Robert Wyatt was born in Bristol but moved to Canterbury where, as a member of Soft Machine, he was a leading light of the city's famous music scene of the late 1960s. He continued his music career as a solo artist and had a 1983 chart hit with the song Shipbuilding.

Others receiving honorary degrees from the university this month include comedian Harry Hill, artist Billy Childish, Framestore co-founder Sir William Sargent, Kids Company founder Camila Batmanghelidjh, media executive Geraldine Allinson and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig.