Digging into the highlights from the Dental Alumni Weekend 2025

King’s College London Dental Alumni Association gathered at Guy’s Tower on 7 March for an action-packed weekend of lectures, reunions, dinners and goody bags.

Words of wisdom

The theme for this year was ‘beyond the smile’, and guests enjoyed a series of lectures from five eminent speakers.

A particular highlight was Professor Ama Johal’s captivating speech on ‘Restoring Sleep and Quality of Life: All in a Day’s Work’.

Professor Peter Brennan also kept attendees entertained with a witty yet informative talk on ‘Understanding and Applying Human Factors to Improve Patient Safety, Teamwork and Wellbeing in Dentistry’.

On day two, Mr Anish Shah delivered the keynote lecture. ‘Facing Oral Medicine’ took a fresh look at oro-facial lesions and systemic disease. One guest described being ‘thoroughly inspired’ by Shah’s words. ‘The Friday afternoon lectures were first-class and I’m so glad I made the effort to attend’, they added.

Dr Federica Amati filled audiences in on the latest advancements in gut health. Her lecture, ‘Why You Need to Care about Gut Health’, explored early feeding and the damaging impact of ultra-processed foods.

Reuniting and reminiscing

The weekend was a wonderful opportunity for attendees to catch up and reminisce about their time at King’s.

Our guests were treated to a staff and alumni drinks reception and the Annual Dental Dinner at the Hilton Tower Bridge Hotel. Stand-out moments included performances from musicians Tomos Lavery (Dentistry, 2014) and Ben Smith, who sang for the guests as they tucked into their dinner.

Our 1995 graduates came together to celebrate their 30^th reunion, while our 2000 and 2005 cohorts marked their 20^th and 25^th anniversaries respectively.

Crowning moments

At the end of the weekend, Dr Pepe Shirlaw MBE (Honorary Senior Lecturer and Honorary Reader at King’s) was crowned Alum of the Year. An acclaimed practitioner, she sits on several distinguished boards and committees.

On a sadder note, the deaths of Dr David Brown (MSc Dentistry, 1967) and Dr Meg Skelly (Dentistry, 1978) were announced at an Annual General Meeting on the Sunday. Both were long-standing members of our alumni community and will be missed.

The event also marked Charlie Spedding’s final year as President of the Association. Charlie leaves the Chain of Office in the capable hands of Dr Jonathan Turner (Dentistry, 1989; PhD Dental and Health Sciences Research, 2018), who will hold the position of President for the next two years.

‘I thoroughly enjoyed my two years as President of KCL Dental Alumni Association. I feel honoured and privileged to have held the position. It was great to see so many old faces and meet many new ones at the alumni weekends,’ Charlie told us.

The weekend was a resounding success, with alumni and staff coming together from across King’s dental community. We look forward to seeing what next year has in store.

Will you join us for next year’s reunion? Don’t forget to update your details via our form and stay tuned for details on our 2026 event.