Professor Anne Neville’s life and legacy honoured with lecture theatre dedication
The School of Mechanical Engineering has paid tribute to Professor Anne Neville and her extraordinary legacy, naming a lecture theatre in her honour on what would have been her 55th birthday.
On 21 March, friends and colleagues hosted a special ceremony to recognise her passion for science, ability to inspire, and remarkable achievements. The event coincided with the Royal Society’s upcoming publication of her memoir.
The dedication, spearheaded by Anne’s colleagues Professor Ardian Morina, Dr Rachael Spraggs, and Professor Giles Davies, was proposed as “a tribute to Anne’s outstanding contributions to engineering science and education, but also a source of inspiration to future generations of engineers and scientists who will go through this auditorium to follow in her footsteps.”
A trailblazing career in engineering
Professor Neville, who passed away in 2022 at 52, authored over 700 articles and has been cited 14,000 times by other research papers. She is internationally renowned for her contributions to tribology, surface engineering, and corrosion, which has transformed our understanding of the physics of surfaces.
Professor Anne Neville.
Her breakthroughs also improved our understanding of issues as wide-ranging as brake pads, endoscopic tools, miniature robots, animal dexterity, and the mouthfeel of wine.
Anne was awarded numerous accolades during her distinguished career, such as fellowships with the Royal Society of Edinburgh, the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Academy of Engineering. In 2016, she became the first woman to win both the Leverhulme Medal and the James Clayton Prize.
In 2017, she achieved her lifelong ambition when she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). That same year, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her contributions to engineering.
Anne was an internationally renowned and dedicated colleague, an inspirational engineer and superb role model – particularly for female mechanical engineers.
The dedication event was attended by 100 people who knew Anne closely – including family, friends, colleagues, and former students – and speakers celebrated her incredible achievements in engineering, her modesty, determination, and selflessness, and the impact she left at Leeds and across the world.
“A force of nature”
The event was opened by Professor Hai-Sui Yu, Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Leeds and a fellow engineer, who said he could only scratch the surface of her 17-year career with the University.
Professor Hai-Sui Yu led the dedication ceremony in front of 100 people in the School of Mechanical Engineering. Credit: Mark Bickerdike.
He said: “Anne was an internationally renowned and dedicated colleague, an inspirational engineer and superb role model – particularly for female mechanical engineers.
“She has been described as a force of nature, hugely energetic, productive, and focused – and none of us here could disagree with any of that. She was also an excellent and inspiring leader, great at building teams and encouraging them to achieve their very best.
“Perhaps most importantly of all, Anne was selfless, thoughtful, and kind, and proved that being a hugely successful engineer is compatible with enjoying a fulfilling family life. We were very lucky to have her as a colleague and a friend.”
He was followed by former colleagues Professor Rob Dwyer-Joyce of the Leonardo Centre for Tribology at the University of Sheffield and author of her Royal Society memoir; Professor Edmund Linfield, Director of the Bragg Centre for Materials Research; and Sheetal Handa, who serves on the Bragg Centre External Advisory Board.
Professor Rob Dwyer-Joyce of the Leonardo Centre for Tribology at the University of Sheffield, authored Anne's Royal Society memoir. Credit: Mark Bickerdike.
Professor Linfield praised Anne for her groundbreaking work and her key role in shaping the Centre. “Much wisdom came from Anne,” he said. “She didn’t always say so much in meetings, but when she did, one listened and took careful note. She was always perceptive, to the point, insightful, and supportive.”
Each speaker was keen to underline the achievement that Anne held most dearly: nurturing 129 PhD students on their paths to becoming experts in their fields.
The dedication ceremony drew to a close as Mark McKelvie, Anne’s husband, and Rachel, her daughter, took to the stage to highlight how Anne’s personality shone just as brightly away from Leeds, as a dedicated mother and wife.
Mark McKelvie, Anne’s husband, and Rachel, her daughter, paid tribute to her career and her life away from the University. Credit: Mark Bickerdike.
Mark said: “Rachel and I were delighted that the university chose to name a lecture theatre in memory of Anne. The event on Friday allowed us to celebrate Anne’s life along with other family members, friends, and colleagues.
“It is lovely to know that there will be a permanent memorial in the building in which Anne spent the majority of her career, which many of her colleagues still work in, and which Rachel and I both have very fond memories of.”
Professor Dame Jane Francis FRS, the University's chancellor, closed the presentation by unveiling the plaque, which will be installed inside the lecture theatre.
The dedication plaque for the Anne Neville Lecture Theatre will become a permanent fixture in the School of Mechanical Engineering. Credit: Mark Bickerdike.
In 2024, Anne’s contribution to the city of Leeds was honoured as part of the Ribbons sculpture, which champions women’s achievements in Leeds from the past and present. The sculpture comprises five steel ribbons that carry the names of over 350 nominated women.
“Ribbons,” a sculpture featuring Professor Anne Neville’s name, stands between Leeds City College’s Quarry Hill campus and Leeds Playhouse.
Ribbons, created by artist Pippa Hale for a project led by Leeds Arts University in partnership with Leeds City College and Leeds City Council, was unveiled on October 12 by Chancellor Rachel Reeves MP.
Further information
- Photography of the event provided by Mark Bickerdike. Lead image caption: Mark McKelvie, Professor Anne Neville’s husband, and Rachel, her daughter, stand with Professor Dame Jane Francis FRS after a plaque was unveiled in Anne’s honour.
- Read Professor Anne Neville’s obituary from the University of Leeds’ Secretariat.
- For media enquiries, please contact Faculty Communications Manager Matt Gardner at M.D.Gardner@leeds.ac.uk.
