Honorary Fellowships 2011
Honorary Fellowships are given in recognition of outstanding achievement by an individual in a given field or profession and to those who exemplify LJMU's ethos to 'dream, plan and achieve.'
Vice-Chancellor Professor Michael Brown said: "Our Honorary Fellows have all demonstrated a great desire to pursue their interests and ensure they are recognised as the best in their field.
“This determination makes them excellent role models for our graduates and proves to them that if you have a dream and plan your moves carefully, you can achieve anything. We are delighted to welcome these inspirational figures into the University family and recognise their outstanding achievements.”
This year LJMU will award Honorary Fellowships to:
Colonel John Blashford-Snell to recognise his pioneering work for young people. Explorer Colonel Blashford-Snell has led over 100 expeditions and in 1978 established Operation Raleigh, an educational initiative for young people. He also has particular charitable connections with Liverpool. In 1993 he chaired a £2.5 million appeal to establish a vocational training and guidance centre for young people and also helped set up the Liverpool Construction Crafts Guild to promote the training of skilled craftsmen in the city.
Norah Button for her outstanding contribution to the performing arts. Norah is Director and Principal of the Liverpool Theatre School, which has an ethos of supporting talented students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Norah has devoted her life to improving facilities for musical theatre students in Merseyside and further afield and has worked with several organisations including the International Dance Teachers’ Association and the Government’s Qualifications Curriculum Authority. Norah herself began dancing at the age of three and has enjoyed an extensive theatre career including appearances in three Royal Command Performances. She also established the Liverpool Theatre Ballet Company and created choreography for the Ken Dodd Diddy Men and the ‘Carry On’ films.
Kim Cattrall in recognition of her outstanding contribution to performing arts. Kim was born in Liverpool, before emigrating to Canada at a young age and returning briefly aged eleven, in which time she took a number of acting examinations with the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Kim is patron of Liverpool cinema FACT and has also supported British educational charities linked to performing arts. She made her film debut in ‘Rosebud’ in 1975 before taking on a number of TV roles, returning to the big screen to stare opposite Jack Lemmon in his Oscar nominated film ‘Tribune’ and then starring in the critically acclaimed ‘Ticket to Heaven’. Her lead role in ‘Mannequin’ also proved a huge success with audiences. Kim gained international recognition as Samantha Jones in Darren Star's Sex and the City which saw her gain a Golden Globe Award in 2003 for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in television. She reprised the role of Samantha in the films of 2008 and 2010. Kim is also a successful stage and theatre actress with performances in Arthur Miller's ‘A View from the Bridge’ and Anton Chekhov's ‘Three Sisters’ with West End Productions including ‘Whose Life Is It Anyway?’ and most recently a critically acclaimed run in the London revival of Noel Coward's ‘Private Lives’. She also starred in an ITV production of ‘MyBoy Jack’, the story of author Rudyard Kipling's search for his son lost in World War I. In 2009, Kim returned to Liverpool to take part in the BBC TV show ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ where she traced her local family roots. It has been announced that Kim will play Cleopatra in a production of Anthony & Cleopatra, opposite Jeffery Kissoon, in Liverpool at the Playhouse in October 2010.
John Entwistle OBE in honour of his outstanding contributions to the visual arts. Formerly a Senior Partner with Liverpool law firm Maxwell Entwistle & Byrne, John is a former President of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce and British Chambers of Commerce. He is a former Trustee of the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside. John has given significant support to the Royal Academy of Arts (RA), he has been a Trustee of the RA Trust since 2006 and established an RA Postgraduate Scholarship for an LJMU graduate. He has helped the LJMU Art School establish a permanent gallery and is currently Chair of the LJMU Art and Design Academy Fundraising Board.
Bernard Hogan-Howe in recognition of his outstanding contributions in the field of law and order. Former Chief Constable of Merseyside Police and now appointed to Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Bernard was born in Sheffield and joined South Yorkshire Police in 1979, rising rapidly through the ranks. In 1997 he joined Merseyside Police as Assistant Chief Constable and, on appointment to Chief Constable in 2004, he declared his intention to make the force the best in the UK. His approach led to the force reducing crime by 29% and anti-social behaviour by 25% - the highest drop in recorded crime anywhere in the UK. He has an MA in Law from Oxford University, a diploma in Applied Criminology and was awarded an MBA in Business Administration from Sheffield University. He is a Companion of the Chartered Management Institute and has been awarded the Queen’s Police Medal.
Sir Tim Hunt for his outstanding contributions to the field of biochemistry. Born in Neston, Wirral, Sir Tim is an acclaimed international scientist who has had a long and illustrious career. He is a renowned cancer research specialist and has worked at Cancer Research UK since 1990. In 2001 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for his work on cell cycle regulation and in 2006 was awarded the Royal Medal from the Royal Society. In the same year he received his knighthood.
Richard Lester for outstanding and sustained contributions to the film industry. Richard has worked on several high profile films including ‘The Three Musketeers’, ‘Superman II’ and ‘Superman III’ but it is the Beatles’ films ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ and ‘Help!’ for which he is best known. Many of the stylistic innovations used in the two films survive today as the conventions of music videos, in particular the multi-angle filming of a live performance, and he has been hailed the ‘Father of the Music Video’ by MTV. Richard has also won the coveted Palme d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival for ‘The Knack …and How to Get It’ and is widely regarded as the film maker who successfully captured the youthful optimism of the ‘Swinging Sixties.’
Chrissie Maher OBE in recognition of her pioneering work in the field of communication. Chrissie is a founder of Plain English Campaign, an organisation that promotes the use of crystal-clear communications for the public, particularly by businesses and official bodies. Born in 1938, Chrissie largely missed out on formal education and could not read until she was in her mid‑teens. Harry Deverill, a Liverpool businessman, sent Chrissie to basic literacy classes that unlocked her world. To help others in a similar position she became heavily involved in community work and founded Britain's first community newspaper, 'The Tuebrook Bugle' and, the country's first newspaper for semi-literate adults, 'The Liverpool News’. Involvement in the community with projects like the original Docklands Action Group and the City’s first festival for the people ‘Liverpool Unlimited’, made Chrissie a familiar face in many grassroots issues. A natural development of Chrissie’s beliefs came with the encouragement of Sir John Moores and the formation of IMPACT community training. Chrissie went on to be a councillor on the National Consumer Council from 1975 to 1979 and it was during this time she started the Salford Form Market - a project to help people fill in forms - which led to the eventual birth of Plain English Campaign. Chrissie has been awarded an OBE and the Rosemary Delbridge Memorial Trophy for her campaigning activities.
Lord Jonathan Mance in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the legal profession. Justice of the Supreme Court, the Right Honourable Lord Mance, has enjoyed a long and established legal career. Among his many achievements he has held the offices of Lord Appeal in Ordinary, Lord Justice of Appeal and Judge of the High Court, Queen’s Bench Division, when he was also awarded his knighthood. In addition he represents the UK on and was from 2000-2003 the first chair of the Council of Europe’s Consultative Council of European Judges. Until September 2009 he also served on the House of Lords European Union Select Committee, chairing its sub-committee responsible for scrutinising European legal and institutional proposals and participating in its report on the Lisbon Treaty in 2008. He also reported in 2008 on the issue of Justice and Impunity in the Congo, and currently chairs the International Law Association and the Lord Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law.
Gerry Marsden MBE in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the performing arts. Gerry is best known as the lead singer of the band Gerry & The Pacemakers and has enjoyed several number one hits including ‘How Do You Do It,’ ‘I Like It’ and ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone.’ Internationally renowned as a true ambassador of Liverpool, Gerry’s songs positively promote the city, with ‘Ferry Cross the Mersey’ being one of Liverpool’s most iconic songs. Alongside music Gerry is a well-known television personality and has also appeared on stage in the West End. He has been awarded the Freedom of the City and one of the few recipients of the Freedom of the Ferries.
David Molyneux to recognise his outstanding contributions in the field of tropical medicine and international health. David was Director of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Professor of Tropical Health Sciences of The University of Liverpool. Prior to joining the School he was Professor of Biology, and Dean of Science at the University of Salford. David graduated from Cambridge University before embarking on a career in medical parasitology. His research work was recognised by the award of a DSc from the University of Salford and medals from the British Society for Parasitology, the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and the American Society of Tropical Medicine. He has acted as a consultant on tropical health issues to several UN agencies and the World Bank and the UK Department for International Development and has chaired several WHO Committees on Tropical Diseases. He has published over 300 papers and authored and edited two major text books.
Alison Steadman OBE in recognition of her outstanding contribution to performing arts. Alison was born in Liverpool and moved to London in her twenties, enrolling in the East 15 Acting School. Her extensive career has included stage, film, TV and radio appearances. Most recently, Liverpool welcomed Alison home for a screening of Mike Leigh’s ‘Life is Sweet’, in support of the Clapperboard UK Youth Project - which helps young people across the region to write, perform and create their own films. Alison created the role of Beverly in Leigh’s ‘Abigail’s Party’, and has appeared in a range of stage productions including ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ and ‘Hotel Paradiso’, some of which have brought her back to Liverpool, performing at the Everyman. Her successful on stage career saw Alison win the Olivier Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her role as Mari in ‘The Rise and Fall of Little Voice’. She has appeared in many films; from ‘Shirley Valentine’ to her notable performance in ‘Life is Sweet’. Alison is also a regular face in TV drama, with credits including ‘Gavin and Stacey’, ‘Pride and Prejudice’, and ‘Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years’. In 2000 she was awarded an OBE for services to British drama.
John Timpson CBE in recognition of his outstanding contributions to business and industry. John Timpson, chairman of the highly successful Timpson high street chain, is one of the UK’s most successful businessman. Ten years after the Timpson family business was taken over in 1973, John led a £42m management buyout. Timpson, now a private business wholly owned by John Timpson and family, has over 850 branches nationwide with a turnover of £150m and profits of over £10m. John has written several management books and has his own columns in the Daily Telegraph and Real Business magazine. In 2004 he was awarded the CBE in the Birthday Honours List for Services to the Retail Sector.
Professor Phil Redmond CBE, will become an Ambassador Fellow in recognition of his outstanding personal contributions to LJMU and for his continued commitment to the city.
LJMU will also present a Corporate Award to:
Aintree Racecourse in recognition of the influence of the organisation in portraying a positive image of Merseyside. Aintree Racecourse is renowned worldwide for its high standards of customer service and has played a vital role to the city of Liverpool in encouraging sustained investment in terms of both tourism and business.
The Fellowships and Corporate Awards will be presented during LJMU’s forthcoming graduation ceremonies week commencing 12 July 2010.
