Saluting our Sisters

Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, who gained a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College, is a space scientist who is passionate about science and presenting science to a general audience. She worked making novel bespoke scientific instruments for many projects including the James Webb Space Telescope before moving into television.

In 2011, she was awarded the Talkback Thames new talent award at the Women in Film and TV Awards for her BBC 2 programme ‘Do We Really Need the Moon?’ After which she presented ‘Do We Really Need Satellites?’, then Channel 4’s ‘Brave New World’. She now presents the ‘Sky at Night’ on BBC4 and CBeebies’ ‘Stargazing’ for which she was nominated for a BAFTA.

She was awarded an MBE in 2009 for services to Science and Education.

In recognition of her work, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Sciences by the University in 2017.

Eniola Aluko graduated in Law from Brunel in 2008.

She is a former footballer who made her senior international debut in 2004 at the age of 17, and then represented England at two World Cups and two European Championships. After graduating, she spent three years playing soccer in the USA before returning to the UK in early 2012 to play for Birmingham City, and being part of the England Women’s Football Team at London 2012.

She was awarded an MBE in 2023 for services to football and charity, and was recently on TV, where she provided commentary on this year’s Women’s World Cup.

Politician and diplomat, Baroness Valerie Amos CH has had an outstanding career in public service. She was the first black woman to serve in a British government and as a Leader of the House of Lords. Committed to development issues, equality and human rights throughout her career, Valerie has advised the Mandela government, been UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator and Chief Executive of the Equal Opportunities Commission.

In recognition of her work, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Law by the University in 2019.

Shani Anderson graduated in Design from Brunel in 1998.

She is a former GB sprinter who competed in the 100m and 4 x 100m relay at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, alongside fellow Brunel alumna, Marcia Richardson.

She now coaches athletes and has her own personal training company - Anderson Fitness Consultants.

Emma Ania studied Biology at Brunel between 2004-2007 before becoming a full-time athlete.

She is a former GB sprinter who competed in the 4 x 100m rely at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. She also competed at the European Championships, World Championships and Commonwealth Games, winning a silver medal in 4x 100m relays at the European Championships in 2006 and the Commonwealth Games in 2006.

Professor Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu is an Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the University of West London (UWL). Elizabeth spent much of her influential career working with black and minority ethnic communities in London. In 1979 she set up the first UK sickle cell/thalassaemia nurse counselling service and later established the Mary Seacole Centre for Nursing Practice at UWL.

Following her CBE in 2011 for services to nursing, she was made a Dame in 2017.

In recognition of her work, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science by the University in 2019.

Anita Asante graduated in Politics and English in 2006 followed by MRes (2008) and PhD.

She is a former footballer who represented GB in the women’s football at London 2012; the first time GB have entered a team since women’s football became an Olympic sport in 1996.

She is currently the first-team coach for Bristol City women’s team.

While studying at Brunel, Anita was presented with an Outstanding Achievement award by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Montell Douglas graduated in Sport Sciences in 2008.

She is a former GB sprinter who competed in100m and 4 x 100m relay at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. She took up bobsleigh in 2016 and was selected to be part of the GB two-woman bobsleigh and competed at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in 2018.

She was the first Briton to compete in both a summer (2008) and winter (2018) Olympics.

Rita Ekwere aka Ray BLK graduated in English in 2018.

She is a singer and songwriter who won the BBC’s Sound of 2017, the first unsigned artist to receive the award. She released her debut mini album ‘Durt’ which featured collaborations with Stormzy, Wretch 32 and SG Lewis in January 2018. Her full-length debut album ‘Access Denied’ followed in October 2021 – listed as one of the best albums of 2021 by New Musical Express (NME).

Since 2018, she has been signed by Universal Island Records.

Professor Bernardine Evaristo is an author and academic.  She founded the Brunel International African Poetry Prize in 2012, started The Complete Works poetry mentoring scheme (2007-2017), and co-founded Spread the Word writer development agency and Britain’s first black woman’s theatre company Theatre of Black Women (1982-1988).
 
In 2019, her novel ‘Girl, Woman, Other’, jointly won the Booker Prize alongside ‘The Testaments’ by Margaret Atwood, making her the first black woman to win the Prize.
 
She is President of the Royal Society of Literature, only the second woman and first black person to hold this role since the Royal Society was founded in 1820.

Oluchi Ikechi-D’Amico graduated in Information Systems in 2006.

She is a Partner at Ernest and Young and founder of Fully Bossed, an advising and coaching service business that specialises in personal career development and personal branding.

As a result of her work, she is a multi-award-winning business leader.

Dame Cleo Lane is a singer and actress who achieved international fame during a career spanning four decades. Her command of a dazzling array of vocal styles is unprecedented and she is the only singer ever to receive Grammy nominations in the Female Jazz, Popular and Classical categories.

She founded The Wavendon Allmusic charity with her late husband Sir John Dankworth to help people broaden their views about music through performance and musical education.

In recognition of her work, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Music by the University in 2007.

Khalia Newell graduated in Law in 2010.

She is a Vice-President at Barclays Bank and sits on the Bank’s Senior Leadership team of the Black Professionals Forum.

In 2018, she was listed as a #3 Global Ethnic Minority in the Financial Times and was named as a WeAreTheCity Rising Star at the Black British Business Awards.

She was recently named number 7 in Empowers 50 Future Ethnic Minority Leaders for her inclusive work as a VP. She is also named as one of the top 6 BAME role models in Tech by Diversity in Tech.

She sits on the All Party Parliamentary Group on Diversity and Inclusion in STEM Careers.

Abi Oyepitan graduated in Politics and Sociology in 2001. 

She is a former GB sprinter who competed in the 100m and 200m at the Athens Olympics in 2004 where she reached the final of the 200m, becoming the first British women in 20 years to reach an Olympic sprint final.

In 2010, she competed in 200m and 4 x 100m relay at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi. She took a silver in the 200m and a gold in the 4 x 100m relay.

She went onto compete at London 2012 in the 100m and 200m, making the semi-finals in both events, before retiring in 2014.

Shelina Permalloo graduated in Psychology in 2004.

She is a restauranteur, TV personality and Author, but is probably best known for winning BBC MasterChef in 2012, the first woman of colour to win, before writing two Mauritius inspired cookbooks ‘Sunshine on a Plate’ and ‘Sunshine Diet’. Her first book ‘Sunshine on a Plate’ won the Gourmand book award for best African cookbook.

In 2016, she opened her restaurant Lakaz Maman Mauritian Street Kitchen. During the pandemic, her team cooked over 1,500 meals for keyworkers and the homeless and 300 free school meals.

She is a panellist on BBC Radio 4 ‘The Kitchen Cabinet; with Jay Rayner, food critic’ and has been a guest on shows such as ‘Saturday Kitchen’ and ‘John and Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen’.

Hope Powell, alumna 1981-1987.

She is a former footballer who made her England debut at the age of 16 before going onto play at the UEFA and FIFA Women’s World Cups – reaching the final of the UEFA Women’s Championship in 1984. At club level, she captained Croydon to a League and Cup double in 1996 as well as playing in four FA Women’s Cup finals.

She was the first ever coach of the England women’s national football team where she led the team at the UEFA Women’s Championships in 2001, 2005, 2009 and 2013. She also guided the team to the quarter finals of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2007 and 2011 and led the Great Britain women’s Olympic football team until August 2013.

She is the Women’s Technical Director at Birmingham City and former women’s first team manager of Brighton and Hove Albion.

Paulette is an experienced TV and Theatre Director. After graduating from Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama, she set up the Theatre of Black Women with fellow students Bernardine Everisto and Patricia Hilaire, as there was a lack of roles for black female actors at the time.

Her successes to date, include the role of Associate Director of the Opening of the London Olympic in 2012 alongside Danny Boyle, and the 2013 production of ‘Fences’, directing one of August Wilson’s plays which celebrate the African American experience staring Lenny Henry in the West End – the first black woman to do so. Her TV work includes ‘Desmonds’ (1989-1994) and ‘The Real McCoy’ (1991-1996). In 2015, she received an MBE for her services to drama.

In recognition of her work, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humanities by the University in 2015.

Marcia Richardson graduated in Sport Sciences in 1994

She is a former sprinter who competed in 100m and 4 x 100m relay at the 1996 Olympics, and in the 100m and 4 x 100m relay at the Sydney Olympic in 2000 alongside fellow Brunel alumna, Shani Anderson. She also competed at four World Championships.

In 1998, she represented England at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur in the 100m and 200m and won a bronze medal in 4 x 100m relay.

Perri Shakes-Drayton graduated in Sport Sciences in 2011.

She is a former GB sprinter who competed at the Olympics, World and European Championships.

In 2010, she won a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles and Relay. She competed at London 2012 as the reigning World Indoor Champion but didn’t reach the final of the 400m hurdles and finished 5th as part of Britain’s 4 x 400m relay quartet.

In 2013, at the European Athletics Indoor Championships she won gold in the 400m and 4 x 400m relay team.

More recently, she has taken part in Dancing on Ice (2018) and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Win (2023).

Warsan is a writer, poet, editor and teacher. Her most notable works include ‘Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth’ published in 2011, and ‘Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head: Poems’ published in 2022, which was shortlisted for a number of prestigious prizes.

In 2013, she was the first winner of Brunel’s African Poetry Prize, an award for poets who have not yet published a full-length poetry collection. She was selected from a shortlist of six candidates out of 655 original entries.

The same year, she was selected as the first Young Poet Laureate for London, an award created as part of the London Legacy Development Corporation focusing on arts and culture in the Olympic Park and local area.

Keeley Tavener graduated in Psychology in 2007.

She is a psychotherapist, author and speaker. Once qualified, Keeley worked as a probation officer but continue to study for an MSc in Person Centred Psychotherapy at the Metanoia Institute.

In 2011, an idea to create her own company was borne and she registered her company Key for Change in 2012. Key for Change helps people to resolve emotional and psychological challenges through counselling, mediation, psychiatry and coaching.

She initially started to see patients while continuing to work full-time as a probation officer until 2015 when she quit her full-time job to concentrate on her company full time. Since then, she has worked with thousands of individuals and companies helping them overcome their difficulties and realise their dreams.

Meesha Turner graduated in Drama and English in 2012.

She is an actress, singer and dancer. While at Brunel, she was awarded a Music Award from the Brunel Arts Centre allowing her to explore her musical talent while continuing to pursue her academic studies. From this, she gained a full scholarship from Disney Theatrical Productions to study a Musical Theatre Masters at the Royal Academy of Music.

To-date, she has starred as Tina Turner in the ‘Soul Legends’ UK tour and Diana Ross in ‘The Magic of Motown’ UK tour. Then in October 2021, she was cast as Catherine Parr in the West End’s ‘Six the Musical’.

She was awarded Brunel’s UK Alumna of the Year in 2022 for her work in the performing arts and for supporting Brunel’s Theatre students with advice and tips for a career in the industry.