Cheeky students donned a statue of musical hall comedian Max Miller with a graduation gown and mortarboard after their University of Brighton awards ceremony today.
Miller’s bronze statue was erected by the Max Miller Appreciation Society and was unveiled in 2005 in the Royal Pavilion Gardens in Brighton, the city where Miller was born and where he died in 1963.
The Society, whose president is comedian Roy Hudd OBE, was founded in 1999 and it meets every year in the city to remember Miller, known as the Cheeky Chappie and is regarded as one of Britain’s finest stand-up comedians.
Meanwhile, the week of graduation ceremonies at the Dome continues. Yesterday, learning disabilities campaigner Paul Bramwell received an Honorary Fellowship.
A trustee and current chair of Speak Out which provides advocacy for adults with learning disabilities, Paul is a self-employed consultant.
Mr Bramwell was one of the founders of the Working Together Project which helps community organisations be effective as possible and has helped 9,000 people with free learning courses.
Professor David Taylor, Dean of the Faculty of Health and Social Science, said the award was in recognition of Mr Bramwell’s major contribution to work in the voluntary sector and his contribution to the work of the University of Brighton’s Community University Partnership Programme (Cupp) which helps tackle disadvantage and promotes sustainable development through partnership working.
He said: “Paul has developed a telephone helpline service, worked in the field of development education, delivering development, human rights and equalities training, and worked for a community arts organisation by putting on large-scale fundraising events.
“He was also a founder member of the Cupp Steering Group. He is a valuable contributor to the public good… an absolutely central asset for the local community and for the university and an inspiration to those who want to support local communities in their development and independence.”
