Honours for staff

Published: 22 October 2020

Celebrating recognition and awards for our academic colleagues

Six of our academics have been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2020.

  • Professor Muffy Calder, Vice-Principal and Head of the College of Science & Engineering: Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE)
  • Professor Christian Delles of the Institiute of Cardiovascular & Medical Sciences: Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE)
  • Dr Sarah McDonald, Biobank Manager at the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research: Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
  • Professor Miles Padgett, Kelvin Chair of Natural Philosophy in the School of Physics & Astronomy: Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
  • Professor Emma Thomson, Professor in Infectious Diseases at the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research: Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
  • Professor Matthew Walters, Professor of Clinical Pharmacology and Head of the School of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing: Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE)

Three prestigious UKRI-funded Future Leaders Fellowship awards recognise work on COVID-19 and in cancer sciences. The awards have been made to Dr David Bryant and Dr Joanna Birch from the Institute of Cancer Sciences, and Dr Adam Fletcher, who will be joining the University of Glasgow-MRC Centre for Virus Research in the coming months to begin working on COVID-19 research. Together they received £3.4m funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The support, which is funded for four years, will enable each fellow to tackle ambitious and challenging research and innovation and develop their own careers.

Professor Peter Kennedy, Institute of Infection, Immunity & Inflammation, has received the prestigious RSE Royal Medal in recognition of his work in treating sleeping sickness and other neuroviruses. His pioneering work in distinguishing the major human brain cell types has paved the way to significant advances in the treatment of neurological diseases and infections, as well as identification of a novel therapy for African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness).


First published: 22 October 2020