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Professor John Spencer

Chemistry Professor John Spencer has been named the winner of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s 2026 , receiving £3,000, a medal and certificate in recognition of his pioneering work accelerating drug discovery. 

The annual prize, established in 1989, recognises individuals who have made outstanding contributions to organic chemistry, and John’s research tackles some of the biggest challenges in drug development - high costs, lengthy timelines and significant failure rates.  

Reacting to the news, John said: "Gobsmacked. If at first you don't succeed, try again! I've been blessed to be paid for my hobby and to work with amazing people - superb researchers in my group and collaborators all over the world. Also, a family that puts up with my 'laptop stuck on my lap, 24 hours, seven days a week disorder' and understands that this job is not a simple 9-5!" 

John’s team at the Sussex Drug Discovery Centre works to speed up the synthesis of drug-like molecules, reducing energy consumption, solvent use and waste while increasing efficiency. Their ‘fail fast, fail cheap’ approach involves rapidly testing large numbers of molecules made in very small quantities, enabling researchers to quickly identify and discard those with limited biological activity. 

Professor Luc Moreau, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine, said: "My congratulations to John for this wonderful accolade. Sussex chemistry has a fine pedigree, from Nobel laureates to David Walton who won the Bader Prize in 2001. John’s work is inspirational in his field and a good part of it is dedicated to tackling cancer progression – something which has great potential benefit for wider society and the world at large.” 

A Sussex alumnus, John spent a decade in the biotech industry before joining the University in 2012. He has long been a been a central figure in the Sussex Drug Discovery Centre, serving as its Director from 2021 to 2023 and currently holding the role of Head of Medicinal Chemistry.