University of Kent announces Kent honorary graduands for July 2025, including PinkPantheress

PinkPantheress among graduands to receive honorary degrees from the University of Kent

Singer-songwriter and record producer PinkPantheress is among eight remarkable individuals who will receive honorary degrees from the University of Kent this July.

PinkPantheress, who grew up in Canterbury, Kent, before beginning her university studies in London, launched her music career in 2021 through platforms like SoundCloud and TikTok. She is internationally recognised for her Top 40 singles including Just for Me, Pain, and Boy’s a Liar. In 2022, she won the BBC Sound of 2022 poll and was named Best Female Act at the MOBO Awards. Since then, she has received three Brit Award nominations and earned the Billboard Women in Music’s Producer of the Year title in 2024. Her second album, Fancy That, released in May 2025, has been widely acclaimed.

In recognition of her influential contributions to digital music, PinkPantheress will be awarded a Doctor of Music degree by the University of Kent on Tuesday 22 July at Canterbury Cathedral. This special University of Kent ceremony follows a milestone performance at Glastonbury in June and precedes her two sold-out headline shows at the O2 Academy in Brixton this September.

Full List of Honorary Graduands

The University of Kent will also honour seven other distinguished individuals during its July graduation ceremonies:

• Angela Cohen MBE (Monday 21 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of Arts in recognition of her support for Holocaust survivors and for advancing Holocaust education and research.
• Prashant Baluja (Monday 21 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of the University in recognition of his leadership and contribution to the Kent in India Alumni Association and wider engagement and partnership for the University in the region. Prashant is a University of Kent alumnus and successful retail and IT businessman.
• Sir Michael Morpurgo MBE (Tuesday 22 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of Letters in recognition for his distinguished contribution to literature and work to support young people from inner city areas to gain experience of farms. Michael is a book author, poet, playwright, and librettist, renowned for his best-selling children’s novels such as War Horse.
• Andrea Arnold (Tuesday 22 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of Arts in recognition of her award-winning work and contribution to film.
• Iain Dale (Wednesday 23 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of the University for his services to political broadcasting and championing more civility and courtesy in the conduct of our political life. Iain is a British broadcaster, author and political commentator who presents the Evening Show on LBC Radio. Iain has twice been Radio Presenter of the Year and is a regular pundit on Good Morning Britain, Politics Live and Newsnight.
• Giles Clark (Wednesday 23 July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of Science in recognition of his contribution to conservation awareness and work in the Kent region at the Big Cat Sanctuary. Giles is Director of The Big Cat Sanctuary and a TV presenter.
• John Platt (Friday 25th July, Canterbury) who will be made Doctor of the University in recognition of his sustained and dedicated commitment to the University and support of the academic achievements of Kent students. John is a retired Group Captain of the RAF and one of the first 500 students to enrol at the University of Kent in October 1965.