These Christmas movie pairings say more about each uni than any ranking ever could.
With London officially in festive mode, we thought it made sense to match each uni with the Christmas film it embodies. The matches came together alarmingly quickly, which may suggest more about our campus personalities than we'd like.
Each university has a very specific way of behaving once December hits. Christmas films just happen to capture it in under two hours. It seems like campus personality does write itself.
UCL is Love Actually because it contains 500 different plots happening at the same time and nobody is following all of them successfully. People wander around campus like they're in a dramatic montage, but half of them would absolutely be cut from the final edit. Still, they insist the whole thing is iconic, and honestly, fair enough.
LSE is Die Hard because everything feels unnecessarily high-stakes. Students speak like negotiations might collapse at any moment, even if they're just ordering lunch. They also love arguing about whether something "technically counts," so this film is a perfect fit.
Imperial is Home Alone because it revolves around solving problems with increasingly complicated methods. A surprising number of students would, in fact, booby-trap their house for fun. They'd also write a report about it, complete with diagrams.
SOAS is A Christmas Carol because nothing delights them more than analysing a wealthy man being forced to confront his actions. The moral lesson is basically their brand. It's the closest thing to a Christmas film with a reading list.
KCL is The Holiday because the whole uni feels like it's waiting for something romantic or transformative to happen, and it never quite does. The expectations are high; the reality is deadlines and long corridors. It's basically a soft-focus film without the plot.
RHUL fits Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone because the campus already looks like it should require a house scarf. It might not technically be a Christmas film, but it is festive, and that's close enough. When covered in snow, it has Hogwarts written all over it- the only thing that's missing is Nearly Headless Nick.
CSM is Elf because enthusiasm, unusual outfits, and unexpected glitter appear without warning. No one questions it; they simply treat it as artistic expression. Buddy the Elf would get a first for commitment alone.
Queen Mary suits The Grinch because it exists apart from Central London's festive noise and is completely content with that. It doesn't go out of its way to perform cheer, but if you're in, there's more going on than people expect.