In honour of International Women’s Day, here are six inspiring women who studied in Leeds

When you’re experiencing iconic Leeds rites of passage, such as your first time stumbling your way through the Otley run, or skipping that 9am seminar after one too many VKs at Warehouse, it probably doesn’t occur to you to wonder which famous faces have potentially gone through the same thing.

While Leeds isn’t quite as chock full of celebrity alumni as the likes of Oxbridge, there are plenty of notable figures who went to uni here, from politicians to activists to singers and actresses. 

In honour of International Women’s Day, here’s six iconic women who you (probably) didn’t know went to uni in Leeds.

Lucy Bronze

Via Wikimedia Commons

As well as being part of the iconic Lionesses lineup that brought England to victory in the Euros last year, footballer Lucy Bronze is also an alumna of Leeds Beckett University.

At Beckett, she (unsurprisingly) studied sports science, graduating in 2013. While she was completing her studies, she was also balancing playing professionally for Everton and Liverpool, which really throws the struggles of juggling uni work and Mischief attendance into perspective.

Gina Martin

Via YouTube

An alumna of Leeds College of Art (now Leeds Arts University), where she studied creative advertising, Gina Martin is a women’s rights activist, author and public speaker.

She first gained recognition for her campaign to make upskirting illegal in England and Wales. Martin began the campaign in 2017 after experiencing upskirting herself at a music festival, and receiving worldwide attention from posting her story online.

In 2019, her hard work paid off in the form of the brand-new Voyeurism Act coming into effect, which amended the Sexual Offences Act 2003 to make upskirting a specific sexual offence. 

Emma Mackey

Via Wikimedia Commons

Best known for her role as the grungy, charismatic and lowkey way-out-of-Otis’s-league Maeve Wiley in Netflix’s Sex Education, Emma Mackey moved from France to study English language and literature at the University of Leeds in 2013.

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Since graduation, she has gone on to star in plenty of huge films such as Death on the Nile and Barbie. Her work has earned her several prestigious awards, which include the BAFTA rising star award and the National Comedy Award.

Catherine Connolly

Via Wikimedia Commons

After earning her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Galway, the current president of Ireland Catherine Connolly studied for her master’s in clinical psychology from the University of Leeds in 1981. When she was elected president in 2025, she obtained the highest number of first-preference votes ever received by an Irish electoral candidate.

Even before taking office, she had already accumulated several other impressive achievements, including qualifying as a barrister and serving 17 years as a councillor in Galway . Oh, and if all this wasn’t boast-worthy enough, she’s also run so many marathons that she says she’s lost count. 

Corinne Bailey Rae

Via Wikimedia Commons

Born and bred in Leeds, Corinne Bailey Rae is an acclaimed singer and songwriter. You might know her from the relentlessly mood-boosting single “Put your records on”, which saw her gain Grammy nominations for Best New Artist, Song of the Year and Record of the Year in 2006. Since then, she has released three albums and become an ambassador to multiple charities.

Prior to fame, she studied English language and literature at the University of Leeds, graduating in 2000. For a period after uni, she even worked in the Clock Café, which was located next door to the iconic post night-out pit stop of Crispy Fish and Chips.

Esther Simpson

If you’re a student at University of Leeds, you might be familiar with the name Esther Simpson from the building named in her honour, which boasts spacious lecture theatres and a rather banging café. However, what you might not know is that Esther Simpson herself was an alumna of the university and unsung hero of the Second World War.

After graduating with a first class degree in Modern Languages all the way back in 1925, Simpson went on to play a vital role at the Society for Protection of Science and Learning. The organisation was dedicated to helping academics fleeing from Nazi rule by offering them grants and employment assistance. Through her efforts, she saved hundreds of scholars from the Nazi regime, including 16 Nobel prize winners.

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Featured image via Wikimedia Commons.