Degrees of honor bestowed at the Encaenia 2025 ceremony
Celebrating Achievements of the Remarkable at Oxford University's 2025 Encaenia
Get ready to applaud the amazing achievements of eight exceptional individuals at Oxford University's annual Encaenia ceremony, held on June 25, 2025. These trailblazers hail from diverse fields, ranging from sports, literature, broadcasting, science, politics, journalism, and academia.
The ceremony, to be held at the Sheldonian Theatre, will be filled with excitement. The procession leading the way will be led by the University's Chancellor, Lord William Hague, and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Irene Tracey.
This year's honorands are:
Lord Melvyn Bragg, a British polymath with a knack for captivating the world of broadcasting, literature, and politics
As a broadcasting legend, Lord Bragg served as the editor and presenter of The South Bank Show for nearly two decades. Remarkably, he currently hosts the highly popular In Our Time. As a renowned author, the recipient of a number of awards, fellowships, and even a BAFTA, Lord Bragg's contributions to society are substantial.
Clive Myrie, an esteemed BBC journalist and news presenter
Clive Myrie, a versatile journalist, formerly worked as a correspondent for BBC News Network, with outstanding achievements in major global events coverage and warrior-zone reporting. Currently, Myrie is a lead presenter for the 6 and 10 o'clock news on BBC1. Having hosted Mastermind and Celebrity Mastermind in 2021, Myrie is an established household name. His accolades include numerous Royal Television Society awards, a Peabody Award in 2017, and the 2018 David Bloom Award.
Professor Serhii Plokhii, a prolific historian whose books have garnered numerous awards
Professor Plokhii is the Mykhailo S. Hrushevs'kyi Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard University. Born in the Soviet Union, Plokhii spent much of his formative years in Ukraine. At the University of Alberta, he gained recognition as an acclaimed historian, associate director, research associate, and founder of the Religion and Culture Research Program at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies.
Professor Timothy Snyder, a noted historian focused on Central Europe, Ukraine, and the Holocaust
Professor Snyder is a respected scholar, appointed to the inaugural Chair in Modern European History at the University of Toronto. He is also a fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna and serves as head of the academic advisory council for the Ukrainian History Global Initiative. Snyder's work has been published widely, with numerous books on various topics and in multiple languages.
Professor Colm Tóibín, an influential Irish writer and professor of the Humanities at Columbia University
Professor Tóibín, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, studied at University College Dublin. Following his studies, he traveled to Barcelona – an influential experience that enriched many of his subsequent works. He ventured into journalism and published his first novel, The South, in 1990. Since then, his impact on the literary world has been significant, earning him numerous awards and recognition, including a three-time Booker Prize shortlist and the 2023 Bodley Medal.
Sir Mo Farah, a multiple Olympic, World, and European champion athlete
Sir Mo Farah, CBE, is renowned for his outstanding achievements on the athletics track, with multiple Olympic, World, and European titles to his name. His successes include making history by becoming the first British athlete to run the 5,000m in under 13 minutes in 2010 and becoming the first British athlete to win double gold in the 10,000m and 5,000m during the 2012 London Olympics. In 2017, Sir Mo was knighted for his services to athletics, and in 2018, he claimed third place in the London Marathon with a new British record.
Professor Robert S. Langer, a groundbreaking scientist and entrepreneur
Professor Langer, the David H. Koch Institute Professor at MIT, serves as the chairman of the United States Food and Drug Administration's Science Board from 1999-2002. With over 1,600 articles and patents licensed or sublicensed to over 400 companies, Professor Langer is recognized as the most cited engineer in history. His accolades include more than 220 major awards, numerous honorary doctorates, and election to the US National Academy of Medicine, National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Inventors.
Professor Erwin Neher, a Nobel Prize-winning biophysicist
Professor Erwin Neher’s research has significantly advanced the field of cell physiology. Jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1991, Professor Neher's work has been recognized by numerous awards and organizations, including the Royal Society, the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, and the International Union of Physiological Sciences.
During the ceremony, the following students will also be recognized for their outstanding academic performance:
- Adam Mee (St Catherine's College)
- Perpetua Haydn Taylor (New College)
- Benjamin Zelin (Trinity College)
- Anubhab Ghosal (St Edmund Hall)
- Sarah Shah (Magdalen College)
- Rebecca Howitt (Queen’s College)
- Gabriel Leigh (Exeter College)
- Augustus Smith (All Souls College)
- The remarkable recipients of honors at the 2025 Encaenia at Oxford University, Lord Melvyn Bragg and Professor Serhii Plokhii, have made significant contributions to education-and-self-development, personal-growth, and career-development through their work in broadcasting, literature, and academia.
- The learning and intellectual growth demonstrated by the students being recognized for their academic achievements, such as Adam Mee (St Catherine's College) and Perpetua Haydn Taylor (New College), are exemplary in the field of education-and-self-development, fostering personal-growth and setting a path for career-development.
