Stars to receive honorary degrees at DMU

Thousands of students at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) are getting ready to celebrate the end of years of hard work at graduation ceremonies starting this Saturday.

Joining them on stage at Curve theatre will be figures from the worlds of TV, sport, global business and the Church who will collect honorary degrees.

Sherlock star Una Stubbs – who plays housekeeper Mrs Hudson in the Bafta winning series – will be made an honorary Doctor of Arts. Ms Stubbs, who grew up in Burbage, Leicestershire, has a career spanning six decades in film, television and the theatre.

Rugby star Ben Cohen MBE, who was part of England’s legendary World Cup-winning team, will become an honorary Doctor of Arts for his work to create the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation. It is the world’s first foundation formed specifically to tackle bullying and promote equality.

Holocaust survivor Eva Clarke becomes an honorary Doctor of Laws for her passion and commitment to fight prejudice and extremism, Dr Michael Ipgrave OBE, the Rt Rev Bishop of Woolwich, becomes an honorary Doctor of Letters and Steph Morgan QPM, policy advisor to Leicestershire Police and former Assistant Chief Constable, receives an honorary Doctor of Laws.

John Knudsen, of the Niels Brock Copenhagen Business College, will be made an honorary Master of Education. John Sinnott CBE, chief executive of Leicestershire County Council, receives an Honorary Doctor of Laws; Dr Gordon Muirhead, vice-president global manufacturing and supply at GlaxoSmithKline, becomes an honorary Doctor of Science.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Dominic Shellard said: “DMU’s graduation ceremonies are a very special time for our students and for our university, as we proudly celebrate their achievements and look forward to their future careers.

“This is a week full of celebrations when our students will be joined by honorary graduates who have each made a significant contribution to public life.”  

DMU’s graduation ceremonies come just as the university is named in the top 25 for UK universities with the best employability rates. 

Results showed that 95.8 per cent of DMU graduates were in work or further study six months after graduating, above the national average of 93.2 per cent. More than three quarters of them were in graduate-level jobs.