Ugo Fisch was a leading otorhinolaryngologist and professor of otorhinolaryngology at the University of Zürich, Switzerland. He was born in Weinfelden, Switzerland on 3 March 1931 but, on the death of his father when he was two, moved to Lugano. He finished high school in 1949 and went to the University of Zürich to study medicine, qualifying in 1955. He trained in surgery at Winterthur and then in the otorhinolaryngology department at Zürich under Luzius Rüedi. In 1958 he gained his doctorate for his work on thrombosis. He then spent two years as a research fellow in otophysiology at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore and at the University of Chicago. He returned to Zürich, where he continued his specialist training in otorhinolaryngology. In 1966 he was promoted to associate professor and received his privatdozent for his research on lymphographic examinations of the cervical lymphatic system. During 1967 he spent six weeks at the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles, where he worked with William House on the latest surgical approaches to the internal auditory canal. On his return to Zürich, he began his fruitful collaboration with the neurosurgeon Gazi Yaşargil. In April 1970 Ugo was appointed to the chair of the otorhinolaryngology department at the University of Zürich. In 1998 he founded the Fisch International Microsurgery Foundation and, after his retirement from his academic post in 1999, he opened a private otology and skull base surgery unit at the Hirslanden Clinic in Zürich. His surgical skills were legendary. He wrote 300 papers and book chapters and several books. Two books were related to his microsurgical practice; *Tympanoplasty and stapedectomy: a manual of techniques* (Stuttgart, Thieme), first published in 1980, renamed *Tympanoplasty, mastoidectomy and stapes surgery* (Stuttgart, New York, Thieme) when a second edition appeared in 2008, which has been translated into German, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Chinese, Japanese and Turkish; and *Microsurgery of the skull base* (Stuttgart, New York, Thieme, 1988), which has been translated into German, Spanish, and Chinese. A third book was *Microscope and ear – the origin of microsurgery* (Zürich, Museum of Medical History of the University of Zürich, 2012), a historical work to honour his teachers and mentors. The quality of his books was augmented by the simple but detailed drawings that accompanied the texts. He was a member of seven editorial boards of academic journals and was awarded 27 honorary fellowships from countries around the world, including, in 1990, an honorary fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Ugo Fisch was a man of astonishing intellect in that he spoke at least five languages with ease and had an enormous breadth and depth of knowledge, both of history and science. He could discuss any scientific, historical or philosophical topic with ease. In 1964 he married Monika Haas and they had two children, Jann and Marina. His generosity was legendary. There were always two fellows in the department to whom he gave unstintingly of his knowledge and help. There were wonderful evenings at his home, and Monika ensured the fellows’ practical needs were met, including having somewhere to live, schooling for their children and furniture for their home etc. Ugo Fisch died after complications following a fall in his home and died in Zurich on 12 December 2019. He was 88. Everyone who knew him owes him an immense debt of gratitude for his contribution to his art, not only by improving the lives of thousands of patients but also by helping his fellows and students to advance their skills to a new level through his exceptional teaching. Ugo was one of the most outstanding and impressive people that one could meet. He was a man of astonishing talents who was never spoiled by his success. As a colleague and friend, one could not wish for better. We feel privileged to have known and worked with such a legendary figure.