The following obituary was published in printed volume 8 of Plarr's Lives of the Fellows: Brian Flannery was perceived by his colleagues as the archetypal Aussie, a big man in every way, big-hearted and with a big capacity for hard work. He was born on 5 May 1919 in Sydney, New South Wales, and was educated there first at Waverley College and then at St Vincent's Hospital. He graduated MB BS in 1943 and took house posts in the teaching hospital. He then served in the Australian Army Medical Reserve with the rank of captain. After the war he came to England, working as surgical registrar at the Chelmsford and Essex Hospital and taking the FRCS in 1949. He then moved to be senior surgical registrar at St Helier Hospital, Carshalton, where he was appointed consultant general surgeon in 1963. The heavy workload and diverse practice were admirably suited to his temperament, and he gave devoted service to the NHS there for 21 years, but always remained an Australian, and proud to be so. He was an avid reader of the medical literature but was not much of a contributor to it. In retirement he remained in his house in Cheam with his wife Jill, by whom he had four children, two of them following him into the medical profession. He died on 27 September 1994. The following obituary was published in printed volume 9 of Plarr's Lives of the Fellows: Brian Peter Flannery was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on 5 May 1919, the son of Patrick Joseph Flannery and his wife Bridget Rose née Egan and was one of five children, three boys and two girls. He was the only one to come to England. His father was an officer in the customs department at Sydney harbour. The family had emigrated around 1860 from Scariff, County Clare, Ireland. He was educated at Waverley College, becoming *dux* in 1937 with an outstanding academic record. He entered the University of Sydney, taking his clinical studies at St Vincent's Hospital and qualifying in 1943. His first post was house surgeon under V Kinsella, followed by a rotating surgical registrarship, all served at St Vincent's. In 1947 he served as Captain in the RAAMC at Victoria Barracks and the following year he came to England to continue his surgical studies at the Middlesex Hospital under the guidance of Sir Gordon Gordon-Taylor. In January 1949 he passed the primary and in November the Fellowship. He was RSO at Chelmsford Hospital in 1950 and surgical registrar at Tilbury Hospital under A Small until 1954. The next year he became senior surgical registrar to H Kidd and York Mason at St Helier Hospital, Carshalton. In 1964 he was appointed consultant surgeon to the Carshalton Hospital Group at St Helier, including Nelson, Wimbledon and Wilson Hospitals. Later on, with the closure of the smaller units, he was also appointed to Sutton General Hospital. In 1966 he carried out surgical research under Harold Ellis at Westminster Hospital. He retired in 1984. Brian supported the NHS concept and spent his working life making it a reality. A colleague recalls his keen diagnostic skills and precise operative technique based on a wealth of clinical experience. His logbook illustrated a range of procedures now impossible for one surgeon to encompass. He performed many leg amputations and gave his son Mark the advice 'don't smoke and don't ride a motor bike'. He was a loyal colleague and a good team member. He played his part in administration, becoming Chairman of the medical advisory committee in 1980 and was for many years group representative for the BMA. His written work included studies on low molecular Dextran in intestinal ischaemia and wound healing in pilonidal sinus. He was proud to be an Australian and many would consider him the archetypal Aussie, of athletic build, full of energy and with a love of sports, including swimming, surfing, tennis and golf, being a member of Walton Heath club. He married Jill Lettington Porter on 5 September 1951 at Grays, Essex. They had four children, two daughters, Judy Anne and Lindsey Jane, and two sons, Kim Peter, who is a general practitioner at Bromley, and Mark, a Fellow of our College and an orthopaedic surgeon at Guildford. Brian died on 27 September 1994 aged 74, from uncontrolled intra-abdominal sepsis.