University welcomes first honorands of the new millennium

From left, Helen Bamber, Dame Judi Dench, and Viscount Runciman of Doxford, in the Divinity School

The University honoured outstanding contributions in the fields of humanitarian aid, theatre, art, sociological theory, modern history, medicine, and astronomy at Encaenia on 28 June. Mrs Helen Bamber, CBE, Founder and Director of the Medical foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law. The Public Orator, Professor Jasper Griffin, said: `Mrs Bamber was nineteen when she was sent to work in Belsen, a vision of hell which did not daunt her, but served as a stimulus to her to work with the damaged minds of the survivors of such atrocities. She is a defender of the helpless and the dread of tyrannical governments.' Actress Dame Judi Dench, DBE, was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters for her contribution to the theatre and film business both as an actress and a director. She was praised by the Public Orator for her ability to `bring to vivid reality the greatest works, whether of a light or of a serious cast', and described as `an ornament of the stage and a favourite of the public.' Painter Sir Howard Hodgkin, CBE, was also awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters, and described by the Public Orator as `a great painter, who reflects on the forms of nature and subjects them to a process of digestion, transformation and disguise.' Sir Howard was also praised as a `generous friend to the University who has helped aspiring painters and is also a friend and benefactor of the Ashmolean Museum.' The Viscount Runciman of Doxford, CBE, FBA, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters. The Public Orator described him as: `A distinguished social scientist and an eminent public servant, equally admirable in both capacities', and praised him for his service to the community, particularly in his role as Chairman of the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice. Professor Quentin Skinner, FBA, Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Cambridge, was the final honorand to receive the degree of Doctor of Letters, The Public Orator said: `his sharp eye does not fail to observe that the significance of words gradually changes and even the questions which philosophers discuss are by no means immortal. He is weighty in argument, but a witty lecturer, admirable in learning and scholarship.' Professor Sir Martin Rees, FRS, the Astronomer Royal, was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science, and described by the Public Orator as `a lynx-eyed observer of the stars, both ingenious and profound as a guide to the universe. He has been a watcher of the stars since boyhood and has studied objects not visible to us, including black holes, with their fantastic and unimaginable power.' Professor Janet Rowley, Blum-Riese Distinguished Professor at the University of Chicago, was also awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science for her work on leukaemia and cancer. She studied radiobiology and chromosome banding at Oxford, and has devoted her research to the nature and progress of cancers. The Public Orator said: `She has benefited the world and with high intelligence she has revealed and continues to reveal the most intimate secrets of health.' Sir Aaron Klug, OM, President of the Royal Society, had been due to receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Science, but was unable to attend the ceremony due to ill-health.