Austin Edward Wheatley was born on 14 January 1927, and was educated at Emanuel School which was evacuated to Churcher's College, Petersfield, because of hostilities. He entered King's College London, in 1945 and commenced clinical studies at the Hospital in 1947, where he gained the Cheyne Prize in surgery, qualifying MB BS, in April 1950. Following National Service in the RAF, Wheatley returned to King's as a registrar progressing to the senior appointment. He achieved the Final Fellowship in 1955. During this time he spent three months in Toronto General Hospital and travelled extensively in the United States. This was a very formative period. He was appointed consultant general surgeon to the Woolwich Group of Hospitals in May 1962, and very soon made his mark both as a surgeon and also as a teacher. He worked tremendously hard and was known throughout the region because of the Fellowship course which he helped to start. An only child, whose parents both died of vascular catastrophies, he collapsed whilst making his ward rounds, characteristically on a Saturday morning, and, despite open cardiac massage, died a week later of a further coronary thrombosis, on 28 January 1970, at the age of 43. His wife and two children survived him.