Bruce Pearson was born in Cairns, Queensland, on 29 July 1926, the son of Dr Henry Roy Pearson, a general practitioner with a special interest in obstetrics, and Louisa Agnes Crum. He went to Armidale High School, Perth Modern School and Sydney University, where he represented his school and college in practically every known sport. After graduating with honours he did house jobs in Sydney and then came to England to specialise in surgery, living in the Nuffield College, attending the RCS courses, and passing the FRCS in 1953. For a brief period he worked in South Shields, but returned to Australia to take up the Gordon Craig fellowship in urology at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1954, where he did research and was much influenced by Llew Wheeler. He was appointed visiting urologist at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1956. He visited the USA and the UK in 1962 to observe the major figures of the day, being particularly impressed by David Innes Williams. He became head of department in 1969. Bruce Pearson was well known and highly respected on the international urological scene, a regular visitor to BAUS and AUA, visiting professor to a dozen cities in Europe and the USA, and a staunch member of the Société Internationale d'Urologie, of which he was President-elect, when he died quite unexpectedly shortly before the meeting in Sydney was to take place. A deft and rapid operator, he was an expert with the Harris transvesical prostatectomy, though he could turn his hand to any urological procedure with equal facility. He was a better than average artist, illustrating his own papers and becoming honorary calligrapher to the Urological Society of Australasia, of which he was President from 1974 to 1975. He published extensively, making important contributions in the field of bladder cancer and other urological malignancies. Bruce was a cheerful and happy man, a fund of good stories, and delightful company. He married Gwen Wonders, a nurse, in September 1953. They had two daughters - Linda, a senior lecturer in law, and Lesley, a medical officer - and two sons - Robert, a solicitor and Andrew, a teacher. Bruce Pearson died on 28 February 1992, survived by his wife and family.