Austin Marsden was a consultant surgeon in Ormskirk and St Helens. He was born in St Helens, Lancashire, on Christmas Day 1919, the third son of George Marsden, a shoe merchant, and Agnes née Liptrot. He was educated at St Helens Catholic Grammar School, from which he went on to read medicine at Liverpool University, where he won gold medals in anatomy and medicine. After junior posts he was on the surgical unit under Charles Wells. He was appointed consultant to Ormskirk and St Helen’s. Deafness precluded him from military service. He married Mary Catherine Robers in 1945. They had two sons and two daughters, one of whom became a doctor. Among his many interests were European languages and medical history. He wrote an account of Pierre Franco, the 16th Century French surgeon. Marsden died in June 2004.