after whom the Al-Qasimi Building is named
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) — cricketer, Surrey and Gloucestershire wicket-keeper and opening batsman
Mark Chilton - cricketer and former Lancashire captain
Holly Colvin (St Mary's) - England cricketer; member of the current England women's cricket team; holds the record of being the youngest Test cricketer of either sex to play for England
Nick Compton - cricketer
Matthew Creese - cricketer
Tim Curtis (Hatfield) - England cricketer
Lee Daggett - Cricketer
Brian Evans, cricketer, Hertfordshire batsman
Laurie Evans - English cricketer
Robert Ferley - English cricketer
James Foster (Collingwood) - cricketer, Essex and England wicketkeeper
Graeme Fowler (Bede) - former England and Lancashire cricketer; current coach of the MCC Centre of Excellence
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 - cricketer
Douglas Lockhart - cricketer
Alex Loudon (Collingwood) - Warwickshire and England cricketer, all-rounder
Gehan Mendis (Bede) - Sussex and Lancashire cricketer
Tim O'Gorman (St Chad's) - cricketer, former Derbyshire opening batsman
Will Smith (Collingwood) - Durham County Cricket Club Captain
Martin Speight (St Chad's) - former Durham County Cricket Club wicketkeeper
Alexander Stead - cricketer
Andrew Strauss (Hatfield) - cricketer, captain of the England Test cricket team
Frank 'Typhoon' Tyson (Hatfield) - former England cricketer and Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1956
Robbie Williams - cricketer
Matthew Windows (Hild Bede) - Gloucestershire cricketer
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
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)
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, scoring a try in the 14-14 draw at Eden Park
Will Greenwood (Hatfield) - England rugby player
Charlie Hodgson - England rugby player
Marcus Rose (Hatfield) - England rugby union international full back
Tim Stimpson (Grey) - rugby union player and England international (1996-2002)
Dave Walder (Hatfield) - rugby union footballer, fly-half for the Mitsubishi Dynaboars in Japan
Ben Woods (Hatfield) - former rugby union player who played for Newcastle Falcons and Leicester Tigers as an openside flanker
Jonathan Edwards (Van Mildert) - Olympic gold medal-winning triple jumper
Sophie Hosking (Trevelyan) - Olympic Gold medal winning rower at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the lightweight double sculls
Stephen Rowbotham (Collingwood) - Olympic rower, Bronze medallist at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Warren Bradley (Hatfield) - Manchester United and England footballer
Peter Elleray (Collingwood) - Formula One and Le Mans Race Car designer
Oliver Gill (Cuths) - footballer for Manchester United Football Club
Wade Hall-Craggs (Grey) - Olympic rower
Michael Knighton (Cuths) - Chairman of Carlisle United F.C.
Tracy Langlands (St Mary's) - rower
Rahul Mehta (St. Mary's) - Indian long distance runner, most famous for his victory in the 2001 Great North Run
Louisa Reeve (Hatfield) - British rower
Stephanie Solomonides (Grey) - first Cypriot to trek 900 kilometres (559.23 mi) from the Antarctic coast to the South Pole
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
Shirrin Gerami - First Iranian woman triathlete
Writers and journalists
Dave Anderson (Collingwood) - cartoon and animation writer
Russell Ash (Cuths) – author of Top 10 of Everything
Tim Atkin - wine correspondent
Lucy Beresford (Trevelyan) - writer, psychotherapist and media commentator
John Blackburn - author
David J. Bodycombe (Trevelyan) - puzzle-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
Richard Caddel - poet, publisher and editor
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
Stephen Davies (Collingwood) - children's author
Mark Elliott (Collingwood) - travel writer
Harold Evans (Castle) - journalist; former editor of The Sunday Times and The Times; author of The American Century
Nigel Farndale - writer in the Sunday Telegraph
Jonah Fisher (Collingwood) - BBC journalist
Tim FitzHigham (St Chad's) - award-winning British comedian, author, and world record holder
John Galbraith Graham (St Chad's) - crossword compiler, "Araucaria" of The Guardian; Chaplain and tutor at St Chad's 1949–52
Graham Hancock - co-editor of New Internationalist magazine, 1976–1979; East Africa correspondent of The Economist, 1981-1983
Justin Hill (Cuths) - award-winning young author
Lorna Hill, born Lorna Leatham - children's writer, author of the Sadlers Wells series
James Kirkup (Grey) - travel writer, poet, novelist, playwright, translator, broadcaster, Hon. Fellow Grey College from 1992
Tina Kover (Ustinov) - translator
Allan Mallinson (St Chad's) - military historian and author of the Matthew Hervey novels
Rachel McCarthy (Castle) - poet, critic and broadcaster
David Mercer (King's) - English playwright and dramatist
Joseph Stevenson (Castle) - English Catholic archivist
Mary Stewart (Hild) - novelist
Patrick Tilley - science fiction author (The Amtrak Wars)
Dan van der Vat (Cuths) - journalist, author
Jeremy Vine (Hatfield) - journalist and early member of The Durham Revue
Minette Walters (Trevelyan) - bestselling author and crime writer
