Anita Chagar (BA English Literature, 2015), Samita Sall (Ba History, 2018) and Kerry Flora (BA French with Spanish, 2022) are all cousins and Warwick alumnae. We caught up with them to talk to them about their time on campus, their favourite memories from their time here and what they’re doing now.

Two Warwick alumni have scooped the win at the StudyUK Awards that celebrates UK higher education and achievements of alumni across the world.

Benjamin Nuga (BA French with Chinese, 2022), has already diversified his skill set by working as a production assistant, scriptwriter, and musician and he’s also been a contestant on Countdown. Having only graduated in 2022, his achievements are centered around his willingness to step outside his comfort zone.

Theatre company, Speakbeast, is made up of Warwick alumni and students who are interested in creating original theatre that focuses on queerness, transness, and what it means to be human in a mechanised world. They’ve been shortlisted for the Untapped 2024 award and will be taking their debut show, The Freemartin, to Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2024.

Theatre and Performance Studies students were able to hear from alumni Zoe Templeman-Young (BA Theatre and Performance Studies, 2013) and CJ Webley (BA Theatre and Performance Studies, 2015) at a careers event in January.

Friendship, warmth, fun, and connections were the foundations that encouraged Puri Ragini (BA History and Politics, 2020) to head to Warwick and build a successful career in the social sector.

For Michael Ojetunde (BA French and Economics, 2022), opting to study a language was always part of a grander plan.

A chance meeting at Coventry Station led Sheena Harvey to a successful 40-year career in journalism. Those early years on the University’s newsletter created incredible memories for Sheena (BA Comparative American Studies, 1977), and paved the way for decades of writing and editing on magazines found in homes all over the UK.

Earlier this year, alumna and activist Jo Todd (BA English and European Literature, 1990) received a CBE in recognition of 30+ years’ service to the victims of domestic abuse. From volunteering at a refuge in the outskirts of London, to more than 20 years as CEO of Respect - the pioneering charity tackling the root of the problem - Jo has dedicated her life to making a positive difference. And she’s not finished yet.

If you enjoy Ukrainian cuisine, you may own a copy of Olia Hercules’ (BA Italian and International Studies, 2006) recipe books. But, you may be surprised to hear that Olia’s journey started not in the kitchen, but in the corridors of Warwick.

With nearly a decade in the British Army including tours of Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan before coming to Warwick, Lee Kemp (BA Film with Television Studies, 2007) had an unusual path to his degree. But it was a simple truth that made his decision.

After a long career in public relations, Dianne Page (Dipl History of Art, 2007; MA History of Art, 2009) took the plunge to pursue her passion for the arts via Warwick. Now with three novels under her belt and a fourth in the works, Dianne reflects on the milestones that got her here.

Growing up in northwest London, Kaya Patel (BA Film and LiteratureLink opens in a new windowLink opens in a new window, 2020) considered universities around the UK. But she chose to move to the Midlands for her undergraduate experience because she trusted her intuition.  

Recent graduate Carolina Sagardoy Saavedra (BA History of Art, 2019) always knew she had a passion for fine art. She turned that passion into a reality – graduating from Warwick and moving to New York to study a Masters’ degree in Art Business at the world-renowned Sotheby’s Institute of Art. Today, she uses the knowledge she gained at Warwick to help art be bought and sold across the world.

"My book, Memorable Loss, is being released on 11 July 2023. I began it whilst writing in Prof Andrew Williams' non-fiction class, and developed it in the Memory Studies unit with Prof Alison Ribeiro de Menezes. Following encouragement from Alison, I was fortunate enough to be mentored by Prof Maureen Freely for a year, whilst I concentrated on crafting my book."

"I have been awarded the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award for my outstanding contribution to horror fiction.

The Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award is the most prestigious recognition in the horror genre. It is presented to individuals who have made significant and sustained contributions to the horror genre throughout their careers. Previous recipients include Stephen King, Christopher Lee, Peter Straub, Koji Suzuki, Robert McCammon, Ray Bradbury, and Anne Rice."

For more than half a century, Warwick has forged a deep relationship with the city. The Faculty of Arts has taught generations of our students during their Venice terms. Since 2007, we have had a physical base in the Palazzo Pesaro Papafava.

From May 2023, our undergraduates, postgraduates and staff will have a new base - a wonderful late 17th century building in Palazzo Giustinian Lolin, right on the Grand Canal of Venice. As we get ready to open the building, we would love to share some alumni memories of studying in Venice over the years.

We caught up with Dr Kimberley Thomas (BA History 2010, MA History 2011, PhD Caribbean Studies, 2020) to talk about her time at Warwick, ahead of her return to deliver a Caribbean seminar series.

Features writer and editor for The Boar, Vice President of Warwick HisSoc and Deputy Editor of Warwick Politics Society’s Perspectives, alumna Celia Bergin (BA History and Politics, 2022) certainly made the most of her time at Warwick. Graduating with a first-class degree, she jumped straight into the world of journalism. Now working as a reporter for Bloomberg News, Celia reflects on how these experiences helped her get there.

Journalist, author, higher education professional, proof-reader, and editor Annette Rubery (PhD English and Comparative Literary Studies, 1999) has spent the 30-plus years since graduating honing her editorial and marketing skillset.

When Jo Walker (BA Theatre and Performance Studies, 2020) first met Vikram Grover (BA English and Theatre Studies, 2021) it was their mutual love of the theatre and performance that built a firm friendship. Working to establish BAME Creatives, a society dedicated to diversifying theatre at Warwick, they found themselves falling in love. Four years later they’ re still together and working in an industry that came to life through their time at Warwick.

"I look back on my time at university with fondness. As a blind person, I had extra challenges, but I found Warwick to be a friendly and supportive environment. There was a group of volunteers who read course material onto tape for me so it was accessible to me, and extra power points and bookshelves were put in my room, the former for the electronic equipment with synthetic speech I used to write essays on, and the latter for some braille books, which are a lot bigger and bulkier than print books. I'm grateful to the university for organising those things."

Postgraduate, multilingual translator and communications specialist - languages alumnus Dom Johnson has been busy since leaving Warwick in 2019. After almost three years working in Geneva as a translator for Swiss Federal Railways and Swiss Post, Dom (BA Modern Languages, 2018; MA Translation and Cultures, 2019) swapped proofreading for politics, moving back to the UK after securing a role as a Communications Officer for the Green Party of England and Wales.

First-class Classics graduate and Senior Policy Advisor, Dillon Patel (BA Ancient History and Classical Archaeology, 2017) shares how Warwick shaped his thinking, the power of soft skills, and how the past isn’t so dissimilar from the present day.

First class graduate Fay Inverarity (BA German Studies, 2021; MA Translation and Cultures, 2022) is translating her academic passions into a budding career after securing a place on Barclays’ Retail Banking Graduate Scheme.

Ruth Ntumba (BA History, 2021) has spent her first 18 months since graduating helping drive engagement and culture at one of the world’s leading media corporations, Warner Brothers Discovery. Ruth shares why you should go at your own pace and trust your gut instinct when searching for your next role.

Superstar screenwriter. Matcha maniac. Intern turned international TV writer. Cat lover. Origin originator. Warwick alumna. These are just some of the phrases that describe English graduate and one of the world’s youngest showrunners, Mika Watkins.

A veteran of the City of London, Chris Wheeler (MA Modern History, 2021) spent more than 40 years in banking, working, and travelling across the globe. But he swapped investment banking for US antebellum history and Irish diaspora and fulfilled his childhood dream when he began furthering his education journey, first studying History at the University of Oxford before completing an MA in Modern History at Warwick. Chris embarked on his PhD at the University of Edinburgh in September 2022.

BA English and Theatre Studies alumna Vinitaraj Aulak may have only graduated in 2021, but she wasted no time chasing her dreams and securing a radio presenter role on BBC Asian Network. Here she shares how her undergraduate degree taught her to break the mould and follow her passions.

Thinking studying languages would progress his scientific career, Tim Heenan (BA European Studies, 2015; MA French Studies, 2020) undertook two degrees at Warwick. He didn’t know those lessons would pay dividends for years to come. At 71, Tim’s putting his research skills to good use and supporting his local community – and he’s not planning on slowing down.

"I miss the fun we had when we were students at Warwick- turning up to lectures dripping wet after water fights in the summer.

I remember Rag Week- students being followed by other students dressed as giant gnomes!"

For Classics alumna Katharine Broderick (BA Classical Civilisation, 2021, MA by Research Classics and Ancient History, 2022), 2022 started and ended on a high. From having successfully produced Bacchae for the Warwick Ancient Drama Festival earlier in January to submitting the final assignment for her Master's degree, Katharine reflects on her time at Warwick and the relevance of Ancient Greek plays in modern society.

From combat to craftsmanship and opera to Oscars, Greg Campbell (BA Theatre Studies, 1987) has spent many years of his life in the creative arts. Since then, he’s completed a postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE), two masters’ degrees and is underway with an Education PhD. But it was only when he received his ADHD diagnosis that the world – and his struggles as an undergraduate - began to make more sense.

Warwick alumna Monita (MA Writing, 2011) is a content magician and pop culture enthusiast who has taken her skills across the world.

Emily Wells (BA English Literature and Creative Writing, 2013) has a job many booklovers would envy: she gets to read for a living. As Senior Editor for a division of world publishing giant Hachette, her week is spent dissecting what makes a story sell and succeed on the market.

Before Warwick, alumna Armani Chante Samuel-Smith (BA Film and Literature, 2022) was working with a charity supporting students from underprivileged backgrounds into the creative industry. Fast forward to now, she’s the proud owner of a first-class degree, her own production start-up, a role with Netflix, and even more determination to write her own shows. It’s no wonder she’s been featured on Powerful Media’s Future Leaders 2022/3 list, which recognises 150 of Britain’s most outstanding Black university students.

We know our arts alumni go on to do wonderful things after they leave us, and we love that everyone’s story is a little different. Arts advocate, Sunday Times columnist, mum, self-confessed cake scoffer, women’s fiction writer and ex Tellytubbyland resident alumna Pernille Hughes (BA Film and Literature, 1994) has had a rollercoaster of a journey since she graduated from Warwick. Here she tells us how she found her writing voice, and why your arts degree will always be a good talking point.

As a five-time Paralympic medallist, Kare Adenegan’s (BA History, 2022) sporting endeavours have played a big part in her university experience. No stranger to making history, Kare graduated with a first-class honours degree a week after claiming silver in the T33/34 100m at the Birmingham’s Commonwealth Games. Here Kare reflects on her studies and how we can all learn a lot from history.

From becoming the first in his family to go to university, Mike Burnett (BA History, 1975) has continued to evolve throughout a career in which he’s worked all over the world.

Theatre Director Ali Pidsley (BA English and Theatre Studies, 2014; MA English Literature, 2016) shares how Warwick inspired him to set up a different kind of theatre company.

New Vice Provost and Chair of the Faculty of Arts Professor Rachel Moseley speaks about her plans as Chair and why it’s such a positive time of growth and change for the arts at Warwick.

Kate Wilson (BA French with Italian, 2002) is not your typical languages alumna. After four years at Warwick, she launched herself into the world of emergency care and hasn’t looked back. Now, she’s using her powers for good to help with the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

Farah Williamson (BA French and History, 2006) is currently Director of Gulf & Strategic Partnerships at Plan International Canada, one of the world’s oldest and largest development and humanitarian organisations that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.

Dr David Coates has begun a five-year project that extends his research to date on the development of amateur theatre in Britain. The project team, made up of five scholars, will explore the cultural and political contexts that determined citizenship ideas and practices, as well as theatre.

Having just graduated in her MA in the History of Medicine, Kirstie reflects on the course and why she chose Warwick for postgraduate study.

Having joined as a trainee for just three months, Dr Andrew Whitehead (MA Social History, 1989; PhD History, 2013) went on to spend 35 years with BBC News. In his last role as Editor of BBC World Service News, Andrew was responsible for programming on the BBC's most widely listened to radio network with a global weekly reach of about 100 million listeners.

Laura Mathias on overcoming anxieties, managing alopecia and becoming the person she wanted to be at Warwick Driving positive dialogue and awareness about living with alopecia, Laura Mathias (BA Film and Literature, 2013) talks openly about her anxieties when she first started university, and how Warwick was where she became who she was always meant to be.

Have you ever wondered how people in the past dealt with their periods? If Queen Victoria coasted* through her cramps? What if period dramas really were about…periods?

Comedy, cabaret and tap collide in this hilarious one-woman show, teaching the history you never learnt at school. Armed with glitter, blood, some history books and an arsenal of embarrassing stories, History alumna, Heather Milsted is on a mission to push through the menstrual taboo and change the way we think about bleeding.

Audiences are invited to embrace themselves fully, let loose and have a BLOODY good time!

*Obviously she didn't. It was 1837.

Book: Period Dramas - The Hope Theatre & Period Dramas | Pleasance Theatre Trust

Theatre Performance Studies graduate, Dean Murphy discusses his career journey since leaving Warwick

Through her degree, Rebecca Preedy (BA Ancient History and Classical Archaeology with Study in Europe, (2021), MA Ancient Visual and Material Culture of Rome, present) has been able to combine her interests in ancient history, archaeology and languages. She talks about her Warwick experience, and the parallels between the ancient and modern worlds.

After a career in journalism where she launched The Sunday Times Short Story Award, Cathy Galvin (MA Writing, 2015) came to Warwick to explore her interest in short stories and discovered a love of poetry. She now helps other authors through her company, Word Factory.

"Being at Warwick was the best time ever! Before, I’d been a stage designer and illustrator and never dreamed, coming from a working class background, and the depths of darkest Coventry, that I’d ever be accepted into a university. I’d been told, in Sixth Form, that “girls from Secondary Modern Schools don’t go to university”, so getting that acceptance letter changed my whole life!"

"I am a graduate from many years ago – 1986. My journey has been wayward starting out with a degree in Theatre Studies with all good intentions, but then I was lured to the dark side and into the depths of taxation. First becoming an Inspector of Taxes for HM Revenue & Customs and then training as a chartered accountant with Big Four firm E&Y in London qualifying in 1992 as the first and at that time, only graduate from Theatre Studies."

"I have not had a career. I’ve simply had a long list of fascinating projects."

At 26, Sharon Plant was the youngest independent gallery owner in the country. She went on to become an art consultant; interviewing prominent creative figures, including Yoko Ono. She helped launch and direct the New Designers exhibition and was Festival Coordinator for the inaugural London Design Festival.

She is a painter, jazz musician and novelist. She looks back at her working life and shows how a career doesn't have to follow a traditional path.

"After graduating, I spent two years at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and then the next two years working (and resting) as a professional actor. In 1983 I started teaching English at The King's School in Worcester, staying there for my entire career until retirement in 2018. I was a housemaster for 21 of those 35 years and was involved in school sport and especially school drama, directing nearly 50 productions. I completed an MA at The Shakespeare Institute in 2012. I married Sarah in 1984 and we have two daughters, one a teacher and the other a lawyer."

"I am now a Lecturer in the Faculty of Education, University of Hong Kong. I recently received my Faculty’s Emergency Remote Teaching Award for my work in 2019-20 - the first time this Award has been given. One thing the Panel though especially worthy of mention was a project I set up in May 2020 called Hear This! A Festival of Radio Drama on Zoom."

"I studied Film and Literature at Warwick from 2004-2007 and I have to say it truly was one of the best experiences in terms of setting me up for my future career. I lived at Whitefields and was the girl who took photos and videos of every night out or night in and suddenly realised I should do something with all the media and memories I was acquiring. After my very first term, over the Christmas break, I decided to edit together a short movie with all the material I had shot - just for my housemates - and everyone loved it, so I carried on doing it each term."

"My two Masters years at Warwick passed so quickly, but I have many fond memories from them and I reminisce often of my classmates, the seminars, evening drinks at Fusion, the yummy treats and hot drinks at Curiositea, and the campus in general, where I’d spend many walks around and never get bored."

"Delighted to say I am still in touch with some very valued friends I met during my first few days at Warwick. I miss Rootes Hall bar most, as that is where I spent a great deal of my time during my first two years there!"

From working in a fish and chip shop to writing a play that’s been performed all over the world, Sam Steiner (English Literature , 2014) learned at Warwick how to take his stories in new directions. Most recently, he’s penned the script for Morning, a film starring Laura Dern and Benedict Cumberbatch set for release later this year. We spoke to Sam about his experience of breaking into playwriting for stage and screen.

"Every person has to face that moment in life when certain decisions have to be made as they have vast implications. It is in this context that after much deliberation and introspection, I decided to pursue my Masters in Global Media and Communication."

Ella McLeod’s debut novel Rapunzella, Or, Don't Touch My Hair started life as a poem written during her studies at Warwick. We asked Ella (BA English and Theatre Studies, 2017) how she was inspired to evolve the idea from its beginnings to her dissertation and now, her first book.

“World Book Day is about literacy and its place in a modern, equal society.” So believes Jane Burke (BA History, 1975), whose career has fuelled a passion to promote the joy of reading and access to books for all.

Children’s author Christy Kirkpatrick (BA Philosophy and Literature, 1995) has worked with a number of publishers, including BBC Worldwide, Ladybird and Flying Eye Books. We chatted with her on World Book Day about her career, her advice to budding authors and her co-authored book that uses relaxation techniques to help with bedtime.

Having written from a young age, bestselling author Sarah Pearse chose to study English and Creative Writing at Warwick, giving her a safe and supportive space in which to pursue her passion. We spoke to Sarah in between a book tour for her debut novel The Sanatorium and editing her next thriller The Retreat.

Hear from Warwick alumna and former professional services staff member, Charlotte Beesley (BA History and Sociology, 2014)

Hear from recent PGT alumnus William Harrop (MA Global and Comparative History, 2022)

Poet and playwright, Lanaire Aderemi tells us about her new podcast, Story Story. It currently ranks #1 in the History Category of Nigeria’s Apple Podcasts despite being produced in the UK.

Warwick Scholar and student, Ruth Adesanya is studying at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte, USA.

Recent graduate Jo Walker (BA Theatre and Performance Studies, 2020) is busy producing original plays and short films with black female empowerment at her core.

To celebrate European Day of Languages we asked our languages alumni to share their stories about Warwick and travels! Claudia Lussana (BA, Hispanic and Italian, 2017)

Brinda Gulati is a writer and founder of Instagram shop @ThriftyBrinda. Her extensive scope of writing includes opinion pieces for the Kashmir Times, Jammu, freelance projects and now her first novel.

"I joined the MA Writing with a mission - to write the novel that has been in my bones and in my head for as long as I can remember. I'm happy to report - mission accomplished! My novel, CECILY will be published by Viking (Penguin Random House) on 29 July 2021."

Around fifty Warwick language students are taking part in the programme ‘ShareAmi’. They are paired with a French senior citizen to help improve their language skills and provide company to older people in these times of increased loneliness.