Chinese finalists pose with Gromit at graduation ceremony in Beijing

Hundreds of Chinese students graduated from the University of Bristol today with a ceremony in Beijing.

Around 350 students returned to their native country after completing their studies at the British university and missed out on the traditional graduation ceremony.

So the university staged a special event in the Chinese capital – complete with a backdrop of Bristol’s Clifton Suspension Bridge and huge photos of the Harbourside.

Almost as good as the real thing…

There were also three-metre high pictures of university buildings such as the Wills Memorial Building and the Victoria Rooms, as well as life-size cut outs of Aardman’s Gromit.

More than 1,000 people went to the ceremony on Saturday, to be presented with their scrolls by the Chancellor, The Right Honourable the Baroness Hale of Richmond.

Gromit was undoubtedly the star of the show

Lady Hale said: “Graduation and events like these are the greatest pleasure of my role.

“It has been wonderful to celebrate with all our recent Chinese graduates here n Beijing and to share their pride and excitement.

We won’t ask how much flying you all out to Beijing cost us…

“Many of them told me how much they loved their time in Bristol and hope to return, which is fantastic to hear.”

It is the second time the university has hosted the overseas graduation ceremony to honour Chinese students, after an event in 2013.

The ceremony ensured Chinese students didn’t miss out on the weird graduation secret handshake

The do at the China World Hotel saw the students who left the university in 2014 and 2015 pose for photographs with life-size cut outs of Gromit statues, made popular by the trails in Bristol.

Stretching across the stage was a red Suspension Bridge made from pixels, and an honorary degree was presented to Professor Chunli Bai for his contribution to the field of nanoscience in China.

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Yuan Fang, who graduated with a masters in management in 2014, said: “I wasn’t able to travel back to Bristol for my own graduation so it has been great to have this celebration today.

“The large photos bring back many memories and it has been fun to take photos with old friends and lecturers. I’ve really enjoyed the day.”