Hugh Bonneville
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1977-1981. Actor, best known for playing the Earl of Grantham in Downton Abbey.
Chris Martin
Musician
Attended Sherborne School (The Digby) 1990-1995. Songwriter, musician, record producer, lead singer and co-founder of the band Coldplay.
Alan Turing (1912-1954)
Scientist
Attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1926-1931. Mathematician, computer scientist, and Second World War codebreaker.
Tom Bradby
Journalist
Attended Sherborne School (Abbey) 1980-1985. Journalist and author, presenter of ITV News at Ten.
Christopher Chataway (1931-2014)
Politician
Rt Hon Sir Christopher Chataway attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1944-1949. Politician, broadcaster, represented GB at the 1952 and 1956 Olympic Games.
David Cornwell (John Le Carré)
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1945-1948. Author who, under his pen name John le Carré, has published over 18 titles.
Jeremy Irons
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Abbey) 1962-1966. Actor, who has appeared in The French Lieutenant’s Woman, Brideshead Revisited, The Mission, The Lion King.
Richard Eyre
Film Director
Sir Richard Eyre attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1956-1961. Director and producer, winner of five Olivier awards and a BAFTA.
Hyla Stallard (1901-1973)
Surgeon
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1914-1919. A distinguished eye surgeon. Immortalised by Daniel Gerroll in the 1981 film The Chariots of Fire.
Cecil Day-Lewis (1904-1972)
Author
Attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1917-1923. Author and poet, Poet Laureate 1968-1972.
Nick Greenstock
Athlete
Attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1987-1992 England Rugby International and Harlequins RFC.
Jon Pertwee (1919-1996)
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Abbeylands) 1933-1934. Actor, best known for The Navy Lark, Dr Who and Worzel Gummidge.
Alistair Pilkington
Inventor
Sir Alistair Pilkington attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1933-1938. Glass technologist who invented the ‘float-glass’ process
John Cowper Powys (1872-1963)
Philosopher
Attended Sherborne School (Wildman’s) 1886-1891. Novelist, poet, lecturer and philosopher.
Stanley Johnson
Author, Politician
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1954-1958. Author, politician, TV celebrity.
Jimmy Adams
Cricketer
Attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1994-1999. Hampshire County cricketer.
Charles Collingwood
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1957-1960. Actor, best known for playing Brian Aldridge in The Archers.
Patrick Cordingley
Author
Major General Patrick Cordingley attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1958-1963. British Army Officer, author, and former School Governor.
Charlie Cox
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1996-2001. Actor, who has appeared in Daredevil, Spider-Man, Stardust and The Theory of Everything.
Nigel Dempster (1941-2007)
Journalist
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1955-1958. Journalist, author, broadcaster, and columnist.
Michael Hopkins
Architect
Sir Michael Hopkins attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1949-1952. Architect whose works include the Mound Stand at Lord's Cricket Ground and many others.
Anthony Lane
Journalist
Attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1976-1978. Journalist and film critic for The New Yorker magazine.
Lieutenant General David Leakey CMG, CVO, CBE
Governor
A Cambridge law graduate. After retiring as a Lieutenant General from an Army career of command and operational, MOD, NATO, EU and UN appointments, David served as Black Rod in the Houses of Parliament for seven years. Since 2017 he has held senior executive and advisory positions in a variety of commercial enterprises in the Industrial Chemicals and Gas industry, the Business Systems Software sector and a Phone App developer. He has been chairman of the National Childrens Orchestras of Great Britain and is a trustee or chairman of a number of charitable, sporting and military organisations. David has strong links to Sherborne. From 1965 to 1970 he was a member of Abbey House, becoming Head of School and a member of the First XI. His two sons are also Old Shirburnians. In 2017, David was elected to Sherborne School’s Board of Governors and is a member of the Governance and Nominations Committee.
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John Le Mesurier (1912-1983)
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1926-1930. Actor, best known for playing Sergeant Wilson in Dad’s Army.
Jason Lewis
Author
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1980-1985. Adventurer and author.
Simon McCoy
Journalist
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1975-1979. Journalist and presenter on BBC TV News at One.
Peter Oborne
Author
Attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1970-1974. Author, journalist and broadcaster.
James Purefoy
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1977-1980. Actor, who has appeared in Rome, A Knight’s Tale and Fisherman’s Friends.
Tim Spicer
Army Officer
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1966-1969. British Army Officer and Chief Executive of Sandline International.
Julian Thompson
Author
Major General Julian Thompson attended Sherborne School (School House) 1948-1952. British Army Officer and author.
Sir John Weston
Ambassador
Attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1951-1956. Diplomat, Ambassador, Permanent Representative to NATO and the UN, poet, and former School Governor.
Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947)
Philosopher
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1875-1880. Mathematician and philosopher, co-author with Bertrand Russell.
Phil Harvey
Musician
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1990-1995. Creative director and fifth member of the band Coldplay.
Peter Twiss (1921-2011)
Test Pilot
Attended Sherborne School (Abbey) 1935-1940. A test pilot. The first person to break the 1000 mph speed barrier.
Chris Vacher
Television Presenter
Attended Sherborne School (The Green) 1965-1969. Former presenter and reporter on BBC TV Points West.
Lance Percival (1933-2015)
Actor, Musician
Attended Sherborne School (School House) 1947-1951. Actor, comedian and singer.
Arnold Cortesi (1897-1966)
Journalist
Attended Sherborne School (Abbeylands) 1911-1915. Journalist, New York Times foreign correspondent, Pulitzer Prize winner.
Duncan Carse (1913-2004)
Actor, Explorer
Attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1927-1930. Polar explorer and the voice of Dick Barton, Special Agent.
Herbert Buckmaster (1881-1966)
Founder
Attended Sherborne School (Abbeylands) 1896-1900. Founder of Buck's Club and creator of the Buck's Fizz cocktail.
Hubert Burton
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 2004-2009. Actor.
James Daunt
Business Founder
Attended Sherborne School (Harper) 1977-1981. Founder of Daunt Books and managing director of Waterstones.
Timothy Cumberbatch
Actor
Attended Sherborne School (Lyon) 1953-1958. Actor, with a career in both the theatre and television, appearing in a number of BBC television series.
Antony Thomas
Filmmaker
Award winning documentary filmmaker and author.
Iain Mackay-Dick
British Army Officer
Major General Sir Iain Mackay-Dick KCVO MBE attended Sherborne School (Westcott) 1959-1963. Major General commanding Household Division and General Officer (London).
