15 of Cambridge's most successful alumni of all time

After dropping out of Cambridge, Cromwell went on to lead the Roundheads in the English Civil War, which they won. In 2002, Cromwell was ranked one of the best Britons of all time by a BBC poll.

The "Paradise Lost" author ranked fourth in his year of graduates. Not a fan of his Cambridge peers though, Milton said of his fellow students: "They thought themselves gallant men, and I thought them fools."

Often coined the father of modern biology, Darwin was sent to Cambridge by his father to study the Arts, in the hope that he might one day become an Anglican country parson.

"The Imitation Game" protagonist unsurprisingly read maths at Cambridge — he was elected a college fellow on the strength of his dissertation.

The infamous broadcaster has collected 32 honourary degrees in addition to his bachelors in natural sciences from Clare College.

Hawking returned to Cambridge post graduating to lecture, which he did for 30 years in the same post that had previously been occupied by the likes of Isaac Newton.

Sorrell studied economics at Cambridge, and the advertising mogul is now the highest paid CEO in the UK. In 2015, his annual income was estimated to be £42,978,000.

After graduating with a 2:2 in archaeology, anthropology and history, Charles became the first heir to gain a university degree.

The Huffington Post co-founder and editor-in-chief was the first foreign (and third female) president of the Cambridge Union.

Thompson was the first woman to be invited to Cambridge's prestigious comedy club, "Footlights," where she earned the nickname "Emma Talented." The nickname was well-deserved — she has since become the only person in history to win an Oscar for both acting and writing.

The ex-"Countdown" presenter had a shaky career at university, joining the famous "Nines Club" by getting a third in all three years of her course in engineering,

The British Indian mogul came up with his multimillion-pound Cobra beer business while studying law at Cambridge – he wanted a beer to go with his curry that was refreshing like lager but smooth like ale.

The "Ali G" and "Borat" actor began his drama career at Cambridge – while studying history, he starred in a number of theatre performances.

The Jordanian Prince gained a PhD from Cambridge before becoming the current United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. He has publicly spoken out against president-elect Donald Trump.

The Moneypenny actress suffered from culture shock while studying social and political sciences at Cambridge, she told The Mirror: "They talked about Eton and skiing and here was I, this black girl from North London."