Below is a little bit more information on all the schools featured in one of our "Top 40" lists, including up to 5 famous former pupils from each school, other bits of trivia you might find interesting and their performance in the latest round of exams (where available; this is displayed as the percentage of A*/A grades for 2014 A-level and GCSE exams respectively, as published by The Telegraph newspaper).
A
Abingdon School
Ackworth School
It is one of only eight Quaker schools in England
AKS (42.58% / 49.93%)
AKS was formed in 2012 from the merger of King Edward VII and Queen Mary School in Lytham St. Annes and Arnold School in Blackpool
Ampleforth College (45.89% / 59.16%)
Ardingly College
Ashford School (50.45% / no data )
Ashville College (37.5% / 44.8%)
B
Bablake School (51.08% / 69.22%)
Bangor Grammar School (no data / 35.23%)
Barnard Castle School
Bedales School
Founded by John Badley in 1893, Bedales claims to be the first coeducational public boarding school in England
Belfast Royal Academy
The oldest school in the city of Belfast
Benenden School (60.45% / 87.05%)
Berkhamsted School
Birkenhead School (56.06% / 63.87%)
Bishop’s Stortford College (57.23% / 63.07%)
Bloxham School
Bloxham is also known as All Saints' School
Bolton School (Boys’ Division) (49.65% / 52.77%)
Bootham School (49.38% / 54.48%)
Bradfield College (41.32% / 45.52%)
Brighton College (74.56% / 87.84%)
A "branch" of the school opened in Abu Dhabi in 2011
Bryanston School
Bury Grammar School Boys (29.06% / 45.93%)
C
Canford School (57.32% / 73.57%)
Charterhouse
Cheadle Hulme School (50.62% / 66.27%)
Cheltenham College (47.64% / 64.46%)
14 Victoria Cross recipients
Chigwell School (55.08% / 66.96%)
Christ College (51.05% / 46.41%)
Christ’s Hospital (52.08% / 64.78%)
Also known as The Bluecoat School
City of London Freemen’s School (68.8% / 79.24%)
Clayesmore School (19.05% / 29.56%)
Clifton College (50.53% / 64.67%)
Coleraine Academical Institution
Cranleigh School
D
Dauntsey’s School (52.14% / 76.46%)
Dean Close School
Denstone College
Dollar Academy
Dulwich College (61.8% / 86.68%)
The school was used for filming parts of Tomb Raider and Legally Blonde
Durham School
E
Elizabeth College (32.98% / 46.7%)
The school's former pupils include 4 Victoria Cross recipients
Epsom College (57.86% / 72.5%)
Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools
Eton College
Exeter School (66.03% / 82.53%)
F
Felsted School
Fettes College
4 Victoria Cross awards to former pupils
Framlingham College
Frensham Heights School
G
George Heriot’s School
George Watson’s College (50% / 31.25%)
Gresham’s School (45.4% / 45.18%)
H
Haileybury (47.02% / 60.86%)
17 former pupils have won the Victoria Cross
Harrow School
High School of Dundee
High School of Glasgow
Hurstpierpoint College
Hutchesons’ Grammar School
Hymers College (55.91% / 71.34%)
K
Kilmacolm (St Columba's School)
Kimbolton School (40.54% / 55.93%)
King Henry VIII School (43.89% / 67.0%)
King’s Ely (42.72% / 59.79%)
Founded in 970 A.D., making it one of the world's oldest schools and purported to be the place where Edward the Confessor (King of England) was educated
Kirkham Grammar School (39.38% / 48.92%)
L
Lancing College
Lincoln Minster School (39.91% / 37.02%)
Lomond School
Loughborough Grammar School (56.77% / 59.98%)
M
Malvern College
Marlborough College (64.03% / 77.25%)
Merchant Taylors’ Boys’ School (Crosby) (49.19% / 52.1%)
Merchiston Castle School (52.46% / 57.23%)
Methodist College (Belfast) (46.16% / 52.94%)
Millfield School (24.06% / 35.1%)
Monmouth School (43.46% / 65.99%)
Mount St Mary’s College
N
New Hall School (46.77% / 49.15%)
Newcastle-under-Lyme School (55.2% / 58.24%)
O
Oldham Hulme Grammar Schools (29.19% / no data)
Oundle School (64.04% / 86.53%)
P
Pangbourne College
Plymouth College
Pocklington School (31.25% / 54.33%)
Princethorpe College
Q
Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School (47.83% / 36.14%)
R
Radley College
Radley is one of only four remaining exclusively male, boarding independent senior schools in the country
Ratcliffe College (35.08% / 48.56%)
Reed’s School (45.39% / 63.51%)
The school's patron is Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II
Repton School
Roedean (47.29% / 73.14%)
Rossall School (24.91% / 33.66%)
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Royal Masonic School for Girls
Parts of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) were filmed at the school
Rugby School (58.75% / 69.98%)
Ryde School (51.74% / 42.45%)
S
Sedbergh School
Sevenoaks School
Sherborne School
Shrewsbury School
Sidcot School (43.43% / 29.78%)
St Aloysius’ College
St Bede’s College (44.21% / 39.41%)
St Edmund’s College (32.24% / 38.25%)
St Edward’s School
St John’s School (47.76% / 52.85%)
St Mary’s College (Crosby) (35.81% / no data)
St Paul’s School
St Peter’s School (54.3% / 64.67%)
Claims to be the fourth oldest school in the world, having been founded in A.D. 627
Stockport Grammar School (47.62% / 65.93%)
Stowe School
T
The Glasgow Academy
The Grange School (67.94% / 83.28%)
The King’s School (Canterbury)
Founded in 597 A.D., it is thought to be the oldest continuously running school in the world
The Oratory School (38.13% / 34.91%)
Tonbridge School
Truro School
U
Uppingham School (54.82% / 66.86%)
V
Victoria College (26.89% / 37.73%)
5 Victoria Cross recipients
W
Warwick School (59.08% / 72.02%)
It is reputed to be the oldest surviving boys' public school in the world
Wellington College (70.04% / 85.17%)
West Buckland School (45.05% / 43.93%)
Westminster School
Whitgift School
Woodbridge School
Woodhouse Grove School (33.2% / 38.05%)
Worksop College (34.96% / 29.68%)
Worth School
© privateschoolfees.co.uk 2014
A
Abingdon School
- Major General Sir Henry Tombs, recipient of the Victoria Cross
- Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General
- David Mitchell, actor and comedian
- Mark Bretscher, FRS, Biological scientist
- All 5 members of the band Radiohead
Ackworth School
- Kweku Adoboli, banker and convicted UBS rogue trader
- James Fearnley, musician and member of The Pogues
- Sir Arthur Snelling, British diplomat
- Sir James Reckitt, founder of Reckitt & Sons (now Reckitt Benckiser Plc)
- James Wilson, businessman and founder of The Economist and The Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (now Standard Chartered)
It is one of only eight Quaker schools in England
AKS (42.58% / 49.93%)
- Michael Mingos, Principal of St Edmund Hall, Oxford
- John Sunderland, Chairman of Cadbury Schweppes and President of the Confederation of British Industry
- Sir William Lyons, Founder of Jaguar Cars
- Chris Lowe, member of The Pet Shop Boys
- Michael Smith, Nobel Prize (Chemistry, 1993)
AKS was formed in 2012 from the merger of King Edward VII and Queen Mary School in Lytham St. Annes and Arnold School in Blackpool
Ampleforth College (45.89% / 59.16%)
- Cardinal Basil Hume, Archbishop of Westminster (1975-1999)
- Lawrence Dallaglio, England rugby player
- Colonel Sir David Stirling (1915-1990), founder of the SAS
- Michael Whitehall (born 1940) producer, agent, television personality; father of comedian Jack Whitehall
- Julian Fellowes, creator of Downton Abbey
Ardingly College
- Ian Hislop
- Jon Snow
- Max Chilton, F1 driver
- Terry-Thomas, Golden Globe nominated actor
- Archbishop of Yukon Walter Adams
Ashford School (50.45% / no data )
- Louise Burfitt-Dons, writer and social commentator
- Liv Boeree, model and TV presenter
Ashville College (37.5% / 44.8%)
- Arthur Balfour, 1st Baron Riverdale, steel manufacturer
- Jim Carter, actor (famously, Mr. Carson in Downton Abbey)
- Sir Stephen Furness, 1st Baronet, shipping magnate and Liberal party politician
- Blanc Wan, pianist
- Colonel Sir Malcolm Stoddart-Scott, Conservative party politician
B
Bablake School (51.08% / 69.22%)
- Martine Croxall, BBC News presenter
- Tony Fairbrother, aeronautical engineer
- Shane Geraghty, London Irish rugby union player
- Courtenay Griffiths, QC
- Leonard Lord, auto industry magnate
- Founded in 1344 by Queen Isabella, it is one of the oldest schools in the UK
- Parts of Nativity! (2009) were filmed at the school
Bangor Grammar School (no data / 35.23%)
- David Trimble, Leader of Ulster Unionist Party (1995-2005), Nobel Peace Prize (1998)
- Colin Bateman, novelist and screenwriter (notably, Murphy's Law)
- David Feherty, professional golfer
- Iain Archer, singer-songwriter
- Dr. Mark Hamilton, medical broadcaster
Barnard Castle School
- Percy Mills, 1st Viscount Mills, industrialist and politician
- Rob Andrew, England rugby player
- Rory Underwood, England rugby player
- Tony Underwood, England rugby player
- Sir Edward Mellanby, discoverer of Vitamin D and its role in preventing rickets
Bedales School
- Lily Allen, singer
- Kirstie Allsopp, presenter
- Daniel Day-Lewis, Oscar winning actor
- Minnie Driver, actress
- Sophie Dahl, author and former fashion model. Granddaughter of Roald Dahl
Founded by John Badley in 1893, Bedales claims to be the first coeducational public boarding school in England
Belfast Royal Academy
- Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pottinger, first Governor of Hong Kong (1843-44)
- Charles Williams, first Editor of The Evening Standard (1860-63)
- Sir Donald Currie, businessman and politician. Founder and owner of Castle Shipping Line and Union-Castle Line
- Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain
- James Stirling, the first Provost of Imperial College London
The oldest school in the city of Belfast
Benenden School (60.45% / 87.05%)
- Princess Anne
- Basma bint Talal, Princess Royal of Jordan
- Rachel Weisz, actress
- Eliza Manningham-Buller, Baroness Manningham-Buller, Director General of MI5
- Lady Victoria Hervey, socialite
Berkhamsted School
- Clementine Churchill, Baroness Spencer-Churchill, wife of Winston Churchill
- Graham Greene, author
- Sarah Brightman, singer
- Talulah Riley, actress
- Sir Algernon Methuen, publisher and founder of Methuen & Co.
Birkenhead School (56.06% / 63.87%)
- Robert Hope-Jones, invented the theatre organ
- Leonard Leslie Brooke, artist and writer
- Sir Peter Shepheard, architect
- Andreas Whittam Smith, journalist and co-founder of The Independent newspaper
- Tony Hall, current Director General of the BBC
Bishop’s Stortford College (57.23% / 63.07%)
- Jonathan Obika, footballer
- Shy FX, musician
- Ruth Symes, children's author
- Anton Blackwood, footballer
- Jason Banton, footballer
Bloxham School
- John Sergeant, journalist
- Sheraz Daya, ophthalmologist and founder of the Centre for Sight
- Ward Thomas, TV executive
- Sir Gerald Howarth, Conservative MP
- General Sir Edward Arthur Burgess, British Army General
Bloxham is also known as All Saints' School
Bolton School (Boys’ Division) (49.65% / 52.77%)
- Sir Harry Kroto, Nobel Prize (Chemistry, 1996)
- Sir Ian McKellen, actor
- Dame Janet Hilary Smith, judge
- David Ruffley, Conservative MP
- Sir Arthur Henry Rostron, Captain for Cunard Line
Bootham School (49.38% / 54.48%)
- Philip Noel-Baker, Baron Noel-Baker, Nobel Peace Prize (1959), diplomat, politician and academic
- Sir Jeremy John Heywood, current Cabinet Secretary
- Sir Stuart Rose, CEO Marks & Spencer
- A. J. P. Taylor, historian
- Lewis Fry Richardson, mathematician
Bradfield College (41.32% / 45.52%)
- David Owen, Foreign Secretary (1977-79) and founder of the SDP
- Sir Cyril Townsend, politician
- Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, current King of Buganda (Ugandan subnational kingdom)
- Sir Martin Ryle, Nobel Prize (Physics, 1974)
- Sir Timothy Ackroyd, actor
Brighton College (74.56% / 87.84%)
- Chris Eubank, Jr., son of boxer Chris Eubank and a professional boxer himself
- Matt Prior, England cricketer
- David Quayle, co-founder of B&Q
- George Sanders, Oscar winning actor (All About Eve, 1950)
- Tamzin Merchant, actress
A "branch" of the school opened in Abu Dhabi in 2011
Bryanston School
- Ben Fogle, presenter and adventurer
- Lucian Freud, painter
- Phil de Glanville, England rugby player
- Sir Terence Conran, founder of Habitat
- Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, daughter of King Hussein of Jordan
Bury Grammar School Boys (29.06% / 45.93%)
- Sir Robert Peel, British Prime Minister
- Sir John Charnley, orthopaedic surgeon and pioneer of the hip replacement operation
- Jeff Wootton, guitarist
- Victoria Wood, actress and comedienne
- Gordon Hewart, 1st Viscount Hewart, politician and judge
C
Canford School (57.32% / 73.57%)
- Nigel Robertson, entrepreneur, co-founder of e-seekers Ltd. (great-grandson of Austin Reed)
- Ted Cooke-Yarborough, lead designer of the Harwell Computer and radar pioneer
- Stephen Ward, osteopath and central to the Profumo Affair of 1963
- Chloe Jasmine Whichello, 2014 X Factor contestant
- Alan Hollinghurst, author and Booker Prize winner (2004)
Charterhouse
- John Wesley, founder of Methodism
- Jonathan Dimbleby, political presenter
- Peter Gabriel, founder member of Genesis
- Jeremy Hunt, politician
- Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, British Prime Minister
Cheadle Hulme School (50.62% / 66.27%)
- Billy Hughes, Principal of Ruskin College, Oxford (1950-79) and politician
- Alf Dubs, former Labour MP
- Nick Robinson, BBC political analyst
- Katie Derham, news presenter
- Daniel Rigby, actor
Cheltenham College (47.64% / 64.46%)
- Lindsay Anderson, film director
- Gavin Lambert, screenwriter and novelist
- T. H. White, writer
- Sir Alfred Mond, businessmen and politician
- Patrick White, poet and novelist
14 Victoria Cross recipients
Chigwell School (55.08% / 66.96%)
- Sir Ian Holm, actor
- Horace Smith, poet
- Col. Bob Stewart, British Army Officer
- William Penn, founder of the Province of Pennsylvania
- Sir Bernard Williams, philosopher
Christ College (51.05% / 46.41%)
- Simon Hughes, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats
- Glyn Simon, Archbishop of Wales
- Lord Atkin, judge
- Peter Watkins, film director
- Jack Jones, rugby player
Christ’s Hospital (52.08% / 64.78%)
- Saint Edmund Campion, Jesuit priest and martyr
- Stephan Shakespeare, founder of YouGov
- Richard Thornton, merchant
- Alan Fletcher, graphic designer
- James D'Arcy, actor
Also known as The Bluecoat School
City of London Freemen’s School (68.8% / 79.24%)
- Andrew Garfield, BAFTA winning actor
- Joe Strummer, Lead singer of The Clash
- Guy Spier, investor and author
- Warwick Davis, actor
- Ashley Mote, politician
Clayesmore School (19.05% / 29.56%)
- Brian Epstein, The Beatles' manager
- Anthony Allen, rugby union player
- Nicole Faraday, actress
- Sir Marcus John Cheke, diplomat
- Edward Ardizzone, artist and illustrator
Clifton College (50.53% / 64.67%)
- Walter Owen Bentley, founded Bentley Motors
- Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig, Field Marshall British Army
- John Inverdale, sports broadcaster
- John Cleese, actor and comedian
- Andy Hornby, CEO Coral
Coleraine Academical Institution
- Graeme McDowell, professional golfer, US Open winner
- James Nesbitt, actor and presenter
- Andrew Trimble, rugby union player
- Sir Dawson Bates, politician
- Mark Carruthers, broadcast journalist
Cranleigh School
- Patrick Marber, actor, screenwriter
- Sir David Calcutt, lawyer
- Michael Cochrane, actor
- G. H. Hardy, mathematician
- Andrew Roberts, historian
D
Dauntsey’s School (52.14% / 76.46%)
- Mohamed Nasheed, President of Maldives (2008-2012)
- Andrew Gardner, newsreader
- Andrew Miller, novelist
- Lord Rea, medical doctor and politician
- Amédée Edward Turner QC, barrister and Conservative MEP
Dean Close School
- Francis Bacon, painter
- Samer Majali, former CEO of Royal Jordanian and Gulf Air
- John Simpson, lexicographer and former Chief Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary
- Denis Parsons Burkitt, surgeon, first person to describe what is now referred to as Burkitt's Lymphoma in 1958
- James Elroy Flecker, poet
Denstone College
- Arthur Berry, footballer
- Jeremy Snape, cricketer
- Phil Davies, rugby union player
- Lord Justice Kay, judge
- John Makepeace, furniture designer
Dollar Academy
- Sir James Dewar, inventor of the Dewar flask
- Tom Kitchin, chef
- Sir William Snadden, Conservative politician
- Fraser Nelson, editor of The Spectator
- George Henry Paulin, sculptor
Dulwich College (61.8% / 86.68%)
- Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, polar explorer
- Sir Edward Mountain, founder of Eagle Star Insurance
- Ernest Lamb, 1st Baron Rochester, Liberal politician
- P. G. Wodehouse, writer and humorist
- Raymond Chandler, novelist and screenwriter
The school was used for filming parts of Tomb Raider and Legally Blonde
Durham School
- Granville Sharp, anti-slavery campaigner
- Anthony Salvin, architect
- Sir Peter Vardy, entrepreneur
- Alexander Armstrong, comedian
- Sir William Fox, three-time Prime Minister of New Zealand
E
Elizabeth College (32.98% / 46.7%)
- Nicholas Stewart Reade, Bishop of Blackburn
- Lieutenant-General Edward Arthur Somerset, soldier and politician
- Barry Jones, actor
- Ashley Highfield is CEO of Johnston Press
- Andy Priaulx, racing driver
The school's former pupils include 4 Victoria Cross recipients
Epsom College (57.86% / 72.5%)
- Suzannah Lipscomb, historian and presenter
- Jeremy Vine, TV journalist
- Craggie Dunlop, "Made in Chelsea"
- Stewart Granger, actor
- Tony Fernandes, entrepreneur and founder of AirAsia
Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools
- Finlay Calder, rugby union player
- Prof. Tom Kibble, co-discoverer of the Higgs boson
- Philip Kerr, writer
- Michael Boyd, theatre director
- Tom Fleming, actor
Eton College
- Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Boris Johnson, Mayor of London
- Aldous Huxley, author
- John Keynes, economist
- Robert Boyle, scientist
- 37 Victoria Cross awards - more than any other school in the country
- 19 British Prime Ministers have been educated at Eton College
Exeter School (66.03% / 82.53%)
- John Percy Vyvian Dacre Balsdon, historian
- Matthew Goode, actor
- General Sir Anthony Farrar-Hockley, British Army
- Maurice O'Connor Drury, psychiatrist
- Ella Edmondson, singer-songwriter
F
Felsted School
- General Sir Richard Dannatt, Chief of the General Staff
- Sir Martyn Arbib, financier and founder of Perpetual (now Invesco Perpetual)
- Sir Colin Alexander St John Wilson, architect and author
- Sir Allen George Clark, industrialist
- Richard and Henry Cromwell, politicians and sons of Oliver Cromwell
Fettes College
- Tony Blair, British Prime Minister
- Harry Woolf, Baron Woolf, former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
- Tilda Swinton, Oscar winning actress
- William Henry Ogilvie, poet
- John Allsebrook Simon, 1st Viscount Simon, politician
4 Victoria Cross awards to former pupils
Framlingham College
- Dr David Bull, TV presenter
- Alistair Cooke, Baron Lexden, historian and Conservative politician
- Sir Alfred Munnings, painter
- Henry Jackman, film score composer
- Charlie Simpson, musician (member of Busted)
Frensham Heights School
- Jim Sturgess, actor and singer-songwriter
- Kay Alexander, newsreader
- Jack Dee, comedian
- Nick Mason, drummer (Pink Floyd)
- Sir Clive Gillinson, cellist and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall
G
George Heriot’s School
- Gavin Esler, Newsnight presenter
- James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern, advocate and former Lord Chancellor
- Iain Milne, Scottish rugby union player
- Henry Raeburn, painter
- Ken Stott, actor
George Watson’s College (50% / 31.25%)
- Sir Robert Brown Black, Governor of Hong Kong (1958-64)
- Gavin Hastings, rugby union player
- Sir Malcolm Rifkind, politician
- David Steel, politician and leader of the Liberal Party
- Christopher Wood, abstract painter
Gresham’s School (45.4% / 45.18%)
- Sir James Dyson, inventor and founder of the Dyson company
- Benjamin Britten, composer, pianist
- The Reverend Colin Forrester-Paton, Chaplain to the Queen
- W. H. Auden, poet
- Robert Medley, painter
H
Haileybury (47.02% / 60.86%)
- Alan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury, business executive, grandson of the founder of Sainsbury's
- Jack Meyer, founder of Millfield School
- Clement Attlee, British Prime Minister
- Lord Justice Scott Baker, judge
- Sir Stirling Moss, Formula 1 racing driver
17 former pupils have won the Victoria Cross
Harrow School
- King Hussein of Jordan
- King Faisal II, the last King of Iraq
- Lord Byron, poet
- Benedict Cumberbatch, actor
- James Blunt, singer-songwriter
- 20 Victoria Cross recipients were educated at the school
- 8 British Prime Ministers have attended Harrow, including Sir Winston Churchill
High School of Dundee
- Alexander Balfour, merchant
- KT Tunstall, singer-songwriter
- Preston Watson, aviation pioneer
- Hector Boece, historian, first Principal of the University of Aberdeen
- Sir Andrew Clark, 1st Baronet, physician
High School of Glasgow
- William Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen, founder of University of Aberdeen
- Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, British Prime Minister
- Andrew Bonar Law, British Prime Minister
- Thomas Campbell, poet
- Sir John Moore, Army General
Hurstpierpoint College
- Walter Robert Adams, Archbishop of British Columbia
- Edward Maund, explorer
- Jack Sangster, industrialist
- Charlie Matthews, rugby union player
- Ronald Neame, film director
Hutchesons’ Grammar School
- John Buchan, novelist, historian and Governor-General of Canada
- Carol Smillie, presenter
- Adair Turner, Baron Turner of Ecchinswell, businessman, academic and last Chairman of the FSA
- J. David Simons, writer
- Russell Waters, actor
Hymers College (55.91% / 71.34%)
- Tom Biggs, rugby player
- Michael Bilton, actor
- Edward Arthur Milne, astrophysicist
- Damian Johnson, broadcaster
- Jemma McKenzie-Brown, actress
K
Kilmacolm (St Columba's School)
Kimbolton School (40.54% / 55.93%)
- Christopher Curry, co-founded Acorn Computers
- Louise Brealey, actress
- Clive Mantle, actor
- Mark Lancaster, Conservative politician
- Simon Thurley, historian and Chief Executive of English Heritage
King Henry VIII School (43.89% / 67.0%)
- Sir Frederick Gibberd, architect and town planner
- Philip Larkin, poet
- Peter Whittingham, footballer
- Sir William Dugdale, antiquary
- Edward Copson, mathematician
King’s Ely (42.72% / 59.79%)
- John Browne, Baron Browne of Madingley, CEO of BP (1995-2007)
- Thomas Willett, merchant and first Mayor of New York
- Goldie Sayers, British athlete
- Ed Blum, film director
- Sir Antony Buck QC, Conservative politician
Founded in 970 A.D., making it one of the world's oldest schools and purported to be the place where Edward the Confessor (King of England) was educated
Kirkham Grammar School (39.38% / 48.92%)
- Clive Tyldesley, sports broadcaster
- Ranvir Singh, TV journalist
- Alex Sanderson, rugby union player
- Pat Sanderson, rugby union player
- Eric Laithwaite, engineer and developer of the maglev rail system
L
Lancing College
- Sir Tim Rice, lyricist
- Evelyn Waugh, author
- Sir Roy Calne, liver transplant pioneer
- Sir Max Mallowan, archaeologist and scholar
- Charles Wollaston, footballer, England's eight national team captain
Lincoln Minster School (39.91% / 37.02%)
Lomond School
- John Baird, engineer and inventor of the first television
- Steven Kropper, entrepreneur
- James Frazer, social anthropologist
- Alexander Ure, politician and judge
- Andrew Bonar Law, British Prime Minister
Loughborough Grammar School (56.77% / 59.98%)
- Rev. George Davys, tutor to Queen Victoria and later Bishop of Peterborough
- Sir Thomas Abney, merchant and Lord Mayor of London
- Sir John Winfield Bonser, judge
- John Saxton, physicist
- Felix Buxton, Basement Jaxx
M
Malvern College
- C.S. Lewis, author
- Francis William Aston, Nobel Prize (Chemistry, 1922)
- James Meade, Nobel Prize (Economics, 1977)
- Jeremy Paxman, journalist, author and broadcaster
- Najib Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia
Marlborough College (64.03% / 77.25%)
- Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Jack Whitehall, comedian and actor
- Sir John Betjeman, poet
- Samantha Cameron, David Cameron's wife
- Sir Peter Medawar, Nobel Prize (Physiology or Medicine, 1960)
- 13 Victoria Cross awards
- Catherine Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, was educated at the school
Merchant Taylors’ Boys’ School (Crosby) (49.19% / 52.1%)
- Robert Runcie, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Rev. Bruce Kenrick, founder of the charity Shelter
- Samuel Roukin, actor
- Barrie Wells, insurance entrepreneur
- Sir John Lawson Walton, KC, barrister and politician
Merchiston Castle School (52.46% / 57.23%)
- Sir Donald Acheson, Chief Medical Officer (1983-91)
- James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
- Irvine Laidlaw, Baron Laidlaw, businessman
- Sir Peter Burt, former Governor of the Bank of Scotland
- Danny Bhoy, comedian
Methodist College (Belfast) (46.16% / 52.94%)
- Ernest Walton, Nobel Prize (Physics, 1951)
- Mark Hunter, founder of Axon Consulting
- Myolie Wu, Hong Kong actress and singer
- Robert Greacen, poet
- Chris Barrie, actor
Millfield School (24.06% / 35.1%)
- Andrew Castle, tennis player and presenter
- Sir James Goldsmith, financier
- James Hewitt, army officer
- Mark Foster, Olympic swimmer
- Victor Chandler, businessman
Monmouth School (43.46% / 65.99%)
- Tom Price, actor
- Eddie Butler, rugby player and commentator
- Sir John Josiah Guest, engineer and entrepreneur
- Colin Moynihan, 4th Baron Moynihan, Olympian, businessman and politician
- Richard Marner, actor
Mount St Mary’s College
- Carlos Reygadas, filmmaker
- Sir David Rose, politician
- John Wheatley, Lord Wheatley, judge
- Sir Martin John Melvin, 1st Baronet, businessman
- Francis Petre, architect
N
New Hall School (46.77% / 49.15%)
- Christiane Amanpour, CNN broadcaster
- Anya Hindmarch, fashion designer
- Cindy Buxton, wildlife filmmaker
- Felicity Landon, journalist
- Amanda Stretton, racing driver and auto-journalist
Newcastle-under-Lyme School (55.2% / 58.24%)
- John Wain, writer, poet and academic
- Robert Sinclair MacKay, mathematician
- David MacKay, engineer
- Roger Johnson, newsreader
- Sarah Willingham, entrepreneur
O
Oldham Hulme Grammar Schools (29.19% / no data)
- Brian Cox, physicist and presenter
- Sarah Lancashire, actress
- Shobna Gulati, actress and writer
- Andy Barlow, footballer
- Dame Olwen Hufton, historian
Oundle School (64.04% / 86.53%)
- Bruce Dickinson, lead vocalist of Iron Maiden
- Richard Dawkins, scientist
- Sir Howard Stringer, Sony CEO
- George Sassoon, scientist, linguist and author
- Jim Clark, Oscar winning film editor
P
Pangbourne College
- Frederick Treves, actor
- Blaine Harrison, singer, song-writer
- Beverley Cross, playwright
- Jeffrey Bernard, journalist
- Tom Spencer, politician
Plymouth College
- Richard Deacon, Turner Prize winning sculptor
- Dawn French, comedienne
- Michael Ball, singer
- Paul Ackford, England rugby union player
- Tom Daley, diver
Pocklington School (31.25% / 54.33%)
- Sir Tom Stoppard, playwright
- Martin Crimp, playwright
- Lord Moran, personal physician to Sir Winston Churchill
- Ade Edmondson, comedian, actor, writer
- Sir Edward Clay, British High Commissioner to Kenya
Princethorpe College
- Ian Bell, cricketer
- Jordan King, racing driver
- Frances D'Souza, scientist
- Tom Hilditch, journalist and magazine publisher
- Robert Mitchell, actor
Q
Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School (47.83% / 36.14%)
- Sir Harold Derbyshire, judge
- Christian Fraser, BBC correspondent
- Russell Harty, chat show host
- Michael Winterbottom, film director
- Sir Ernest Marsden, physicist
R
Radley College
- Andrew Motion, poet
- Desmond Llewelyn, actor (notably, "Q" in James Bond films)
- Lord Scarman, judge
- Prof. Sir Michael Adrian Richards, oncologist
- Dennis Price, actor
Radley is one of only four remaining exclusively male, boarding independent senior schools in the country
Ratcliffe College (35.08% / 48.56%)
- Richard Wallace, Daily Mirror editor
- Kevin Myers, journalist
- Norman St John-Stevas, Baron St John of Fawsley, Conservative politician and Leader of the House of Commons (1979-81)
- Louis Deacon, rugby union player
- Ian Bannen, actor
Reed’s School (45.39% / 63.51%)
- Tim Henman, tennis player
- Jamie-T, musician
- Prince Zeid Raad of Jordan, Pretender to the Iraqi throne and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
- Tom Hardy, actor
- Simon Robey, investment banker and Chairman of The Royal Opera House
The school's patron is Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II
Repton School
- Michael Ramsey, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Jeremy Clarkson, auto-journalist, author and presenter of Top Gear
- Roald Dahl, author
- Sir Maurice Fiennes, industrialist
- Sir Christopher Frayling, educationalist and Rector of the Royal College of Art (1996-2009)
Roedean (47.29% / 73.14%)
- Rebecca Hall, actress
- Dame Cicely Saunders, nurse, physician and instrumental in starting the hospice movement
- Phyllis Pearsall, painter
- Sarah Miles, actress
- Lynda Chalker, Baroness Chalker of Wallasey, Conservative politician
Rossall School (24.91% / 33.66%)
- Father Thomas Byles, Catholic priest who died at sea after refusing to leave the Titanic as she sank, hearing confessions and giving absolution
- Frederick Lugard, 1st Baron Lugard, Governor of Hong Kong and founder of the University of Hong Kong
- F. W. Harvey, war poet
- Walter Clopton Wingfield, army officer and pioneer of lawn tennis
- J. G. Farrell, Booker Prize winner writer
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
- John Miller Andrews, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
- Thomas Andrews, architect of RMS Titanic
- William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, physicist
- Sammy Nelson, footballer
- Michael Longley, poet
Royal Masonic School for Girls
- Amelia Warner, actress
- Wendy Richard, actress
Parts of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) were filmed at the school
Rugby School (58.75% / 69.98%)
- Neville Chamberlain, British Prime Minister
- William Webb Ellis, purported creator of the sport, Rugby
- Lewis Carroll, writer and mathematician
- Sir Salman Rushdie, Booker Prize winner author
- Rupert Brooke, war poet
Ryde School (51.74% / 42.45%)
- Seb Clover, cross-Atlantic sailor
- Philip Norman, author
- Donald Gordon, cricketer
- Lucy Emmerson, professor of public policy, NYU
- Arthur Venables, professional road cyclist
S
Sedbergh School
- Sir Hubert Worthington, architect
- Jim Muir, BBC correspondent
- Sir Wavell Wakefield, rugby union player and Conservative politician
- Edward Max Nicholson, founded the World Wildlife Fund
- Simon Beaufoy, Oscar winning screenwriter
Sevenoaks School
- Sir Daniel Day-Lewis, 3-time Oscar winning actor
- Simon Starling, 2005 Turner Prize winner
- Sir Timothy Laurence, vice admiral and husband of Princess Anne
- Jonathan Evans, Director General MI5
- Michael Holmes, former UKIP leader
Sherborne School
- Hugh Bonneville, actor
- Cecil Day-Lewis, poet
- Jeremy Irons, actor
- Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar
- John le Carre, author
Shrewsbury School
- Charles Darwin, naturalist
- Sir Philip Sidney, poet
- Lord Heseltine, politician
- Michael Palin, comedian, actor, broadcaster
- Christopher Booker, founder of Private Eye
Sidcot School (43.43% / 29.78%)
- Tim Bevan, film producer
- Charles Gilpin, politician
- George Newman, first Chief Medical Officer
- Douglas Macmillan, founded Macmillan Cancer Support
- Zoe Wanamaker, actress
St Aloysius’ College
- Canon Sydney Alfred MacEwan, Scottish tenor
- A. J. Cronin, medical doctor and novelist
- Tom Conti, actor
- Sir Harry Burns, Chief Medical Officer for Scotland
- Lord Gill, Scotland's longest serving judge
St Bede’s College (44.21% / 39.41%)
- Jose Gutierrez Guerra, President of Bolivia (1917-20)
- Sir Ian Kershaw, historian and Hitler biographer
- Sir William Patrick Byrne, senior civil servant
- John Maher, Buzzcocks drummer
- Colin Baker, actor
St Edmund’s College (32.24% / 38.25%)
- Sir Alan Burns, diplomat
- Adrian Gilbert, author and publisher
- Sir Edward Henry, major proponent of fingerprinting for identification of criminals
- James Lynam Molloy, poet
- James Lamont, BAFTA winning comedy writer
St Edward’s School
- Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, aviation pioneer
- Georgia Moffett, actress
- Jon Snow, Channel 4 news
- Tom Pellereau, Winner of The Apprentice (2011)
- Michael Sandberg, Baron Sandberg, former HSBC CEO
St John’s School (47.76% / 52.85%)
- Peter Drury, football commentator
- Gavin Hewitt, BBC News editor
- Sir Anthony Hope, novelist
- Humfrey Malins, Conservative MP
- Sir Henry Calley, pilot and politician
St Mary’s College (Crosby) (35.81% / no data)
- His Eminence Vincent Nichols, Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster
- Lord Birt, Director General of the BBC (1992-2000)
- Dr. Kevin McNamara, Labour MP
- Sir Ivor Roberts, diplomat
- Roger McGough, poet and author
St Paul’s School
- John Simpson, BBC World Affairs correspondent
- Lord Robert Winston, physician, politician and scientific broadcaster
- Bernard Montgomery, British Field Marshall
- George Osbourne, Chancellor of the Exchequer
- Samuel Pepys, diarist and politician
St Peter’s School (54.3% / 64.67%)
- Saint Alcuin of York, scholar, teacher
- John Barry, composer
- Guy Fawkes, gunpowder plot
- John Wright, gunpowder plot
- Sir John Rodgers, 1st Baronet, Conservative politician
Claims to be the fourth oldest school in the world, having been founded in A.D. 627
Stockport Grammar School (47.62% / 65.93%)
- Thomas Ashe, poet
- Sir Victor Blank, businessman
- Cecil Kimber, founded MG car company
- Samuel Perry, politician and father of tennis player, Fred
- Chris Jones, rugby union player
Stowe School
- Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin
- John David Eaton, merchant
- Alistair McAlpine, Baron McAlpine of West Green, businessman, politician and author
- Rainier III, Prince of Monaco
- Rollo Weeks, actor
T
The Glasgow Academy
- J.M. Barrie, author (notably, Peter Pan)
- Sir Angus Grossart, businessman
- Sir Jeremy Isaacs, founding Chief Executive of Channel 4
- Sir William Ramsay, Nobel Prize (Chemistry, 1904), discovered the noble gases
- Sir James Wordie, polar explorer, geologist
The Grange School (67.94% / 83.28%)
The King’s School (Canterbury)
- Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia
- Prince Philip of Yugoslavia
- Antony Worrall Thompson, celebrity chef and restaurant owner
- Sir Hugh Robertson, Conservative politician
- Oz Clarke, wine writer and presenter
Founded in 597 A.D., it is thought to be the oldest continuously running school in the world
The Oratory School (38.13% / 34.91%)
- John Pius Boland, politician and first male tennis singles Olympic Gold Medal winner (Athens, 1896)
- Francis Boulle, Made in Chelsea
- Tim Male, Olympic rower
- Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart, British Army officer, VC recipient
- Igor Judge, Baron Judge, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales (2008-13)
Tonbridge School
- Sir Anthony Seldon, historian, schoolmaster and biographer
- Dan Stevens, actor
- Hugh Cecil, photographer
- David Tomlinson, actor
- Andy Zaltzman, comedian
Truro School
- Roger Taylor, drummer in the band Queen
- Sir Ben Ainslie, most successful sailor in Olympic history
- John Kendall-Carpenter, rugby union player
- Mark Prisk, Conservative MP
- Robert Shaw, actor
U
Uppingham School (54.82% / 66.86%)
- Rowan Atkinson, actor and comedian
- Lord Nigel Crisp, former Chief Executive of the NHS
- Stephen Fry, actor, comedian, writer and presenter (expelled 1972)
- James Purves, cricketer
- Phil Spencer, property presenter
- It has the largest school playing fields in England
- 5 former pupils have been awarded the Victoria Cross
V
Victoria College (26.89% / 37.73%)
- Olly Smith, presenter and columnist
- Will Smith, comedian
- Philip Ozouf Jr, Jersey politician
- General Sir Walter Braithwaite, WW1 General
- Sir William Haley, newspaper editor
5 Victoria Cross recipients
W
Warwick School (59.08% / 72.02%)
- Eric Hope, pianist
- John Masefield, poet
- M J Trow, writer
- A G K Brown, Gold medallist at Berlin Olympics of 1936
- Marc Elliott, actor
It is reputed to be the oldest surviving boys' public school in the world
Wellington College (70.04% / 85.17%)
- Rory Bremner, impressionist
- Sebastian Faulks, author
- George Orwell, writer (before transferring to Eton College)
- Will Young, singer
- Peter Snow, TV journalist
West Buckland School (45.05% / 43.93%)
- Jonathan Edwards, Olympic triple-jumper
- Victor Ubogu, rugby union player
- Brian Aldiss, science fiction writer
- Tim Wonnacott, antiques expert and presenter
- Harold Hilton, golfer
Westminster School
- Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer
- Nick Clegg, Leader of the Liberal Democrats
- Christopher Wren, architect
- Tony Benn, Labour Party politician
- Jeremy Bentham, philosopher and "spiritual founder" of UCL
- 7 British Prime Ministers
- 6 Victoria Cross recipients
- 2 Nobel Prize winners
Whitgift School
- Jerry Buhlmann, CEO Aegis Group
- Lord Freeman, Conservative politician
- Sir Daniel Harvey, merchant and Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire
- Derren Brown, illusionist
- JB Gill, member of music group JLS
Woodbridge School
- Nick Griffin, President of the BNP
- Luke Roberts, actor
- Frank Morley, mathematician
- Andrew Taylor, novelist
- Nick Lowe, musician and producer
Woodhouse Grove School (33.2% / 38.05%)
- Jessica Knappett, writer and actress
- Sir Albert Braithwaite, Conservative politician
- John William Draper, scientist and philosopher
- John Hillaby, travel writer
- Herbert Edward Palmer, poet
Worksop College (34.96% / 29.68%)
- The Reverend Prebendary Edward Chad Varah, Anglican Priest and founder of The Samaritans
- Graham George Able, educationalist
- Neil Dickson, actor
- Rupert Sheldrake, author and lecturer
- Commander Peter Carmichael, fighter pilot
Worth School
- Harry Enfield, comedian
- Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., politician
- Michael Spencer, businessman
- Jaime Augusto Zóbel de Ayala II, CEO Ayala Corporation
- Sir David Bell, publisher
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