Fred Collins was born in 1933, in Australia. His father was Frederick Herbert Collins, his mother Stella Anne Crollick. After junior posts at St Vincent's Hospital, he came to England to specialise in surgery. He returned to St Vincent's in 1961, as a general surgeon, his particular interest being colorectal surgery. He was a tutor in surgical pathology at the University of Sydney, and was on the staff of the Manly Hospital, the Mater Misericordiae Hospital and St Vincent's. For many years he was warden of the clinical school at St Vincent's. He was a member of the New South Wales state committee of the Australasian College from 1978 to 1986, and an examiner in general surgery for ten years. He married Margaret Gustafson in 1960, and they had a daughter, Catherine, who became a lawyer. A memorable raconteur and after dinner speaker, the Fred Collins memorial lecture is dedicated to his memory. He died on 25 April 1997.