Initially trained as a general surgeon, John Considine later specialised in urology and spent his consultant career at Heartlands Hospital (formerly East Birmingham Hospital) in the West Midlands. He was born in County Clare, Ireland, on 30 January 1925 and was educated at University College Dublin. After graduating in 1949 he trained in Glasgow and London before his appointment as consultant urologist to East Birmingham and Solihull health authorities. Although quietly spoken, with an unassuming manner, he possessed a sharp analytical mind. He was a keen and enthusiastic trainer of surgical registrars, many of whom were initiated into urology under his guidance. His calm and patient approach converted many a young surgeon to take up the specialty as a future career. He published articles on the retrocaval ureter (whilst in training) and developed a suction diathermy electrode for the cystoscopic treatment of superficial bladder tumours. His interest in bladder cancer led him to participate in numerous trials as a member of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), but even this did not dissuade him from continuing to enjoy smoking his pipe. In the days when it was still allowed in hospitals he was easy to track down by the clouds of smoke issuing from the consultant's room! He was a very private individual, rarely mixing socially with colleagues. However, those that did meet him found him to be a true gentleman, always stylishly dressed and a most intelligent conversationalist. His French wife Marie predeceased him. They had three children, two sons, Vincent and Laurence, and a daughter, Marie. He died following a severe chest infection on 27 December 2008.