From Coldplay and Pulp to The Who and Pink Floyd, much of modern music flourished in the capital's seats of higher learning.

A new straw poll, conducted by the Times Higher Education Supplement, reveals where the musicians chose to study.

Heading the pack are London's King's College and University College, which between them spawned members of Bloc Party, Queen, The Communards, Art Of Noise, Coldplay, Keane, Suede, Elastica and Basement Jaxx.

London Metropolitan University was home to Alison Moyet, David McAlmont and Neil Tennant, while Ealing College of Art, now part of Thames Valley University, enjoyed a Sixties heyday with students Pete Townshend of The Who and Ronnie Wood, once of The Faces and now of the Rolling Stones. Leeds University, meanwhile, has alumni including Corinne Bailey Rae, Kaiser Chiefs' bassist Simon Rix and members of The Wedding Present and Sisters of Mercy.

Gerry Smyth, cultural history lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University, said: "There is a tradition of what might be called 'gownie rock' - middle- class boys who have the money to invest in familiarising themselves with various new trends in popular music and the leisure time to begin developing them in new directions."

Mr Smyth added: "It's not very 'street', however - rock's rebel persona doesn't ring very true when it's seen to emerge from a privileged background."

WHO READ POP

King's College
Kele Okereke (Bloc Party); John Deacon (Queen); Richard Coles (Communards); Anne Dudley (Art Of Noise); John Evan (Jethro Tull)

University College
Chris Martin, Will Champion, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman (Coldplay); Brett Anderson (Suede); Justine Frischmann (Elastica); Simon Ratcliffe (Basement Jaxx); Tim Rice-Oxley (Keane)

London Met
Sonya Madden (Echobelly); Alison Moyet; David McAlmont (McAlmont & Butler); Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys)

Thames Valley
Pete Townshend; Freddie Mercury (Queen); Ronnie Wood (Rolling Stones); Matt Tong (Bloc Party)

Goldsmiths
Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James (Blur); Brian Molko (Placebo); Malcolm McLaren

Queen Mary
Pete Doherty; Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden); Bernard Butler (Suede)

Reading
Jamie Cullum; Scott Wilkinson and Martin Noble (British Sea Power); Go! Team

University of the Arts
Jarvis Cocker (Pulp); Sade; Syd Barrett (Pink Floyd)

Essex
Tony Banks (Genesis)

LSE
Sir Mick Jagger; Judge Jules

Middlesex
Ray Davies; Alison Goldfrapp

Westminster
David Gilmour, Richard Wright, Nick Mason (Pink Floyd)

Best of the rest:
Royal Holloway: KT Tunstall; Birkbeck: Dido; Greenwich: Natasha Bedingfield; Imperial: Brian May; Kingston: Eric Clapton