James Rudd Ratcliffe was born on 5 October 1899 in the Cape Province, South Africa, the son of a stock farmer who was killed in the Boer war within a few months of his birth. His mother was distinguished for her bravery in nursing the wounded during the siege of Ladysmith. He went to school in South Africa, and at the age of seventeen developed acute appendicitis with general peritonitis, the after-effects of which were felt throughout his life, and contributed to his being unfit for military service in the second world war. At the age of 20 he came to England and entered Guy's Hospital Medical School on his 21st birthday. He won the esteem of all his teachers at Guy's and qualified with the Conjoint Diploma in 1925, winning the Charles Oldham Prize in ophthalmology the same year. During the six months after qualifying he was house surgeon in the eye, and throat, and orthopaedic departments, and in 1926 was resident obstetric officer. In these clinical appointments he made good use of his opportunities and his chiefs appreciated his efficiency, combined with a quiet, self-assured manner which gave confidence to his patients. Ratcliffe went from London to Derby where he was appointed house surgeon to the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary, but returned to Guy's for the Fellowship course and passed the FRCS examination in 1930. He was then made assistant surgeon to the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary where he undertook general and orthopaedic surgery, and was also surgeon to the Hospital for Sick Children and the City Hospital. As consultant surgeon to the Infirmary he had to undertake a very heavy work load during the second world war, and eventually gave up the other hospitals and concentrated on the Royal Infirmary and his extensive private practice. He retired from hospital work in 1964. His wide experience and surgical skill enabled Ratcliffe to undertake successfully exacting procedures such as mitral valvotomy and portacaval shunts. And besides his purely clinical work he also served as Chairman of the Derby Division of the BMA from 1952 till 1956, and President of the Derbyshire branch in 1957. He had a distinguished record as a Freemason, and became generally known as the surgeon in Derby who flew his own aeroplane to association meetings. In 1949 both he and his wife obtained pilots licences and from then until 1960 they did most of their journeys by air. In 1933 Ratcliffe married Joyce Battersby and they had two sons and a daughter. He died in the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary on 7 November 1971 and his wife and family survived him.