Hulme alumni
We have over four centuries of history where some truly remarkable people have studied at Hulme. We’re proud of our alumni’s achievements and love to celebrate their stories.
Brian Cox CBE FRS (born 3 March 1968)
…is an English physicist and musician who is a professor of particle physics in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manchester and the Royal Society Professor for Public Engagement in Science. He is best known to the public as the presenter of science programmes, especially BBC Radio 4’s The Infinite Monkey Cage and the Wonders of… series and for popular science books, such as Why Does E=mc2? and The Quantum Universe.
Sarah Lancashire OBE (born 10 October 1964)
…is an English actress. Known for her work in television and theatre, she has received numerous accolades over a career spanning four decades, including two British Academy Television Awards and a nomination for an Olivier Award. She was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2017 for services to drama.
Major Ivan Hirst (1 March 1916 – 10 March 2000)
…was a British Army officer and engineer who was instrumental in reviving Volkswagen from a single factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, into a major postwar automotive manufacturer.
Dame Susan Mary Bailey, DBE, FRCPsych (class of 1969)
…is a British psychiatrist and academic who specialises in children’s mental health. Since 2004, she has been Professor of Child Mental Health at the University of Central Lancashire. From 2011 to 2014, she was President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Since January 2015, she has been Chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges.
Nadine Merabi (class of 1998)
…is a British-Lebanese fashion designer and former field hockey player. During school, Nadine became a hockey player, which earned her a scholarship to study at the University of Bath. Following 10 years playing hockey for England at an international level until 2007, Nadine explored different career options before landing on design. She started by teaching herself how to sew through YouTube video tutorials before launching her MERABI brand. Nadine’s designs have been worn on the red carpet events including the National Television Awards, Cannes Film Festival, and the BAFTAS.
Dr David Nott (class of 1975)
David gained his medical degree from Manchester University and in 1992 gained his FRCS from the Royal College of Surgeons of England to become a Consultant Surgeon.
David specialises in vascular and trauma surgery and also performs cancer surgery at the Royal Marsden Hospital. David is an authority in laparoscopic surgery and was the first surgeon to combine laparoscopic and vascular surgery.
For the past 30 years David has taken unpaid leave to work for the aid agencies Médecins Sans Frontières, the International Committee of the Red Cross and Syria Relief. He has provided surgical treatment to patients in conflict and catastrophe zones in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Chad, Darfur, Yemen, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, Syria, Central African Republic, Palestine, Nepal and Ukraine.
Chinedum (Nedum) Onuoha (class of 2002)
…is an English former professional footballer and television pundit for ESPN. He also works for Manchester City as a community ambassador. As a player he was a centre back, but could also play at right back or left back. Nedum came through the academy at Manchester City going on to make 95 appearances in the Premier League over an 8 year-spell with the club. He also spent time playing in the top flight for Sunderland and Queens Park Rangers.
John Stapleton (class of 1962)
…is an English journalist and broadcaster. He is known for his work as a presenter and reporter on ITV breakfast television (TV-am, GMTV and Daybreak) in addition to hosting Nationwide and Watchdog for the BBC. He won the Royal Television Society’s News Presenter of the Year award for 2003.
Nicola White, MBE (class of 2006)
…is an English international field hockey player who plays as a forward for England and Great Britain. Nicola now plays club hockey in the Women’s England Hockey League Premier Division for Hampstead & Westminster, joining the club for the 2020-21 season after many successful years playing for Holcombe. Nicola won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games and a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games.
Claire O’Grady (class of 1998)
…is a Group Captain and Station Commander at the RAF’s Air Mobility Base. Claire has over 20 years military experience as a Personnel Officer specialising in Personnel, Infra and welfare. Commanded a wing of circa 120 personnel responsible for catering, security, HR, fitness and training in support of a Main Operating Base of 3,000 personnel. Claire is also Chair of the RAF Gender Network.
Heather Lacey (class of 2012)
…is an activist, writer, researcher and public speaker, whose experience of cerebral palsy, Scheuermann’s kyphosis and mental illness led her to find solace in social media and eventually start her blog, nosuperhero.co.uk. She is actively involved in improving disability awareness in businesses in the northwest.
Heather is also a director of Inclusive Minds Collective CIC and works to ensure children’s books represent all lived experiences so that children can see themselves on the pages of their books.
Heather has won several awards and accolades, including Northern Power Women Future List 2020, Business Live ‘Rising Star’, 2020 and Shaw Trust Power 100 List for 2018 and 2019.
Brogan Crowley (class of 2010)
…is a full-time athlete representing Great Britain in Skeleton. Brogan made her World Cup debut in Sigulda in the final race of the 2019/20 season and set a personal best of fifth in Igls in the competition in 2020/21.
She became an Olympian at the Beijing Games in February 2022 when she placed 23rd at the showpiece event of the cycle after laying down a top-five start in each of her three runs.
Shobna Gulati MBE DL (class of 1985)
…is a British actress and presenter. Shobna is known for her roles as Anita in dinnerladies, and Sunita Alahan in the soap opera Coronation Street from 2001 to 2013. From 2013 to 2014, Shobna appeared as a panellist on the lunchtime talk show Loose Women. She took over the role of Ray in the West End production of Everybody’s Taking About Jamie in 2019 and also reprised the role for the movie adaptation. Most recently, she played the role of Nima in Hullraisers, Mari Hoff in the 2022 UK Tour of The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, and is reprising the role of Ray in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie for the 2023-2024 UK and Ireland Tour. Shobna was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2024 Birthday Honours for services to the cultural industries.
Alicia Scholes (class of 2019)
…is an England National Netball Super League player. Alicia has competed in various international competitions, including an U17 tour in Australia and the Netball Europe U21 Championships in Northern Ireland in 2019 alongside Vitality Roses’ Berri Neil and Funmi Fadoju.
After joining Manchester Thunder, Alicia received a call-up to their Netball Super League squad for the 2021 season. Alicia moved to London Pulse in 2021. Domestic accolades include playing a key role in helping Pulse secure a historic spot in the Netball Super League Grand Final in 2023.
Andrew Kershaw (class of 1978)
…is a broadcaster and disc jockey, predominantly on radio, and known for his interest in world music.
Andrew’s shows feature a mix of country, blues, reggae, folk music, African music, spoken word performances and a wide variety of other music from around the world. Andrew has worked as a journalist for BBC Radio 4’s From Our Own Correspondent, the Today programme and The World Tonight. In his first year of broadcasting Andrew won his first gold Sony Award in 1987.
Professor Brian Worthington (class of 1956)
…was the first radiologist to be elected a Fellow of the Royal Society and is acknowledged as a pioneer in clinical magnetic resonance imaging. He was elected President of the British Institute of Radiology in 1988 and in 1990 was awarded the Gold Medal of the Society of Magnetic Resonance.
In 1998 he was elected Fellow of The Royal Society, the first radiologist to be admitted in its history and awarded the coveted Royal College of Radiologists Gold Medal for significant contribution in his field.
Darren Royle (class of 1992)
…is CEO of Oldham Athletic Football Club. Following his time at Hulme Grammar, Darren graduated in Sports Science and Psychology followed by a Master of Science in Exercise and Nutrition Science. Darren played semi-professional football for Oldham Athletic, Rochdale, Altrincham, Flixton, Ashton United and Radcliffe Borough whilst working as a Senior Business Manager at pharmaceutical giant, Merck. Moving into leadership roles in sports science and analytics, Darren became executive director and later executive chairman of Wigan Athletic. More recently, Darren formed a consortium buy-out of Oldham Athletic FC in 2022 where he now leads the football club.