News and Social Media

Celebrating Our Alumnae in The Arts

14th January 2026

Our Guild community continues to achieve outstanding success across the arts, demonstrating the exceptional breadth of skill, talent and ambition that make our fantastic CLC community.

We’re delighted to share some recent successes and celebrate the impact our alumnae continue to make in the world.

We congratulate them all on their brilliant achievements.

Dr Ellie Buckley - BBC’s The Traitors

Good luck to Dr Ellie Buckley (Class of 2009) who is currently appearing on Season 4 of The Traitors.

Prior to her role as a ‘Faithful’ in the popular reality TV programme, which is described by the BBC as ‘the ultimate reality game of trust and treachery’ and full of ‘mind games’, Ellie gained her MSc in Occupational and Organisational Psychology.

CLC 2004-2009, Glenlee / St Hilda's

Paris Paloma Phillips - Second Album and Tour

A recent CLC Leaver, Paris Paloma (Class of 2018) announced her second album Good Girl, due for release 30th January 2026, and is currently on her debut headline tour of Australia.

Paris Paloma launched her debut album Cacophony last year, which saw her song Labour enter the UK Official Chart and achieve viral success, ultimately surpassing 100 million streams on Spotify. She also opened for artist Stevie Nicks and toured to the US with Cacophony.

CLC 2013 - 2018, St Helen’s / Beale

Dame Kristin Scott Thomas - West End Performance

Next year, Dame Kristin Scott Thomas is set to star in Conor McPherson’s new West End adaptation of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. Earlier this year, she returned to the screen in the fifth season of the British spy thriller television series Slow Horses on Apple TV. In recent years, she made her film directing debut with My Mother’s Wedding, which she co-wrote and starred in alongside Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller and Emily Beecham.

CLC 1971-1976, Hatherley Court / St Hilda's

Synnøve Karlsen - Apple TV+ Leading Role

In July, Synnøve Karlsen (Class of 2014) portrayed Bayta Mallow, the leading protagonist in the latest season of Apple TV+ streaming series Foundation. Earlier this year, she also took on the role of Young Cassandra in the new four-part BBC historical drama series Miss Austen.

CLC 1946 - 2014

Bridget Riley - New Exhibition

Last month, Kent’s Turner Contemporary unveiled an exhibition, titled Learning to See, celebrating Bridget Riley’s work across six decades. The 26 pieces feature works from her defined black-and-white abstractions of the late 1960s, her wall paintings from the last decade to her most recent immersive canvases.

CLC 1946 - 1948, St Helen's

Sonja Klaus - HBO Max Series

In early 2026, Sonja Klaus is set to produce a new HBO Max fantasy period series, lk Göktürk (The First Göktürk), inspired by Turkish mythology. Some of her previous work includes the Hulu series Great Expectations, starring Olivia Coleman, as well as Sir Ridley Scott’s Academy Award Winning film Gladiator, which Sonja a nomination for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award win for Design.

CLC 1978-1980, St Austin's and Fauconberg

Margaret Ithell Colquhoun - Landmark Exhibition

Earlier this year, Tate St Ives (February–May) and Tate Britain (June–October) celebrated the extraordinary work of Ithell Colquhoun with a landmark exhibition titled Between Worlds. Featuring more than 140 artworks and archival materials, it was the most comprehensive display of her work to date. The exhibition traced her journey from early student pieces and involvement with the Surrealist movement to her deep fascination with the interconnected realms of art, sexual identity, ecology, and occultism.

CLC 1919-1925

Charlie Calder-Potts - Work with War Child

This year, Charlie Calder-Potts, along with other artists, worked with War Child on a unique art auction inspired by Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill. Each artwork reimagined an iconic lyric from the song, creating a diverse collection of works, which were auctioned off in support of War Child’s work to protect and advocate for the rights of children whose lives have been impacted by war. In 2024, she received the Daiwa Foundation Award for her project in Japan, Offerings from Nara. Earlier this year, she collaborated with Zoffany, releasing her first wallpaper mural, Lost Lands.

CLC 1996-2001 Bellairs / St Clare