Flitwick-based author Adam Croft received an Honorary Doctor of Arts in recognition of his outstanding services to literature.

Adam, who has lived in Bedfordshire all his life, has self-published 20 books through Amazon, earning thousands in royalties and outselling writers like Stephen King and Lee Child.

On receiving his award, Adam said: “It is a huge honour, particularly as it has come from my local university and is in recognition of what I’ve achieved over the past eight years or so. I’m immensely grateful to the University for the award.”

Luton-born graphic designer Jonathan Barnbrook was also honoured with an Honorary Doctor of Arts in recognition of his outstanding services to the arts. Jonathan is best known for producing the artwork for several of David Bowie’s albums, including Heathen, Reality, The Next Day and his final album Blackstar.

Jonathan told the graduates on receiving his award: “Without self-doubt, there would be no good work. To do something well, you need to know your technique in how to do it, which you learn at university, but also never forget to question why – that’s another fundamental thing you learn at university. Nothing is permanent, you have the power to change anything. So go out now and make the world a better place.”

Adam and Jonathan joined excited graduates from the faculty of Creative Arts, Technologies and Sciences and the University Business School. Among them was postgraduate student Najia Akhtar, 23, was also presented with the Best Performing Postgraduate in Life Sciences award for achieving a Distinction and the best overall grade in Life Sciences postgraduate courses.

Najia showed exceptional performance throughout her studies and achieved top grades across the board, including her research project.