John Nicholas Rimmer was born in Widnes, Lancashire, on 26 July 1924. His father was John Rimmer, a farmer, and his mother was Florence Woods. His father-in-law, Harold Frederick Leese, LDSRCS, was a dental surgeon in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, for forty years. John Rimmer attended Wade Deacon School in Widnes from 1935 to 1942 and then Liverpool University Medical School from 1942 to 1949. After qualifying in 1949 he had resident posts at the Providence Hospital in St Helen's, Lancashire. He undertook general surgical posts there and then at the Royal Southern Hospital, Liverpool. He settled in Erie, Pennsylvania, in 1957 and became a partner in an orthopaedic practice and surgeon to Hamot Hospital, Zem Zem Masonic Hospital and the Erie County Crippled Children's Society. He attended the Graduate School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and obtained the MD in 1956 and certification from the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery in 1957. He returned to Britain in 1961 due mainly to concern over his father's failing health. He obtained the MCh (Orth) in 1966 and embarked on a career in Britain, becoming consultant orthopaedic surgeon and surgeon in charge of the Accident and Emergency Department at Broadgreen Hospital in Liverpool in 1967, and consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Newsham General Hospital, Liverpool in 1972. He was appointed as a clinical lecturer in orthopaedics at Liverpool University in 1972, remaining in that post until 1986. His military service was as a flight lieutenant in the RAF acting as medical officer at the Port of Liverpool from 1950 to 1951, and then as squadron leader as deputy senior medical officer, Blackpool, from 1951 to 1952. He was active in the Merseyside branch of the British Red Cross Society. He married Barbara Mary Leese, an occupational therapist, on 13 April 1963 and they had a son, Guy Nicholas, who became a lawyer. As a young man, John was very interested in rugby football and was captain of the Liverpool University team in 1945 and played for Waterloo Rugby Club in Liverpool in the 1940s. He died on 3 June 1992 from carcinoma of the bladder, survived by his wife and son.