1980
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Professor Harry Ansoff* | DSc |
| Sir Raymond Brown OBE* | DSc |
| Professor Sir Hans Kornberg FRS FIBiol* | DSc |
| Prof Eur Ing Frei Otto DSc* | DSc |
| Harold Wassell OBE* | MEng |
| Professor Geoffrey Wilkinson* | DSc |
| The Rt Hon The Baroness Williams of Crosby CH PC* | DLitt |
1981
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Sir David Attenborough OM CH CVO CBE FRS | DSc |
| Dr William Brandt* | DLitt |
| Professor Gillian Brown CBE* | LLD |
| Dr Duncan Davies* | DSc |
| Dr Glyn England FREng FIEE FIMechE* | DSc |
| Sir William Hawthorne CBE FRS FREng FIMechE* | DSc |
| Sir Douglas Henley KCB* | LLD |
| Sir Richard Morris CBE FREng* | DSc |
| Sir Richard O'Brien DSO MC* | LLD |
| Professor Sir Peter Swinnerton-Dyer Bt DSc FRS* | DSc |
1982
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Sir Kenneth Corfield KT CE FEng FInstBM FIMechE* | DSc |
| Professor John Heslop-Harrison* | DSc |
| Reginald Parker MIMechE MIProdE* | MSc |
| Sir Peter Parker KBE* | LLD |
| Sir D'Arcy Reilly* | DLitt |
| Sir Derek Roberts FRS FREng FInstP | DSc |
| Baroness Nancy Seear of Paddington* | DLitt |
1983
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Dr Rudolf Augstein* | DLitt |
| Professor Peter Danckwerts* | DSc |
| Professor Paul Matthews* | DSc |
| Dame Iris Murdoch* | DLitt |
| Sir Clive Sinclair* | DSc |
| Baroness Eirene White of Rhymney* | LLD |
1984
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Sir Roger Bannister CH CBE DM (Oxon) FRCP* | DSc |
| Professor Sir Basil Blackwell* | DSc |
| Professor Barry Cunliffe CBE FBA FSA | DSc |
| Sir William Glock* | DLitt |
| Dr Simon Nora* | DLitt |
| Sir Kenneth Selby* | LLD |
| Professor Amartya Sen Hon CH FBA | DSc |
| Sir Robert Telford CBE DL FREng FIEE* | DSc |
1985
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Professor Sir Geoffrey Allen FRS FREng FRSC | DSc |
| Stanley Hamilton* | MSc |
| Professor Fritz John* | DSc |
| Dr Peter King DSc* | DSc |
| Dr James Nisbet* | DSc |
| The Lord Quirk CBE FBA* | DLitt |
| Professor David Tabor* | DSc |
| Sir Douglas Wass GCB* | DLitt |
1986
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Professor Heather Angel MSc FRPS FBIPP | DSc |
| Professor Sir James Baddiley FRS FRSE* | DSc |
| Sir William Barlow FREng FIMechE FIEE FCGI* | DSc |
| Pat Bishop | MA |
| Dr John Bolton CBE* | DSc |
| The Rt Hon The Lord Chilver FRS FREng* | DSc |
| The Lord Foster of Thames Bank OM | DSc |
| Professor David Kendall FRS* | DSc |
| June Mendoza AO OBE RP ROI | DLitt |
| Dame Maggie Smith CBE | DLitt |
1987
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Kate Adie OBE | MA |
| Sir John Banham DL* | LLD |
| Sir John Burgh KCMG CB* | LLD |
| Professor Margaret Gowing* | DSc |
| Dr Bob Holder* | LLD |
| Sir David Jack CBE FRS FRSE | DSc |
| Sir Denis Rooke OM CBE FRS FREng* | LLD |
| The Baroness Warnock CH DBE* | DLitt |
| Professor Sir Maurice Wilkes FRS FEng FIEE FBCS* | DSc |
| Youyun Zhang | MA |
1988
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Dr Robert Ballard | DSc |
| Sir Walter Bodmer FRS FIBiol FRCPath | DSc |
| Sir Arthur C Clarke CBE* | DLitt |
| Isabel Colegate* | MA |
| Sir John Egan DL | LLD |
| Professor Fritz Leonhardt* | DSc |
| Professor Golo Mann* | DLitt |
| Fay Weldon CBE FRSL* | DLitt |
| Dr Andreas Whittam Smith CBE | LLD |
1989
| Honorary graduate | Degree conferred |
|---|---|
| Professor Thomas Benjamin* | DSc |
| John F Coates DSc OBE* | DSc |
| The Rt Hon The Lord Marshall of Knightsbridge* | LLD |
| Professor John Morrison* | DLitt |
| Barbara Robertson* | MA |
| Alan Rousell | DSc |
| The Earl of Snowdon GCVO* | LLD |
An asterisk (*) appears after the name of a deceased honorary graduate.