November 23, 2007

Friday Fun: Rock n Roll Chancellor Edition

Every university needs it's own Rock n Roll chancellor, right?

It seems that Liverpool John Moores University in the UK has named Queen's Brian May as Chancellor.

From the press release:

Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Board, Sir Malcolm Thornton said today: "On behalf of the governing body of Liverpool John Moores University, I am delighted to announce that Brian May will be the new Chancellor of LJMU. Not only is Brian an icon in his own sphere but he is a real academic star as well. He perfectly embodies the 'can do' attitude of LJMU; he is going to be a great Chancellor for the students and a wonderful figurehead for the University." ...

Professor Mike Bode, Director of LJMU's Astrophysics Research Institute said: "I am absolutely delighted to learn that Dr Brian May is to be the next Chancellor of the University. He had a very hard choice to make in his mid-twenties - whether to pursue a career in science or music. Well, he chose the latter, but never forgot the former. It is in fact a tribute to him, and a measure of his great interest in the nature of our Universe, that he recently completed his PhD in astrophysics after putting it to one side for so many years. Fittingly, he performed his original observational work in the Canaries where the University owns and operates one of the world's most sophisticated telescopes. We look forward to sharing some observational work with him in the future, and I think he will be amazed at how our capabilties have advanced over the years."


Of course, we all remember that May was awarded a long-delayed PhD in Astrophysics a little while ago and is co-author of a book on astronomy.

York has already had a musical Chancellor as Oscar Peterson served from 1991 - 1994. Who do you think the best musical Chancellor would be for your institution?

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