Angus made his Olympic debut competing in the Men’s Quadruple Sculls during the Rio 2016 Olympics and qualified for the Tokyo 2020 (2021) Olympics clinching silver. He is also an incredibly erudite scientist, having studied Natural Sciences at Durham University, followed by an MSc in Stem Cells & Regeneration at Bristol University and a DPhil in Medical Science at St Catharine’s College, Oxford. In 2013, Durham University awarded Angus ‘Sportsman of the Year’ and in 2022 he was part of the winning Oxford vs. Cambridge Boat Race team.

Ed is currently a consultant in reproductive medicine and surgery at Oxford Fertility Clinic and Member of the British Fertility Society and Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. In 2009 he took a break from Medicine, to compete against 650 applicants to join James Cracknell and Ben Fogle on race to the South Pole. On returning from Antarctica, he led a series of ‘Extreme classroom’ projects in the High Arctic and Africa. ‘The Coldest Classroom on Earth’ and ‘The Hottest Classroom on Earth’ were filmed for BBC World to show children with challenging behaviour, who are frequently labelled ‘un-teachable’, engage if taught with the right approach. He has been an ambassador for The Wellbeing of Women Charity for over 10 years.

Jean-Jacques (JJ) is bassist and co-founder of The Stranglers, a notorious new wave rock group from the late 70s early 80s, with seven top ten hits. While many new-wave artists came and went, The Stranglers endured and are currently on a UK and European tour. It is alleged that more songs by The Stranglers have been licensed for use in commercials than from any other punk band. As well as being a classical guitarist and fluent in French, JJ is also a martial arts expert, attaining his 7^th degree black belt (nanadan) in Shidokan Karate and Chief of the UK branch of Shidokan.

Simon gained a double 1^st in English from Queens’ College, Cambridge and went on to complete an MA in Cultural and Critical studies at Birkbeck College, University of London. At Cambridge he was president of the Footlights comedy society before being cast in The Inbetweeners. His lead performance won him Best Actor and Best Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards and Best Comedy Actor at the BAFTAs. He has also starred in Friday Night Dinner and Sandylands before launching his own production company Guilty Party Pictures with StudioCanal, making his directorial debut with The Days of the Bagnold Summer.

With an impressive youth career at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford and the RGS stage, Jack graduated from RADA in 2019 and is now quickly making his mark as an actor. He has held the stage alongside Ciaran Hinds in Brian Friel’s ‘Translations’ at The National Theatre; tipped his top hat as the earnest protagonist alongside an ensemble cast including Dame Harriet Walter, Tamsin Grieg and Tom Wilkinson in ‘Belgravia’; and has just concluded Channel 4’s ‘Screw’ starring Nina Sosanya and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell and the ‘The Canterville Ghost’ on Channel 5 with Anthony Head.

Tom is a serving major in the Household Cavalry, with active service experience in Afghanistan, the Balkans, Iraq and across East Africa, and he was Prince Harry’s commanding officer during his deployment in Afghanistan. After completing post-graduate studies in Globalisation & Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, followed by the School of Advanced Military Studies at the United States Staff College in Fort Leavenworth. He has since held a number of strategy roles within the MoD and is a contributor to the Centre for Social Justice on the transition of service personnel to the civilian workplace and engages in creating economic and civil society relationships in areas of conflict and instability.

After his education at the RGS, Rodney completed his degree in Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London, and for over 60 years has worked as one of the UKs most prestigious engineers, focussing on the development of clean energy systems. As Director of Engineering & Technology at global energy firm Air Products inc. he was awarded an MBE as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2004. He then moved into research and with former USA VP Al Gore, was part of the IPCC team awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, and the Global Energy Prize in 2012. He invented the CO2 free power system called the ‘Allam Cycle’ that MIT Technology Review listed as being one of the top ten breakthrough technologies (2018).

When did you join the RGS? 2014

What’s the best thing about the RGS? The people and the sense of fun while searching for knowledge.

What excites you most about coming into work each day? The daily challenge and the community. My secondary schooling was done in Europe and the range of choice here is exciting; each day is full of options.

If you could change your name to anything, what would it be? I like my name and its meaning. It comes from the Arabic word ‘nur’ which means light, luminous.

What luxury would you have on a desert island? A surfboard. You can have fun and fish.

What animal most reflects your personality? Tigress. They are elegant, love the water and colourful.

What’s your favourite film and why? Secretariat: it is a true story; however, it is more than just a story about a horse. It has a powerful message to trust yourself, do your best and success will be yours.

Which actor/actress would you get to play you in a film of your life? Penelope Cruz, with green contact lenses.

If you could be any cartoon character, who would you be? Merida of DunBroch from Brave. She doesn’t fit her stereotypical role. She is fearless, headstrong and courageous.

What’s your life philosophy/motto in life? “El que lee mucho y anda mucho, ve mucho y sabe mucho” (The one who reads and walks a lot, sees and knows a lot), so keep reading and moving.

When did you join the RGS? 2013

What’s the best thing about the RGS? Working with super-talented colleagues and students all day, every day!

What excites you most about coming into work each day? Knowing that each day at the RGS will probably turn out to be an even better day than anticipated.

If you were allowed one dream perk, what would it be? Speaking all the languages in the world.

What animal most reflects your personality? An alebrije.

What’s your favourite film and why? Babel by Alejandro González Iñárritu. With its clear biblical reference to the famous Tower, this film deals with the themes of communication, tolerance and diversity in our modern world. The international cast is also first-class!

Which actor/actress would you get to play you in a film of your life? Kim Rossi Stuart.

If you could be any cartoon character who would you be? Lumière from Beauty and the Beast.

What’s your life philosophy/motto in life? Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars. (Oscar Wilde)