Inspirational women

Find out about a selection of our inspirational women alumnae from across a range of fields, from entertainment and media to law, busines and science and academia.

Rose Helibron

Dame Rose Heilbron

Dame Heilbron was a trailblazer for women in the field of professional law. She was the first woman to be awarded a first class LLB at the University of Liverpool and went on to be the first woman to be appointed judge and sit at the Old Bailey (1972).

Dora Esther Yates

Dora Esther Yates

Dora Esther Yates was the first Jewish woman to receive an MA from a British University, she graduated with an MA in English Language and Literature in 1900. She worked in the English department, and in departmental Libraries, before being appointed Honorary Lecturer in Bibliography and Curator of Special Collections from 1938 until her official retirement in 1945.
Wendy Beetlestone with Barack Obama

The Honorable Wendy Beetlestone

Wendy Beetlestone graduated from Liverpool with a degree in Philosophy in 1984, and went on to forge a successful career as a television journalist, before entering the legal world a decade later. In 2014 she was nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Lucrezia Zaina

Lucrezia Zaina

Lucrezia Zaina was Head of Italian from 1964 to 1988 and studied French and Italian at the University of Liverpool from 1939-1947. She worked in those departments from 1948 until her retirement in 1988. She died on 7 December 2008, and bequeathed her valuable personal library to the University.

Dr Margaret Hope Alston-Garnjost

Dr Margaret Hope Alston-Garnjost

Margaret earned her Doctorate in Physics at the University of Liverpool in 1955, before securing a position at the University of California, Berkeley. This was regarded as a pioneering role for women at that time, she undertook further research and co-authored several articles with Dr Luis Alvarez, who later went on to win the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1968.

Emma Watkinson sitting in front of computer monitor showing SilkFred website

Emma Watkinson

Emma (BA Hons English Language & Literature 2008) is a powerhouse. After graduating in a tough economy, working in an array of retail roles and a stint as a journalism intern in New York City, Emma gave up her dream job at 24 to start her own business. SilkFred.com is an online fashion retailer which provides a platform for independent brands, devoted to helping women find the perfect outfit.

Dr Jaclyn Bell

Dr Jaclyn Bell

Jacyln is a theoretical particle physicist, athlete and aspiring astronaut. She is currently working as a Space and Physics Project Manager at the UK Association for Science and Discovery Centres while working on her ambitions to become an astronaunt with the European Space Agency.

tulip mazumdar

Tulip Mazumdar

Tulip is a journalist and broadcaster, working for the BBC as their gloabl health reporter. After graduating from the University she worked at BBC Radio Merseyside, moving on to the news department broadcasting on BBC station 1xtra and other BBC radio programmes. She has reported from Helmand, Afghanistan and Sierra Leone during the Ebola epidemic.